{"id":857,"date":"2019-01-10T16:00:12","date_gmt":"2019-01-10T16:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/williambissett.com\/?p=857"},"modified":"2019-01-11T00:13:28","modified_gmt":"2019-01-11T00:13:28","slug":"charlotte-angel-connection-episode-079-bill-dalessandro-founder-and-ceo-of-element-brands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/williambissett.com\/2019\/01\/10\/charlotte-angel-connection-episode-079-bill-dalessandro-founder-and-ceo-of-element-brands\/","title":{"rendered":"Charlotte Angel Connection Episode 079: Bill D’Alessandro Founder and CEO of Elements Brands"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Today on the Charlotte Angel Connection, we are fortunate to have Bill D’Alessandro<\/a> join us. Bill is the founder and CEO of Elements Brands<\/a> which is a consumer products company he started while he was in Colorado and brought back to Charlotte to grow and evolve. Bill wants to make Elements Brands the home for consumer products companies.<\/p>\n

By 2025, Elements Brands wants to be in a place where they are doing 12 acquisitions per year.<\/p>\n

By 2050, they want to be the Proctor and Gamble of consumer product businesses.<\/p>\n

Those aren’t small goals. And Bill isn’t going to back down from them.<\/p>\n

Bill raised money in 2016 when he made the decision to go for it and really work to growing to a large company.\u00a0 He used a great quote from a friend of his when talking about his decision – “you can only coast downhill.”\u00a0 He raised money from a small group of 5 investors who also serve on his board.\u00a0 He didn’t want to raise institutional capital because of the typical demands that comes with that type of money.\u00a0 Instead Bill – not surprisingly – was very intentional about how and from whom he raised money.\u00a0 His investors have a broad array of skills they bring to the company in helping Bill grow to their goal of being the Proctor and Gamble of 2050.<\/p>\n

Yet Bill has a keen focus on the culture of his company and takes great pride in the fact no employee has voluntarily left the company since Bill brought it back to Charlotte.\u00a0 They’ve also been highlighted as a “Best Place to Work” for several years now and I’d be surprised if they don’t keep that streak alive for quite some time.\u00a0 When I asked Bill where the nap room was he had a great response – “People think that culture is ping pong tables but ping pong tables are the result of good culture.”<\/p>\n

The recent acquisition – the Natural Dog Company<\/a> – will look more familiar to those who follow Elements Brands going forward.\u00a0 This acquisition brought in 7 employees to the company and became its second largest brand upon acquisition.\u00a0 Bill has spent nearly 8 years working on the business getting it ready to scale and absorb consumer product companies.\u00a0 The size and value of future acquisitions will increase as their capacity does but also as founders see what a great place their company can land when they sell to Bill and his team at Elements Brands.<\/p>\n

Bill stated mid-way through the interview that Elements Brands has a results based culture.\u00a0 I think those results are going to be pretty dang good in the next 10 to 20 years.\u00a0 Enjoy today’s show and don’t forget to share it with your friends and colleagues so they can learn more about Bill and his team too.<\/p>\n

Local Note and Thoughts:<\/p>\n

Seed the South<\/a> – which happened January 9, 2018 – was a big success.\u00a0 Lots of really good startup companies were there promoting what they are doing.\u00a0 Sam and her team with Collective Hustle did a fantastic job and I expect we will have another Seed the South and more events like these going forward right here in Charlotte.<\/p>\n

StartCharlotte<\/a> is having their annual StartCharlotte Live event on Tuesday January 22. They will have awards for various things such as startup of the year, innovation award, investor of the year and servant leader award.\u00a0 Please vote for those awards by clicking here<\/a>.\u00a0 You can register for the StartCharlotte Live event here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Finsiders<\/a> is also having their annual awards on Wednesday January 23 (click here to register).\u00a0 You can vote for their awards by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

QC Fintech<\/a> is also in the process of interviewing for their spring class and after speaking with Dan recently they are seeing some really good companies.\u00a0 Be on the lookout for announcements for the spring class and the opportunities you will have to meet them and ultimately support them as they come to Charlotte for 12 weeks to incubate their ideas and companies.<\/p>\n

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William Bissett is an Investment Advisor Representative with Secrest Blakey & Associates, a Registered Investment Adviser.\u00a0 Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Secrest Blakey & Associates. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Secrest Blakey & Associates does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under the Securities Act, and a Qualified Purchaser as defined in Section 2(a)(51)(A) under the Company Act or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. \u00a0Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.<\/em><\/p>\n