Aug 31, 2018 · 29m · 20vc
20VC: Casper Founder Philip Krim on The Right Way To Think About Marketing Channel Diversification, When To Accept Strategic Investors & How To Successfully Build Out Your Exec Team
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gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions
In this episode of The 20 Minute VC, host Harry Stebbings interviews Casper co-founder and CEO Philip Krim about building a global sleep brand, navigating omni-channel retail, raising strategic capital, and scaling executive teams.
How this conversation actually went
Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Harry holds 31.6% of the talking time here. How this is scored →
Harry as informed peer 2.9 Guest teaching 2.6 Guest disagreement 0.9 Harry pushing back 1.6
speaking balance: gold is Harry, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 24:55 Rejection of valuation-focused fundraising advice
Philip directly rejects the standard advice that founders should run fundraising processes to maximize valuation, arguing that investor alignment is far more important.
Hardest push from Harry ▶ 9:47 Challenging product expansion as core weaknessHarry refuses to adopt a purely complimentary tone and instead confronts Philip with a skepticism held by VCs that expanding line items indicates a weak core market.
Biggest teaching moment ▶ 6:52 Explaining retail storefronts as acquisition leveragePhilip re-educates the host on brick-and-mortar economics, demonstrating how lease costs effectively substitute digital marketing acquisition fees while accelerating regional sales.
Harry holds his own ▶ 9:47 Articulating venture investor thesis on market scaleHarry demonstrates strong venture knowledge by citing specific investor pushback regarding line extensions to challenge Casper's multi-product roadmap.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
| Chapter | Topic | Harry as informed peer | Guest teaching | Guest disagreement | Harry pushing back | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founding Casper and Rethinking the Sleep Industry | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Harry introduces Philip warmly and asks standard background questions about founding Casper and discovering the gap in the sleep market. Philip collaboratively outlines the origin story and early thesis around mattress buying. | |
| Expanding into Physical Retail and Omni-Channel Economics | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | Harry asks specifically about unit economics and margin changes when transitioning from DTC to opening 200 physical stores. Philip educates on how retail rent replaces digital marketing acquisition costs on the P&L. | |
| Managing Operational Complexity and Product R&D | 5 | 4 | 2 | 4 | Harry directly introduces a common VC critique that expanding product lines indicates an insufficiently attractive core market. Philip counters by highlighting private equity returns in mattresses and detailing Casper's R&D capabilities. | |
| Channel Diversification and Competition in DTC | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | Harry probes why competing direct-to-consumer mattress brands are struggling. Philip explains Casper's deliberate diversification away from Facebook and Google ad reliance into genuine product engineering. | |
| Accepting Strategic Capital and Raising Large Rounds | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | Harry brings up the common debate among founders regarding strategic investors and potential ulterior motives. Philip offers clear advice on aligning non-financial strategic incentives with company goals. | |
| C-Suite Executive Hiring and CEO Responsibilities | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Harry cites conversations with Casper board member Dennis Phelps to ask about executive hiring choices. Philip agrees with Harry's framing on executive hiring timing and CEO responsibilities. | |
| Quick Fire Insights and Future Vision for Casper | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | During the quick fire round, Philip rejects standard fundraising advice regarding price optimization, emphasizing investor alignment over top valuation. |
Statements from this episode (11)
Casper Has Raised Over $239M from NEA, IVP, and Leonardo DiCaprio
“And since then, they've raised over two hundred and thirty nine million dollars in funding from the likes of NEA, Lira Hippo, IVP, Norwest Venture Partners, and even include Leonardo DiCaprio on their cap table.”
Casper Will Scale Physical Retail to Over 200 Stores by 2021
“We now have 20 locations throughout the U.S. And Canada, and they've been doing so well that we're now committed to scaling that to over 200 stores in the next three years.”
Casper Markets With Physical Stores Grow Faster Than Online-Only Markets
“They continue to build awareness about our products and our brand and the markets where we have stores are actually growing faster than the markets where we don't have stores.”
Krim: 20 Million Americans Will Buy $15B in Mattresses in 2018
“We know this year that something like twenty million Americans will buy something over fifteen billion dollars worth of mattresses”
Krim: Casper Employs 50 R&D Staff in San Francisco Casper Labs
“They're actually in our San Francisco office working on bringing next generation of products to market that impact sleep. And it's a group of about 50 folks we call the Casper Labs program”
Krim: Casper's growth accelerated in 2018, beating 2017 quarterly benchmarks
“Our growth has built this year even faster than our growth last year. 2017 was a banner year. It was awesome, but Q two in 2018 was stronger than Q two of 20 17. Same with Q one. Q two of 20 18 even beat Q one of 2018.”
Facebook and Google Are a Very Small Part of Casper's Marketing
“We were never overly reliant on just Facebook or just Google. In fact, those two channels specifically are a very small part of our mix because we knew the economics were going to get very tough.”
Krim: Strategic corporate investors often have non-financial motives unlike VCs
“A lot of times, strategic are investing for reasons that are not financially motivated, unlike a VC who usually you know what their motivation is. So understanding what the motivation is, and then what they're looking to solve with the investment, I think is r…”
Krim: Casper should have hired CFO and executive leadership team earlier
“I absolutely wish I had hired Greg and almost all of my leadership team earlier than when we did.”
Krim: Founders should start executive searches the moment they consider hiring
“My advice to any founder when they're talking about executive level hires is as soon as you have the inkling that you might want to look for that, I would kick off the search and try to get out there as soon as possible. When they find the right hire, they wis…”
Philip Krim Predicts Casper Will Become a Global Brand Like Nike
“I believe Casper will become a truly global brand, a brand that you generously echoed in the same vein as Nike or Under Armour. These are brands that have really been catalysts To changes in the consumer mindset and landscape, and I think Casper will do that o…”