Irrvrnt VC’s Gluck Goes From Marketing Startups to Investing in Them

I had the pleasure of interviewing Andrew Gluck the Founder & Solo GP of irrvrnt. irrvrnt is an early-stage fund focused on DTC, AdTech, and NextGen Commerce. They invest $150k — $350k into founders with strong founder-market fit building in large and growing markets. They are happy to invest early: they were the first check a few times, committed before a lead multiple times, and ~50% of their checks are in a company’s first non-founder / F+F round. Select portfolio companies include Lunchbox, Caraway, co-op, SoleSavy, and more. Around 50% of their investments in under-represented founders.

Thank you so much for joining us!

How did you break into tech investing?

I spent about a decade in the digital marketing world. I ran digital customer acquisition for SmartSign, Diapers.com and Wag.com, and the Vitamin Shoppe. In 2014, I co-founded Agency Within (now WITHIN), the largest independent digital marketing agency in the US. I had the opportunity to work with and run digital marketing for enterprise brands like Nike, Shake Shack, Etsy, and for startups like Goop, Rothy’s, Billie, Helix. After a successful exit in 2018, I transitioned into early-stage venture and started investing early stage startups. I made about 25 direct investments over 2.5–3 years and I’ve now recently transitioned into investing out of my fund.

What is it that excites you about investing?

Being early. The same feeling some might get from discovering the latest brand or the coolest band — I get that from finding and funding entrepreneurs and ideas before they’re ‘hot.’ Many funds like to brag about who co-invests in the deals they do; my badge of honor is the funds that invest in the rounds after I invest.

What has been your biggest challenge when it comes to finding the “right deals”?

Avoiding the noise. There is so much innovation these days and new industries are picking up steam every few months (see: creator economy three months ago and the blockchain space today). It’s important, for me, to stay grounded in what I know and were I can find and fund the best founders — which for is ecommerce and its related fields. It doesn’t mean I should be blind to innovation but should look for the intersection with my circle of competence.

What major trends do you expect to see in technology innovation over the next 5 years that excites you?

Ownership and agency. Tech still has a long way to go in many regards (diversity, equality) but it has made things better for many via flattening the world, making it more global, and democratizing access. I’m excited to see not just the next wave of startups but the next generation of entrepreneurs that are enabled and emboldened by today’s tech.

If you had to share, “words of wisdom,” with a Founder who’s about to start their own startup, what would they be?

Find your why and find your edge. You will face competition (that’s okay); you likely aren’t the first one to come up with the idea (that’s okay too). But you are the first person with your experience and background to attempt to solve this particular problem. Bring those experiences to your approach.

How can our readers follow you on social media?

Closing in on 5k followers on Twitter — @irrvrntVC.

This was very insightful. Thank you so much for joining us!