When Brynn Putnam bought her final firm, Mirror, to Lululemon for $500 million in the beginning of the pandemic, it seemed to this editor like she’d bought the good health firm too quickly.
Instead, the timing proved good. The dwelling health craze crashed practically as abruptly because it peaked throughout that first yr of lockdowns. Meanwhile, after a yr as a normal supervisor at Lululemon, Putnam had new working insights, a giant win underneath her belt, and a recent concept that she has since changed into a brand new firm that can launch publicly in 2025.
The enterprise agency Lerer Hippeau has already participated in a extremely aggressive spherical for that stealthy startup – the agency led Mirror’s $three million seed spherical years in the past, too – and on Wednesday night time in New York, I sat down with each Lerer Hippeau managing companion Ben Lerer and Putnam to speak about what she is constructing. We additionally talked a few broader rebound that’s occurring in the end for client tech – a few of it being led by founders who led the final wave of profitable client startups.
Following are excerpts from that chat, edited flippantly for size. You also can watch the total interview beneath.
Ben Lerer on writing that first verify:
When we invested [in Mirror], Brynn had a really convincing however completely janky demo, which was mainly a kind of like a two-way mirror with a pc display behind it to indicate you what a mirror would seem like if she was in a position to increase tens of thousands and thousands of {dollars} to really produce such a factor. Really curiously, she had designed a contraption that was proprietary to her [own line of boutique gyms at the time] . . . and once we noticed it, it was simply clear that Brynn was not only a intelligent enterprise builder who had constructed a superb health club model for herself however was additionally an inventor. Brynn received us over very, in a short time, and possibly we seemed loopy for a number of years, however ultimately much less so.
Brynn Putnam on promoting Mirror simply 4 years after founding it:
We weren’t on the market. We weren’t searching for an acquirer. We had simply actually launched. But we had a longtime partnership with Lululemon. I had labored with them at my gyms for a few decade, and we had been spending plenty of time with them, making content material and doing fascinating occasions with them, and it simply felt like the fitting match for us to have the ability to actually take Mirror into properties internationally with velocity and certainty. We actually simply felt prefer it was this chance we couldn’t cross on.
As for whether or not Lerer weighed in with recommendation on that sale, he mentioned:
I did have an opinion on it. Look, enterprise is a humorous enterprise due to the facility regulation and the concept you’re alleged to take these moonshots and also you’re going to have a bunch of losses however your massive wins are going to vary the entire world. I consider within the energy regulation, however I additionally suppose typically enterprise loses sight of simply actually primary, good, sound enterprise decision-making. And there are some normal truths in enterprise, like: promote when others are grasping, and purchase when others are scared. You don’t at all times must proceed to return to the on line casino time and again and once more. In this case, when Brynn got here and mentioned, ‘Hey, I got this offer, I’m actually desirous about taking it,’ I mentioned, ‘Yeah, you should do this for you; this is amazing for us. And if you’re getting pushback from other people [like later-stage investors with a different cost basis], I’m joyful to attempt to be useful, however you’re frankly rather more forceful and highly effective than I’m and also you’ll deal with this.’ For a yr or two after, I believe Brynn most likely obtained some individuals who second-guessed it, and now I believe folks see the arc of the complete class and understand it was only a completely good transfer.
Putnam on working afterward as an exec at Lululemon, which later threw within the towel on Mirror:
An investor who I love . . .advised me on the time that I needs to be gracious and study, that all through the lifetime of your organization, you’re promoting your…
