We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Bill Manby. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Bill below.
Bill, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?
NE Ohio has one of the most robust intersection of US Interstates in the country. With I80 and I90 alone taking you all the way from Boston to Seattle and NJ/NYC to San Fransico, alone. Our fund connects the coastal venture ecosystems to our roots here, so Interstate Fusion seems to be the perfect description.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
I was very fortunate to have two amazing co-founders who saw my vision and were in the financial position to support. I also run a successful financial services company and RIA with good a good staff and strong product partners. We were then blessed by having a network of existing investors, who had participated in some of my previous deals and were willing to invest in us before establishing a track record in venture.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Launching our 2nd fund heading into 2023 turned out to be a very challenging time. But we achieved our first close and had the opportunity to make several very opportunistic investments. In addition, it was/is a very tough time for many of our Fund 1 portfolio companies but we have been there for them, too. Our venture partners and investors appreciate that commitment, capability and drive to do whatever we can to create the best outcome. It’s really one of the main things that defines and differentiates us from many of our peers.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://interstatefusion.com/
- Instagram: @interstatefusion
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/interstate-fusion-ventures/?viewAsMember=true