Welcoming Bedrock to Unsplash
Today we welcome Bedrock (Geoff Lewis, Eric Stromberg) as investment partners in Unsplash.
Bedrock’s investment completes our Series A investment round. We have now raised a total of $11M to build a new economic model around photography.
We hit it off with Bedrock before we even met. A few months ago, Geoff shared Bedrock’s thesis: A focus on finding narrative violations. It’s one of the most interesting, clear, and articulate thesis’ I have ever seen.
Geoff and Eric founded Bedrock on the belief that profound businesses often exist in contrast to what most people believe to be true.
We‘ve had our share of narrative violations with Unsplash:
- We don’t fit into a popular investment narrative. We’re not a VR, chatbot, or scooter company.
- Unsplash is difficult to categorize. Are you a social photo app like Instagram? Are you a camera app like VSCO? Aren’t those opportunities gone now any way?
- Are you stock photos? That market’s dead.
- Wait, you’re from Montreal?
Sometimes these factors matter to a business. Other times, popular narratives take hold so strongly they create mental shortcuts that blind us.
If popular narratives are held as truths, it makes it much easier for transformational businesses that don’t fit popular narratives to die.
Bedrock looks closer. Geoff and Eric dig for the potentially exceptional tuned out by the popular narratives that dominate center stage.
Bedrock is looking to fund those who build not to fit into a popular narrative. But who build to make extraordinary impact.
Deep conviction. In it for the long run. Aiming to enable innovation no matter where it comes from. Just like us.
Geoff, Eric, Bedrock. Honored to have you on this journey with us. Excited for what’s to come.
