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Clarity

Boris Wertz

Vancouver, British Columbia

Entrepreneur turned investor. Co-founder AbeBooks (sold to Amazon), early-stage investor through @versiononevc (60+ investments, including Abstract, Ada Support, Coinbase, Outreach, Shippo, Top Hat). Husband and dad of 4.

$5.00/min

Boris donates to Science World British Columbia ($7,742.28)

216

216 Calls

92

92 Reviews

18 minutes
Avg. call

Consumer Internet Product Fundraising Start-ups Marketplaces E-commerce SaaS - Enterprise & SMB B2B Early Stage International Growth

Call me to talk about

Product Strategy

I am a product guy at heart. I like thinking through product strategy and how to create the most amount of value for a customer.

http://versiononeventures.com/does-your-product-pass-the-toothbrush-test/

I co-founded a marketplace business (JustBooks / ABeBooks - sold to Amazon in 2008) and have invested in half a dozen B2B and B2C marketplaces since (e.g. Indiegogo, tindie, GroupTalent, Clarity). Happy to share my experiences as entrepreneurs and investor in this space.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ciocentral/2013/02/07/5-tips-for-building-a-two-sided-online-marketplace/

I have successfully raised money as a startup founder and I see hundreds of startups fundraising every year as a VC. Happy to share best practices.

One of my investment areas is Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and I have made half a dozen of investments in that space (Abstract, Ada Support, Clio, Jobber, Unbounce, Zenput). Happy to share sales & marketing strategies and discuss business models.

http://techcrunch.com/2013/03/23/narrow-focus-is-helping-verticals-win-enterprise-software-but-it-challenges-remain/

Besides SaaS and marketplaces / platforms I focus on e-commerce as an investment area. I have made investments in different areas from vertically integrated commerce (Indochino, Frank & Oak, Julep) to MLM models (Chloe & Isabel) to commerce marketplaces (tindie).

http://techcrunch.com/2012/09/29/the-next-big-e-commerce-wave-vertically-integrated-commerce/

Business Strategy

I like to help entrepreneurs think through their business strategy - how to scale a company, hire the right people to take it to the next level or what kind of investors to get on board.

http://versiononeventures.com/does-your-product-pass-the-toothbrush-test/

Answers 3
Reviews 92

Answers

Boris Wertz answered

When recording income for a marketplace startup, is it typical to use the gross transaction or just the fees collected per payment?

You usually only recognize the commissions as revenues and use the term "Gross Merchandise Value" (GMV) to describe the size of the marketplace (value of all transactions going through the site)

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Finance

Business Transactions

Marketplaces

Boris Wertz answered

What is the best strategy for getting into a top accelerator (Y-Combinator, Tech Stars, Dream It, etc.)?

Build a great product and get some early traction. Assemble a top-notch term of co-founders. Understand your space like nobody else. Be good at telling a great story and communicating your vision.

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Accelerator

Fundraising

Raising Venture Capital

Boris Wertz answered

How do you setup a network of suppliers and what sort of infrastructure do you need to setup replicable dropshipping partnerships.

Heard good things about GoodsCloud (www.goodscloud.com)

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Shipping

E-commerce

Reviews

Great advice, super clear, thank you.

Luis Corrêa d'Almeida Source: Clarity

Very informative discussion. Very insightful and validated all my thoughts and assumptions. Definitely recommend him.

JR Cahatol Source: Clarity

Boris was super helpful, i now have a better direction on what to focus, and how i can potentially reach our goal.

Carlos Domingues Source: Clarity

Boris' deep insights on Amazon have been very helpful to us. Would highly recommend.

Mohammad Aqueeb Source: Clarity

Great insight, loved our chat.

Yogesh Shetty Source: Clarity

Good to get more clarification from Boris regarding our current business model and where to focus on things!

Jason Lin Source: Clarity

Had a short call with Boris to clarify a lot of my doubts and concerns. We came to a conclusion that matched with my hunch to where to take our startup as well. Very productive!

Jason Lin Source: Clarity

2nd call with Boris. Very trustworthy individual!

Peter Antonov Source: Clarity

Boris listened attentively & provided valuable strategies to help move the process forward! Great call!

Kam Lal Source: Clarity

Phenomenal call. Outsized ROI for my time and money. Boris is an extremely smart and down to earth guy. Highly recommend!

Peter Antonov Source: Clarity

It was really helpful to talk to Boris. He listened to the questions and gave really simple feedback on what to be thinking about and doing.

Highly recommend!

Scott Pierce Source: Clarity

Member since February 2012