Podcast Interview With Natty Zola Of Matchstick Ventures

12/09/21 – Episode 9

Natty grew up in Boulder, Colorado and attended the University of Maryland where he ran track and studied Finance. Before diving into the finance world, Natty and his childhood best friend built a company to help travelers record and share their trips with friends and family after returning home from a backpacking trip abroad. They scaled and sold that company to AOL and Natty, now bit by the entrepreneurship bug, began his career as Managing Director at Boulder Techstars. In today’s, episode Natty walks Emily through his journey from entrepreneur to investor, why pivoting is encouraged, and Natty’s personal philosophy for living a good life.

About Natty Zola:

Natty grew up in Boulder, Colorado, and ventured out to the east coast to study Finance at the University of Maryland. His first internship was with author Jim Collins, then he joined GE post-grad in their Financial Management Program. After travelling the world with his childhood best friend, Natty decided to embark on his own entrepreneurial journey and settled back in Boulder where he could save money during the recession by living with his parents. There he found a supportive and growing startup community and later joined Techstars as Managing Director after selling his company to AOL. Natty’s latest endeavour is Founding Partner of Matchstick Ventures.

In this episode with Natty, you’ll learn:

Natty’s experience working with author Jim Collins and how it shaped who he is today and how he invests
What drew Natty to entrepreneurship and what his journey looked like
His experience as Managing Director of Techstars Boulder
The catalyst for Matchstick Ventures
What “First Call Capital” is
The 6 things they look for in an investment
Why how people deal with good and bad luck matters
Natty’s advice for entrepreneurs
Their goals for improving diversity within the startup community