Welcome to Crown Castê, your financial literacy podcast for small businesses. We publish inspiring, insightful conversations with investors and stewards of capital, about why they decided to make placements into a specific portfolio company of theirs. In today's episode, we are joined by Richard Cummins.
Richard is a product marketing manager at Spotify. Prior to that, he worked at Google for 7 years, where he held a variety of roles managing relationships with Google’s most strategic advertisers, agencies and partners. Richard is the producer of Inspirational Founders, a documentary film chronicling the journeys of black founders in the UK growing their companies and raising capital. He’s an angel investor with the Black Angel Group, a collective of over 100 black tech operators who invest in seed to Series A startups, an advisor to UK Black Tech and a board member of Behind Every Kick, a charity that empowers young people through sport.
In this episode, we discuss:
1. The Tech Ecosystem in London and the Role of Community Builders:
What is Richard's background and how did he become involved in London's tech ecosystem?
How does he see his role as a community builder and how has that impacted the ecosystem in the last decade?
What does he see as the power and value of community for entrepreneurs and how has that influenced his own career trajectory?
2. Economic Empowerment for Black Communities:
Why does Richard emphasize economic empowerment, particularly for black communities?
How did this focus emerge and what impacts does he hope to achieve?
What role does the building of equity and wealth creation play in his vision for empowering black communities?
3. Angel Investing and Building Diversified Assets:
What frameworks does Richard use in his angel investment strategy?
How has his participation in angel syndicates and individual investing shaped his approach?
How has his tech background and experience informed his investment decisions?
4. The Role of Syndicates in Angel Investing:
What are syndicates and how do they function in the investment landscape?
How has Richard's involvement in the Black Angel Group syndicate influenced his investing activities?
What kind of deals does he look for and how does he source them?
5. Advice for Founders on Raising Capital:
What is Richard's advice for founders who are beginning their journey in raising capital?
Should they join a community, participate in an accelerator, or pursue other avenues?
How can founders benefit from understanding the investor mindset?
6. The Intersection of Technology, Community Building, and Economic Empowerment:
How do technology, community building, and economic empowerment intersect in Richard's work and vision?
What initiatives has he participated in that exemplify this intersection?
How does he plan to continue leveraging these areas for positive impact in the future?
Richard’s LinkedIn Profile: http://linkedin.com/in/richardcummins
