Hi Reader,

From day one at Venice, almost every member told me the same thing: they wanted a safe space for open, vulnerable conversations about the challenges they're facing.

Our new All Hands calls will offer deep discussions with people who've been there or are currently going through the same things.

It's taken us a few iterations to nail this (shoutout to everyone who joined our beta calls and gave brutally honest feedback). But we're ready…

Here's how it works:

• One founder leads each week: Fred kicked us off. Madi's up next.
• Opening spotlight: The lead spends 5 minutes describing a current challenge or key blocker they want to work through: scaling ops, hiring decisions, funding rounds, whatever's keeping them up at night.
• Roundtable discussion: Then we dig in. Everyone contributes. No holds barred.

We're capping the initial groups at ~10 people because intimacy matters. It’s hard to get vulnerable and go deep with 50 people on a Google Meet.

Over the coming weeks, we'll be building a calendar so you can see who's leading and what topics will be covered on each call.

Want in? Fill out this form to RSVP.

This is what Venice was built for. Founders helping founders figure it out together.

P.S. Reserve your spot for our Amsterdam event here — we’ll be announcing more details and speakers next week :)

01. Around the Community 💬

• Kasper shared some of the economics behind LABFRESH’s retail presence. The post went viral, picking up 112,000 views in its first 4 hours!
• DrinkWell is hiring a part-time Logistics Coordinator.
• Batch LDN is hiring a Shop & Events Manager.
• Jennifer Bailey shared a BTS look at Calla’s latest photoshoot.
• Ruben Peters looks back at the early days of FLASKE — building on evenings and weekends from “the smallest office in the Netherlands.”

02. Inspo 💭

• Amsterdam-based Holie’s announced its UK launch by taking some oversized packaging around London.
• Apple TV launched a haptic trailer for its F1 movie (give it a watch on iPhone). Don’t have an iPhone, read about it here.
• This music video was fully produced using Google’s VEO. Has anyone tried VEO for ads yet?
• Wine brand Nice launched its “Nice and slice” campaign with Homeslice Pizza.
• Trip partnered with Calm to launch its latest flavour, Trip Wid Strawberry.

03. Tactics, Trends, and Tools 📈

• Outdoor Voices founder Ty Haney raised $11m for her rewards platform Try Your Best. TYB lets consumers earn rewards from their favourite brands based on how much they engage with them.
• Yuzu is a new platform that’s trying to turn your unboxing into a marketing channel.
• Are most brands getting post purchase surveys wrong?

04. Market Moves 🌍

• L’Oréal announced an agreement to acquire a majority stake in the British skincare brand Medik8.
• Vitamin drink VITHIT is now being stocked in Tesco.
• Professional footballer Mario Götze is investing in pre-seed, seed and series A rounds across Europe.
• Amazon has promised to crack down on fake reviews after an investigation from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
• Luxury retailer Fortnum and Mason has launched its first subscription membership.
• Zara owner Inditex posted weaker-than-expected first quarter sales while flagging a slower start to the summer season than last year. Inditex attributed the slowdown to uncertainty around US tariffs.

Supporters

The Venice newsletter is supported by Portless:

Struggling with tariffs? Unsure about upcoming changes? With Portless, you only pay tariffs after your customers pay you, so your cash always moves faster than your costs. Get the details here.

Let me know what you’re working on! If you ever want to chat / get a second opinion - just let me know. If I don’t have the answer I’ll connect you to someone who will :)

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