My name is Charlie Greene. I'm the co-founder and CEO of Remento. 

Our mission at Remento is to help families capture and preserve their stories.

Remento is the first no-write life storybook ever created. 

We help families turn memories of aging relatives into a book of stories that can be written without anyone in the family having to write a word.

We've been at it for nearly 4 years. It's been an amazing journey. 

We raised a total of 2 rounds. We raised our first round, a $2.5M pre-seed in July of 2021. We then raised a $1.5M seed round. So we raised a total of $4M.

Upfront Ventures led our pre-seed round. We had 2 other institutions that were involved as well: Flybridge and Alumni Venture Group.

7 angels also joined in partnership with us: people who had deep expertise in technology leadership, CPOs of a variety of large companies, and people who understood the world of marketing, communication, and storytelling, which is ultimately our business.

When I was raising the money I was in business school. At the time, I remember hearing that “the best money you can take is quiet money.”

They’d say you want to get the money in the door, and then you just want to have investors that have faith in you, and they let you do your thing. 

I remember thinking, ‘this is my first time building a business, why on earth would I take money from people that don't want to be involved?’. I have so much to learn.

I've made a whole lot of mistakes along this journey, but finding investors that were committed to what we were doing and who were experts in their field was not one of them. 

I was really proud of the group that we assembled when we originally raised the pre-seed round. 

We then raised a seed round to fund our growth 18 months later and brought in a couple of additional investors, along with participation from pre-seed investors.

We raised our first round with a really strong team, a clear problem, and a strong hypothesis for the solution that we would need to build to make it work. 

We had done a lot of experimentation, and we had built a very early MVP, but it was clear that a meaningful investment in our core product would be necessary to bring our vision to market.

The first amount of money that we raised was to hire a product team that could build a product in the way that we had envisioned it. 

Ultimately, within a year of raising that money, we transitioned from the earliest prototype towards actually building the MVP.

That version was very different from how it exists today. It was a mobile app for facilitating in-person oral history interviews. 

We had tens of thousands of people download the app, and many of them loved it. But we realized fairly quickly that engagement was not doing what we needed it to do. 

Part of the thinking for us building that product was that there were tens of thousands of people every year who were Google searching, “how do I do this?”

We were providing a resource to be able to facilitate sitting down with a grandparent and interviewing them. 

But for so many people, what we heard was that they’d download the app, see how much work it’d be, and then save the app for the future when they’d be in person with their grandparents.

We were ultimately unable to get enough people using the product in a way that would make a freemium pathway to monetization actually viable. 

We faced a decision point where we could either double down on the concept and the solution, which we felt still had an opportunity to turn into a real company, or we could pivot.

That was one of the hardest decisions that we had to make because for every founder that doesn't pivot, there's another founder that pivots too soon.

We made the decision to pivot to a brand new product that could embrace the potential of AI to help us deliver value to our customers in ways that simply wouldn’t have been possible in the previous year.

Early signs of life tests were incredibly positive, which prompted us to raise the extra money 

It took us 8 months to go from the decision to pivot to launch the MVP of the Remento book as it exists today.

We launched in October of last year and we've been refining every part of the product experience since – focusing on distribution, GTM, and scaling our customer base.

When building our business, we prioritized attracting top-tier investors for credibility and support in recruiting and fundraising. 

We partnered with Upfront, deeply connected to storytelling in Los Angeles, crucial for our storytelling-focused platform. 

Once we secured our lead investor, we identified potential challenges we'd face and sought investors who could help address them. 

We involved LinkedIn, Snap, and Figma CPOs, passionate about our mission, as well as experts like the CEO of Hello Sunshine, Sarah Harden — an expert in the world of storytelling. 

Ultimately, the strategic mix of expertise helps us avoid common pitfalls.

I remember spending a lot of time within the business school accelerator, speaking with anyone that would talk to me. 

I had a Calendly, and I thought if I could do 20 meetings a week where I wasn't asking for money but rather for advice, then that would be great.

At the end of every call, I would always ask the same question, which was, “is there one person that you think I'd be smart to talk to?”

Every time I asked that question, almost without exception, I ended up talking to someone who was probably more qualified than the previous person to give me relevant advice. 

For me, it was about asking questions, going in with a humble mindset and a genuine interest in learning.

Eventually, I connected with industry experts in product, marketing, and storytelling.

By asking the right questions and staying open to learning, I found myself connecting with some incredible folks, including many who ultimately became our investors.

This unintentionally led us into a fundraising process before I realized it. 

I relied on connections rather than cold outreach, which never worked for me. Building a network is crucial; it ensures you're always a connection or two away from key people. 

During COVID, Zoom made it easy to conduct up to 15 calls a day. I used a personal CRM to keep track of conversations, taking notes and following up promptly. 

Initially, I spoke to hundreds, including investors and entrepreneurs, just seeking advice.

As soon as we started getting term sheets, I circled back to all the people I’d spoken with and let them know that we hadn't been looking for money but that we’d received a term sheet. 

We were really excited about building this business because we've spoken to so many people. I’d ask if they were interested in being involved.

That ended up working really well for us.

In meetings with investors, I emphasized the importance of the team and the problem we're solving. 

I highlighted why my co-founder and I are uniquely qualified, sharing my personal story to show my commitment to tackling this issue long-term. 

I ensured investors understood the genuine nature of the problem and our unique perspective and insights, differentiating us from others. 

Our primary focus was always on showcasing the strength of our team and the real problem we aimed to solve.

We built relationships with investors under the guise of learning, not actively raising. This approach allowed us to meet many potential partners.

Our first term sheet had poor terms, so we declined. By the time we received our second, I knew who I wanted for our pre-seed round.

I then reached out to my network, explaining our accelerated timeline and offering a 3-day window for interested parties. 

Some were content to wait and pay a premium later, while others, unable to lead, were ready to follow once we secured a lead investor.

This strategy helped us assemble a strong group of investors who understood our vision and were aligned with our goals.

Pivoting our business was challenging, but determining the right amount to raise was equally difficult.

Ideally, you raise just enough to reach the next significant valuation milestone. However, as a first-time founder, I underestimated costs by 150-250%.

It's easier to raise when things are going well. But if you're halfway through your timeline and struggling, it's not an ideal time to be fundraising.

Pacing our spending was another challenge. Our second round in 2023 faced a drastically different economic landscape compared to our 2021 raise.

Finding investors still optimistic about our space after our pivot was tough.

I'm proud we succeeded in raising when many peers couldn't due to economic changes, ultimately leading to their shutdowns.

As a founder, loving to talk about your business is crucial - you're the chief storytelling officer. Whether it's a strength or a development area, improvement comes through practice.

Don’t let investors be the first people to hear the story of your company and why you’re the perfect founder to start it. 

Begin by sharing your idea with anyone willing to listen — VCs, mentors, or interested parties. Engage in these circles extensively before shifting to a fundraising mindset.

When you start fundraising, you need to be polished. Those initial hundreds of conversations will hone your pitch to perfection.

Remember: Practice makes perfect, and your passion should shine through every time you discuss your venture.

I'd recommend Upfront Ventures, 10 out of 10, over and over again. They are phenomenal, deeply involved, very strategic, incredibly thoughtful and great partners to us.

I'm a huge fan of Matt Mochery's book, The Great CEO Within. If you haven't read that book, you should if you're starting a business. You can read the entire thing for free in a Google Doc. 

I’d also recommend Lenny's product podcast. He's got a great breadth of folks who all think about the early stage in different ways.

I also make sure that I spend time engaging and reading about things that have nothing to do with business. I draw a lot of inspiration from podcasts that have literally nothing to do with anything related to my day-to-day life.

Cold outreach is ineffective. Instead, network for warm introductions. Invest in tools like LinkedIn Premium to map your connections if needed.

Founding can be isolating, so seek community through accelerators, incubators, or local meetups. The best fundraising advice often comes from peers currently raising, not just successful veterans.

When raising, don't fixate on prestigious names. Prioritize investors who can actively contribute to your business growth, regardless of their status.

Remember: Networking beats cold calls, community supports growth, and value trumps prestige in choosing investors.