#9 - From Underrepresented Square Peg to RBF Pioneer - Kim Folsom - Founder & CEO of Founders First Capital Partners

RBFN Podcast

I am proud to welcome my friend and one of my favorite people in this community, Kim Folsom, a serial entrepreneur who has founded and grown seven companies and achieved multiple successful exits. Kim is the CEO and founder of Founders First Capital Partners, a revenue-based investment platform focused on empowering diverse-led small businesses with flexible funding for exponential growth. Additionally, Kim established Founders First CDC, a non-profit accelerator dedicated to helping small businesses expand and generate jobs. Kim's visionary leadership and commitment to supporting underserved communities make a significant impact in the business world. In this episode, Kim talks about her background as an entrepreneur, building Founders First, and lessons learned along the way.

Key Takeaways

[4:20] Founders First products and approach to funding diverse entrepreneurs.

[6:53] The RBF deal that Founders First and Novel did together as a syndicated loan.

[12:44] Why you shouldn’t fear the unknown.

[13:11] There has been a change in the speed of uptake and understanding in the market and people are more familiar with it, but concrete data about the performance and what is possible is still lacking.

[16:44] How an asset class becomes institutional.

[20:22] Kim’s experience starting a company as a Black woman in the 1990’s, and how it’s evolved over time and the 7 businesses she built.

[23:03] Funding a company with debt vs equity, and why it matters.

[28:40] Accelerating through partnerships.

[29:09] Kim’s tips for raising capital for RBF.

[32:40] The art of turning down investors.

[36:10] How did Kim become interested in RBF?

[38:00] Lessons learned from Mr. Wonderful from Shark Tank.

[43:42] What Kim is excited about in the future.

Resources:
RBF Network

Novel Capital

Speaker Series with Kim

Guest:

Kim: LinkedIn | Founders First

OnShore Technology - the company Novel and Founders First jointly funded with RBF