We initiate and guide partnerships between select start-ups and respected influencers—activating their alliances to build the brands of tomorrow.
HOW TO VNTRBut traditional pay-to-say endorsements are broken. In today’s authenticity-driven Age of Influence, we champion a new partnership model, one that can readily yield the trusted recommendations buyers demand.
As a brand accelerator, we’re here to meet an urgent, emerging need—to guide start-ups and celebrity brands to make the most of the Age of Influence.
As specialists in business, law, branding, marketing, and activation, we understand entrepreneurship—and partnership. We are uniquely equipped to develop multifaceted, holistic solutions precisely where they can deliver the most impact, making each unique start-up/influencer partnership as profitable as possible.
BUSINESS planning & execution mentorship/services
BRAND development & marketing (including activations)
CELEBRITY opportunity assessments & recommendations
FINANCE guidance & access to potential capital sources
LEGAL advice & partnership design support
VNTR comes with good company. We make it our business to know about start-ups who’ve launched into smaller markets with strong proof of concept. We’re also proud to maintain a discrete community of high-profile influencers with entrepreneurial ambitions and values of their own. They want to feel a real connection and join at the heart of a business, not just as the face of it.
Both start-ups and respected names come with unique attributes that can fuel mutual success. We draw those connections, bridging perspectives to build on their pure potential. Our message to start-ups? “Take the leap.” Our message to celebrities? “Build something that deserves your personal investment, not just your endorsement.” We’re a strategic resource, recommending smart plans from the start.
VNTR fuels brands’ progress by pulsing in and out of the start-up growth cycle at the moments when we can provide the biggest benefit. Our partners gain momentum as we help them build their Commercial Brand (branding and communications), their Human Brand (optimizing the starter/influencer relationship) and their Financial Brand (paths to sustainability). Every facet of need is addressed. Every window of opportunity, seized.
We believe in our approach. We believe in the new brands we discover. And we believe in the celebrity influencers who feed start-ups’ growth while building their own financial futures. So for all that we bring to the table, what we take—rather than a fee—is a small equity stake.
At VNTR, authentically, we invest in each other.
Business Advisor
Brand Visionary
Voice & Energy
Connection
Strategy
“When they team up with celebrities, start-up businesses can see tremendous benefits. Celebrities can help businesses tap into new consumer segments, reassure them about product quality, and establish desirable brand associations. I can't wait to see how VNTR will fare in its quest to bring celebrities and small businesses together—this experiment has all the ingredients to become a success.”
— Anita Elberse
Lincoln Filene Professor of Business Administration
“The concept of building brand equity while offering business planning, investor relations and celebrity endorsements to startups in return for a small equity stake is brilliant. I wish VNTR were in place when I was Chairman of 4Kids Entertainment.”
— Al Kahn
Former Chairman 4Kids Entertainment
“The notion of a brand accelerator that offers the kinds of services and support to startups that VNTR does in return for only an equity position is exciting. The concept works equally for all key stakeholders involved.”
— John Wringe
Former COO WPP – Red Cell Network
“The average career length of an NBA player is 4.8 years. Therefore the income opportunities can be very limited. VNTR offers celebrities the chance to create sustainable income by taking a small piece of certain startups in return for endorsing products they truly believe in. There’s “skin in the game” for both the celebrities and the startups.”
— Mason Plumlee
NBA Player – Portland Trail Blazers
