Heretic Co-Founder

Overview

Heretic is looking for both experienced and aspiring entrepreneurs interested in partnering with Heretic to launch consumer-facing, creator-focused ventures as co-founder and CEO. With advisory, financial, and product development support from the Heretic team, Heretic co-founders 1) Select a concept from an existing set of vetted venture concepts, 2) Refine the concept through initial consumer tests and technical validation, 3) Develop brand, product and go-to-market strategy and a business and financial plan, 4) Develop an MVP and reach initial market traction, and 5) Launch and lead the venture as CEO. Co-Founder / CEOs will raise an outside capital round with mentorship, introductions, and investment participation from Heretic.

Heretic Co-Founders are entrepreneurs who enjoy building businesses from the ground up, are not afraid of taking calculated risk and full responsibility for all aspects of a venture, and enjoy solving problems that take businesses from 0 to 1 and beyond, all in partnership with the Heretic studio team. We are currently looking for founders with interest, passion, and experience in at least one of the following areas: 

1) Ecommerce and online marketplaces

2) Music production and distribution

3) Content production

4) Fashion, jewelry, and accessories

5) Social media platforms

6) Generative AI

Heretic Ventures is a San Francisco-based venture studio ideating and launching new businesses in the creator economy. Heretic is run by Managing Partner Mariam Naficy, who founded and built the pioneering internet companies Minted and Eve.com. Heretic is backed by household names in Silicon Valley (investors and entrepreneurs), who act as the studio’s advisors both in selecting and in advising companies.

This is a unique opportunity to co-found the next billion-dollar creator company while learning from a successful repeat entrepreneur and a stable of powerful and experienced mentors and advisors. This role offers a competitive salary, benefits, and founder-level equity in the company you create and lead in partnership with the Heretic team.

Responsibilities include:

• Set and communicate a clear, compelling, and consistent vision
• Design and execute product prototypes and tests in partnership with the Heretic team
• Make key investment tradeoffs to ensure cost-effective testing and stage-gates
• Drive launch schedule and development roadmap
• Own product development and strategy to ensure product-market fit, initial traction, and growth
• Refine current learnings and customer insights into an actionable go-to-market strategy
• Refine a financial model and projections in support of the go-to-market strategy
• Own core business operations, including P&L and legal management
• Build a world-class team environment and culture while overseeing hiring, training, and other general management activities

To join our team, you should be excited to:

• Prototype, test, design, and launch a new venture from the ground up
• Have a mindset that enables you to enjoy constant, rapid learning
• Roll-up your sleeves and handle both high and low tasks, to take concepts from an idea to launching and iterating on the next billion-dollar company
• Manage people and processes through ambiguity
• Run simultaneous engagements and processes, with a balance of responsiveness and thoughtfulness

Minimum qualifications:

• 7+ years experience including as a founder, business unit leader, product leader, management consultant, or investment banker
• Knowledge of consumer-facing business models, revenue drivers, and key performance metrics
• Experience with early stage prototyping, testing, and launch
• Experience building and managing a variety of internal and external stakeholders, with a willingness to ‘sell’ a vision to and communicate with large audiences
• Experience with P&L ownership and management; strong financial acumen requiredAn outstanding communicator, clear and persuasive written and verbal communication
• Experience as an entrepreneur preferred, even if the company didn’t succeed
• MBA preferred

About Heretic

Heretic Ventures was founded with a passion for pursuing culture-defining ideas and businesses. We recognize this moment as an inflection point where the lines between consumer and creator are blurred, and we aim to provide equitable opportunities to everyone in the creator economy ecosystem. We possess a relentless commitment to championing and protecting creators and other talent, giving everyone the opportunity to pursue their passions and thrive doing so.

We are focused on launching consumer-facing companies in the creator economy that gain widespread adoption. Our belief is that a company is born with DNA that has an outsized impact on its ultimate fate. Our aim is to found companies with as exceptional DNA as possible at inception—from defining a great brand and culture, to designing a business idea that creates structural advantages and an infinite source of growth.

In our companies, and in our studio, we strive for excellence and forward-thinking that challenges the status quo with new and creative ways to make an impact. We are fearless in championing new ideas, and unafraid of contrarian viewpoints. “That’s a bad space” or “people have tried that before and it didn’t work” are fuel to our collective heretical spirit, knowing there are always new and better paths to a positive end.

• We believe talent comes in many forms and from unexpected places

• We believe in building and telling stories that have lasting impact

• We work to encourage true creative and other risk-taking

• We want to reward creators and talent who take courageous risks, creating business platforms and intermediaries taking their fair share, not a disproportionate share, of gains

• We believe we can create good in the world—and make the world fairer to those without systemic advantages

Heretic is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to inclusion and diversity. We welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities and perspectives and will consider all qualified applicants for employment in accordance with all state, local, and federal laws.