The State of Direct-To-Consumer in 2021 with Austin Rief and Nik Sharma

Austin Rief (@austin_rief), co-founder of Morning Brew, and Nik Sharma (@mrsharma), investor, advisor, and operator at Sharma Brands, join Erik to discuss: - Their direct-to-consumer investment theses. - Interesting ways that media companies are starting to get into commerce, like the hockey podcast that created a bestselling flavored vodka. - Why it's a "game of audience in the direct-to-consumer world." They say that distribution is the key now. - The difference between community and fandom and why people often confuse the two. - Where the whitespace is and their requests for startups. - The three stages of direct-to-consumer and examples of great DTC 3.0 brands. Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform.  Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal. Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We’ll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup