{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"The Startup CPG Podcast","title":"The 4-Part Diligence Framework Every Founder Should Know","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2186,"description":"\nIn this Investor Spotlight, host Hannah Dittman sits down with Ashley Hartman, Managing Partner at Bluestein Ventures, an early-stage firm investing at the intersection of culture, science, and technology in modern wellbeing and consumer brands.\n\nAshley's path to venture capital ran through financial consulting at NERA Economic Consulting and then operating strategy at her family's manufacturing business, giving her a rare blend of analytical rigor and hands-on operating experience. She's now co-Managing Partner at Bluestein Ventures, which evolved from a family office into an independent, family-backed VC fund, and has made more than 40 investments across her career, primarily at seed through Series A.\n\nHannah and Ashley dig into Bluestein's four-part diligence framework, the \"unicorn\" combination of traits Ashley looks for in a founder, why rapid growth can quietly mask a fragile business, what the first 90 days after an investment actually looks like, and how founders should think about timing their next raise.\n\nListen in as they discuss:\n\nBluestein Ventures' focus, check sizes, and the market forces shaping its investment thesis\nHow family office capital differs from traditional venture capital, and what that means for founders\nThe four-part scorecard Bluestein uses in diligence: vision, playbook, engine, and terms\nThe key CPG metrics Ashley wants founders to know cold, from net revenue by channel to LTV/CAC\nThe rare \"unicorn\" combination of vision and operational depth Ashley looks for in founders\nWhy broad distribution right out of the gate is often a red flag, not a strength\nWhat the first 90 days of a new investment partnership typically looks like\nWhy growth can conceal a fragile business, and what \"capital efficiency\" really means in practice\nHow Bluestein supports portfolio companies through setbacks, using two real (anonymized) examples\nAshley's framework for knowing exactly when a founder is ready to raise\n\nEpisode Links:\n\nAshley Hartman LinkedIn:...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/pMuUaMpWaAi3tfCEgC2OkLBVzokuLjLsIzwDIbGFqi4/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9hMTFl/MTgxNTNlZTAwZjU1/ZmNmNWM1ZjkwMDg5/NTU4MS5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}