On the TechTO stage ×1
First seen on the TechTO stage in 2020. Every talk is searchable — ask the archive about Nikhil ↗
In their words
There's really three core components to most of the investments that I made at Shasta. The first is a company that has early signs of customer love, early signs of product market fit. The second is a company that has the potential to have a decades-long customer relationship. And the third is mission-driven founders who are working on something that they believe is their life's work.
I realized a couple of years in that art was never going to be my life's work. But the light bulb had gone off for me from pitching investors — that at some point I'd love to be on the other side of the table.
I did leave Shasta a couple of months ago. I've been making personal investments and I've been dreaming up the next chapter. It's actually quite a fun phase, because right now I'm able to invest in anything.
More from TechTO ×1
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Quick answers
Who is Nikhil Basu Trivedi?
Co-founder and general partner of Footwork, the San Francisco seed firm he launched in 2021 with Mike Smith, formerly COO of Stitch Fix and Walmart's US e-commerce business. He started Artsy as a Princeton undergraduate with Carter Cleveland, then invested at Insight Partners and Shasta Ventures.
What did he invest in at Shasta Ventures?
Mostly consumer technology at Series A, where he led rounds including The Farmer's Dog, Canva, ClassDojo, Lattice and Imperfect Foods. He joined Shasta in 2012 and was promoted to partner in November 2017.
What does he look for in a company?
Three things, as he set them out on the TechTO stage on 2020-09-25: early signs of customer love, the potential for a decades-long customer relationship, and founders who treat the problem as their life's work. He had left Shasta a few months before that appearance.