HERE is my podcast with ALEX DANCO now at Shopify -on Spotify!
Have a listen.
Good morning everyone. I am trying out a new post format for my ‘Panic With Friends’ podcast. It is inspired by Patrick O’Shaugnessy podcast notes and will hopefully give everyone a better feel for the guest and the episode.
Guest: Alex Danco
Profile: Currently at Shopify, @alex_danco on Twitter
Fun fact: Alex didn’t start out in tech; he actually has a Master of Science in Neuroscience. He began his tech journey after leaving graduate school to begin a startup. Alex has a fantastic weekly newsletter “Two Truths anything and a Take”
What’s the Panic About:
I started this episode like any sane person would: with a cigarette, a shot of tequila, and a jolly rancher. On the other line and all the way in Toronto was Alex Danco. I’ve been a fan of Alex’s for a while, following his success from his days at Social Capital to his great newsletter. Alex is a writer, former associate at Social Capital, currently at Shopify Money, and a fellow jolly rancher lover. He started making a name for himself in the tech space after his blog post “Dropbox: The First Dead Decacorn” went viral. In this episode, listen in as Alex and I chat about our favorite spots in Canada, Alex’s time working with Social Capital’s Chamath Palihapitiya, his take on Shopify and what makes CEO Tobi so great, SPACs, crypto, the increasing importance of brands’ style and taste, and more.
The Takeaway:
More people are beginning to participate in the digital economy, and how you style and brand yourself in this world will play a role in your success.The next great SPACs aren’t going to be about bulk and layering stuff on, but rather style and taste.
But more importantly, we learned that Alex wins for weirdest interview question of all time: “Tell me about water.”
Favorite Quotes:
“The next great liquidity mechanism will start out looking like a scam.”
“CAC is the new Rent.”
“I believe bitcoin is decentralized, but I realize that the price of bitcoin in U.S. dollars is anything but.”
“In order to compete against Amazon, you need to have taste or you need to be ok with losing.”
“Who should people invest in? Themselves.”
Food for Thought:
We talked a lot about SPACs this episode. I want to know from my listeners: Who is your one pick to start a SPAC?
PS – I am now doing two ‘Panic With Friends’ podcasts per week. Thanks for listening and make sure you subscribe over on Spotify or Apple. In the meantime, I’m going to see if I can get the domain for backthatspac.com.