Trends

Have you ever wanted to create your own podcast? How about one that brings in $100k a year while helping small businesses grow?

What you need to know: Over 40 million Americans suffer from mental illness, including depression and anxiety, with 1 in 5 saying they have an unmet need. In 2018, over 100 deals in this space amounted to $800M in funding, up over 150% YoY.

In the Trends Facebook group this week, subscriber Jay Wa discussed an app he is planning in the legal tech space that could provide “simple, legally-binding contracts on the fly.” But he wants to be sure he’s finding product market fit and asked the group for advice. 

Jilliene Helman is all about the Real Estate Investment Trust, or REIT. She is the 32-year-old CEO of RealtyMogul, an LA-based commercial real estate investing platform with over $2B in assets.  

What you need to know: Worldwide, the number of people over 65 totals 635m and could rise to 2B by 2060. The people getting older and living longer want to age comfortably at a home, but a lack of connectivity and social isolation makes it difficult. Venture capital funds have started investing tens of millions in age tech.     

In 2009, long before the “resale market” had picked up steam, thredUP incorporated. Now, 10 years later, they’ve raised over $300m in funding, including a new $175m round announced in August. They also introduced a new platform powering apparel resale for retailers and brands.

What you need to know: Pet supplements have risen in popularity because of the increase in pet ownership and humanization of pets. The $636m supplement market is expected to grow at a 5% rate, and CBD is leading the way. CBD sales are expected to increase at a 57% CAGR. 

Her last job was technically for Walmart. Catharine Dockery, the founder of VC fund that specializes in vice, was chief of staff for Bonobos founder Andy Dunn. After Bonobos was bought by Walmart, she worked several months for the company that cared so much about maintaing a squeaky clean image it didn’t sell music with explicit lyrics in the 1990s.   

See the necklace pictured above? Surprise, it’s a vibrator.

Pinterest hired Sahil Lavingia to build its iPhone app in 2010. He was 19, a college dropout and a self-taught coder. His stock options would end up being valued around $40m.