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June 2, 2024

AI Fashion Idea to MVP Through Mentorship and EIR Program - Taylar Gomez: Founder of SYFT

AI Fashion Idea to MVP Through Mentorship and EIR Program - Taylar Gomez: Founder of SYFT

Garrett interviews Taylar Gomez, founder of SYFT and entrepreneur in residence at RevTech Ventures. They discuss Taylar's entrepreneurial journey, the creation of SYFT—a plugin that helps users discover personal style and shop online—and her experiences refining the business concept with mentorship from industry veterans. Taylar shares her insights on building a team, the importance of domain expertise in retail, and the future of digital retailing. She debunks misconceptions about e-commerce and physical stores, and emphasizes the role of data in retail. Taylar also reflects on personal influences, overcoming fear, and her untapped talents in interior design. She encourages fellow entrepreneurs to connect with her for support and emphasizes patience and openness in the startup journey.

Building SYFT with Seasoned Investor (00:00:57) Discussion on building SYFT with seasoned investor involvement.

Entrepreneur in Residence (00:01:19) Explanation of the role of an entrepreneur in residence at RevTech.

Introduction to SYFT (00:02:18) Description of SYFT as a tool to discover personal style and shop online.

Understanding Plugins (00:03:18) Explanation of what a plugin is and how it functions.

SYFT's Purpose and Name (00:04:09) Explanation of SYFT's purpose and the meaning behind its name.

Taylar's Journey and Idea Validation (00:05:12) Taylar's journey and the process of validating and refining the SYFT idea.

Meeting with David Matthews (00:08:20) Discussion about Taylar's meeting with David Matthews and the guidance received.

Real-World Experience and Idea Refinement (00:11:42) Taylar's experience in the private sector and how it helped refine her business idea.

Transition to Silicon Valley (00:14:18) Taylar's transition to a more established startup in Silicon Valley.

Reflecting on Next Steps (00:17:22) Taylar's reflection and decision-making process after leaving the virtual startup.

The pros and cons of the job (00:17:31) Taylar discusses her need to fulfill her dream of helping customers find their style and the importance of working for someone else.

Seeking fulfillment in the next role (00:18:26) Taylar reflects on the questions she asked herself to determine what she needed in her next role to be happy.

Influence of previous roles (00:19:00) Taylar discusses the advice and leadership style she learned from her previous roles, emphasizing the importance of being present and leading with empathy.

The meaning of style (00:20:19) Taylar shares her perspective on style as a form of personal expression, identity, and confidence, and its impact on entrepreneurs.

Tips for finding personal style (00:22:09) Taylar provides tips for individuals to discover their style, emphasizing the importance of confidence and self-reflection.

Overcoming fear of judgment in personal style (00:23:33) Taylar and Garrett discuss overcoming the fear of judgment and the impact of personal style on confidence and creativity.

Entrepreneur in residence journey (00:25:53) Taylar shares her experience as an entrepreneur in residence and the stage of development of SYFT, her retail technology startup.

Preparing to share the product with the world (00:26:35) Taylar discusses her excitement and confidence in sharing the SYFT product with the world and the importance of learning from feedback.

Challenges in building the MVP (00:27:32) Taylar explains the challenges of narrowing down features for the minimum viable product and the focus on user benefits.

Design philosophy and user feedback (00:28:26) Taylar discusses the design philosophy of SYFT and the importance of user feedback in shaping the product.

Transition to full-time founder (00:30:53) Taylar shares her transition to a full-time founder and the support and investment from David, the director of RevTech.

Importance of fostering relationships (00:31:12) Taylar emphasizes the importance of building relationships to validate the market fit and mitigate the risk of entrepreneurship.

SYFT product vision (00:32:10) Taylar describes the vision for SYFT as a personal shopping assistant and the features, including a virtual closet and influencer styles.

Leadership in tech development (00:34:02) Taylar discusses the importance of finding a developer who shares the vision and the attributes she looks for in early employees.

Finding the right developer (00:35:40) Discussion on the importance of finding a young developer who understands the customer and has a business and product mindset.

Challenges of being a solo founder (00:36:40) The difficulties and support system of being a solo founder and the importance of building a community for non-technical individuals.

Joining RevTech Ventures (00:38:20) The significance of joining RevTech Ventures, a retail market venture firm, and the importance of trust and domain-specific expertise.

Women-led companies and retail concepts (00:39:17) The focus on women-led companies and retail concepts by RevTech Ventures and its impact on the retail market.

Future of digital retailing (00:39:54) Excitement about personalization in digital retailing and the potential impact on the shopping experience.

Misconceptions about retail (00:40:58) Discussion on misconceptions about retail, including the role of physical stores and the importance of data and its application.

Building a social media presence (00:42:23) The early focus on building trust with the audience through social media and the role of content creation in engaging with users.

Overcoming fear in entrepreneurship (00:48:21) The importance of letting go of fear and taking the leap in entrepreneurship, with a focus on receiving pre-seed funding.

Eliminating multitasking (00:50:19) The impact of eliminating multitasking and the importance of focusing on one task at a time for effective leadership.

Influences on personal growth (00:51:18) The influence of family members and their discipline on personal growth and overcoming fear.

Meditation and exercise (00:52:43) The use of exercise as a form of meditation and being present in the moment for personal well-being.

Unused talents (00:53:53) Discussion on unused talents such as interior design and the enjoyment of public speaking despite a previous shyness.

Finding Design Styles (00:54:41) Discussion about cultivating content for design styles from YouTube and thought leaders in fashion and productivity.

Thought Leaders and Influential Books (00:55:28) Taylar shares her preferred thought leaders, including Robin Sharma, and discusses influential books like "Man's Search for Meaning."

Open Conversation for Founders (00:56:22) Taylar emphasizes the importance of open conversation for founders, offering her availability for discussing ideas and the challenges of being a founder.

Contact Information (00:57:11) Taylar provides her contact details on LinkedIn and TikTok for those interested in reaching out for conversations or advice.