October 26, 2023: How this company is uniquely empowering founders to grow

We chat with Amar Varma, a multi-founder and current CEO of Mantle.

Who is Amar?

Amar started his tech journey working in Silicon Valley’s semiconductor industry, where he contributed to several essential technologies including the PC graphics card and the USB1.0 interface.

After stints at both public and private companies, he joined a VC firm where his passion for entrepreneurship blossomed. Since then, Amar has founded several companies and funded dozens of others. He’s always looking for a challenge and cultivating solutions where current gaps exist. Previous companies founded include Xtreme Labs (acquired by Pivotal which went public and was acquired by VMware), Hatch Labs (parent company of Tinder acquired by Interactive Corp (IAC)), and Autonomic (acquired by Ford Motor Company).

What is Mantle?

Mantle is created by a team of serial entrepreneurs who have worked together for over a decade across various startups and prolific exits. We are taking a fresh look at equity ownership since we have personally felt the pain of managing equity at various stages of growth. We are building Mantle because we want to empower founders, operators, or lawyers who manage high growth companies to make better decisions.

Why start this venture?

Running a business is a complex task, requiring founders to be well-versed in various aspects, from finances to HR. Amar Varma, a serial entrepreneur with experience in VC and investing, emphasizes the importance of paying attention to details.

As businesses grow, managing these details becomes challenging, and relying on spreadsheets can lead to costly mistakes. Amar learned from personal experience that neglecting details can be expensive.

He recalls his early focus on capital allocation and the need for a transparent platform to manage equity-related matters, which led to the creation of Mantle.

Mantle is an AI-powered co-pilot for company ownership, designed to streamline operations, give founders more time to focus on their core business, and prevent costly mistakes.

By automating tasks and optimizing processes, Mantle aims to reduce the mental burden on founders and protect the company's reputation.

Amar at TechTO:

Check out a past presentation from Amar at one of our TechTO’s

The economics of exits with Amar Varma

You can also catch Amar at our upcoming TechTO: Premium event on November 6 at Rotman

We recently held an “Ask Me Anything” Session virtually for our TechTO Insiders, where they were able to ask questions, submit feedback and also share what’s on their minds at the current moment.

Here are the best highlights from the session:

Q: What (if any) added values are VCs assigning to profitability in today's climate?

In today's climate, venture capitalists (VCs) are placing a different emphasis on profitability for companies they invest in.

Canadian VCs, in particular, seem to be adopting a more conservative approach reminiscent of several years ago, prioritizing financial sustainability and the path to profitability rather than aggressive growth.

The focus is shifting towards evaluating the quality of growth, the sustainability of unit economics, and the potential for achieving cash flow positivity and profitability. VCs are interested in both scale and evidence of a sustainable competitive advantage (moat), striking a balance between growth and the ability to generate profits. Simply having profitability without growth may not be seen as valuable, as the primary goal is to build a strong, sustainable business rather than merely giving away money.

Q: In terms of building a business, how do you adapt to changing markets, increased demands and pressure from uncertain times or shifts?

When building a business, it's crucial to stay attuned to customer demand. Market changes and technology advancements are best addressed by focusing on what customers want rather than relying on predictions from consulting companies or accounting firms.

By staying close to your customers and continuing to engage with them, you can adapt to evolving demands and leverage technology to solve their problems effectively. The key to success is being demand-focused and maintaining an ongoing dialogue with customers, even after achieving initial product-market fit.

Q: What is an out reach email that would stand out to an investor?

There are a few main points that should be included when making an impact to an investor. They are as follows:

• Make note of how you found the investor/what they’re actively investing in

• Share what you’re working on and what you’ve fundraised so far

• Highlight your goals and purpose of out reach

• Contribute a unique insight and why your product is relevant within the current market or would be of interest to an investor

We’ll be sharing the full AMA session in the coming days… stay tuned.

If you’d like to have the opportunity to join sessions like this one, and gain access to exclusive meetups and networking events - consider becoming a TechTO Insider today.

For too many engineering leaders, the most stressful part of their job isn’t a bug or a system crash. The thing they worry about most is making the case that their engineering team is positively impacting the broader company.

In this CEO-approved slide deck, you’ll find simple ways to communicate how your team is increasing engineering efficiency, all while delivering business results consistently

From crystal-clear ways to illustrate how engineering resources match company priorities to how developers reduce the turnaround time on essential features, the CTO Board Deck is your secret weapon for owning any boardroom you enter.

*this is sponsored content

Attracting and retaining your first customers - a how to

5 pitch mistakes entrepreneurs make, and how to fix them

Arteria AI is in the headlines after closing this massive round

Apply for future opportunities with this digital healthcare company

Want to showcase your company, events, and opportunities to 60,000+ subscribers across the Canadian Tech Eco-system? Reach out to [email protected] to learn more