Podcast Summary: The Investor with Joel Palathinkal

Episode Title: Rachel Sachs: Sweater Ventures
Date: August 16, 2025
Host: Dr. Joel Palathinkal
Guest: Rachel Sachs, Analyst at Sweater Ventures

Overview

In this engaging episode, Dr. Joel Palathinkal interviews Rachel Sachs of Sweater Ventures about her unconventional path into venture capital, her thoughts on the changing ecosystem of investing, and practical insights for aspiring VCs. Offering candid reflections on personal and professional struggles, Rachel shares what it’s really like to break into and succeed in venture—as well as her experience navigating rapidly evolving trends such as retail access to private markets, community in VC, and building conviction as an investor.

Rachel's Personal Journey & Early Career

Background and Upbringing

• Grew up in suburban Maryland, inspired by her father's early adoption of technology and STEM curiosity.
• Dealt with undiagnosed ADHD and mental health struggles throughout schooling.
  • "People don't talk about it enough... It's still not totally there yet." (03:09, Rachel)

Education Path

• Started at University of Arizona, transferred to the New School in NYC—studied poetry and thrived in a critique-rich, resilience-building environment.
  • "Art school... makes presentations much easier. And they're just criticizing you... You just have to just stand there, not cry, just take everything in..." (04:14, Rachel)
• Gained practical skills for business: handling critique, resilience, adaptability, and not being too attached to a singular path or idea.

Navigating the Early Workforce

• Worked at Dow Jones/The Wall Street Journal, closely supporting senior executives, with a formative firsthand look at power, media, and the importance of adaptability.
  • "People are just commodities after a while... No one really cares that much." (05:45, Rachel)
• Viral moment: Wrote a piece on Thought Catalog about privilege that drew intense and even uncomfortable public attention.
  • "No matter what I do, that's still there... I'm going to be getting married next year... do I take [my fiancé's name] just to go away from it?" (09:37, Rachel)
• Learned to handle public criticism and use it as a strength in high-visibility roles.

Insights on Breaking into Venture Capital

Dow Jones Sparking Interest in VC

• Conducted deep research on business figures, handled founder pitches, and developed an eye for quality investment decks and due diligence.
  • "I learned by looking at it—what was a good deck, what was a bad deck... This is what a venture capitalist does." (15:09, Rachel)
• Shifted from corporate to diversity roles, then to tech sales, and finally found a way into venture through networking and seizing opportunities.

Transition to Venture Studio and Sweater Ventures

• Experience in venture studio revealed a preference for "deal flow" and traditional investing over ideation-only models.
  • "I wanted more traditional, I wanted deal flow. I wanted to see decks..." (18:08, Rachel)
• Joined Sweater Ventures, attracted by its hybrid model (tech + fund), retail LP focus, and innovative approach to democratizing access to venture.

The Evolving Landscape: Retail Investing Meets Venture

• Sweater Ventures allows non-accredited investors access to diversified startup exposure—operating more like a “fund of funds.”
  • "It's a combination of a direct to consumer product that's going to be an app... really acting as a fund of funds or an LP." (18:52, Rachel)
• Growth in retail participation in capital markets:
  • "23% of the people invested in capital markets are retail investors now." (23:15, Rachel)
• The pandemic accelerated sophistication and involvement of retail investors in direct deals and funds.
  • "The return on like just regular capital markets... Subpar. Once you kind of go into, see what crypto is like or, you know, ventures like, like venture... surpasses the capital markets." (23:38, Rachel)

Community & Diversity in VC

• Rachel highlights the importance of belonging to women-in-VC networks:
  • "I've been the Women in VC Slack Channel and Group... The community's amazing..." (19:32, Rachel)
• Notes progress and challenges around inclusion:
  • "I'm the only female analyst at [my] company right now... but it's open and accepting." (20:05, Rachel)
• Observes more women supporting women in VC than traditional business/tech roles.

Building Investment Conviction

The Role of Conviction in VC

• Rachel explains her investment approach and internal debate within teams:
  • “Conviction. I think that's what works well for me... I can really bring it when I absolutely need to.” (31:05, Rachel)
• Emphasizes not pushing deals without enthusiasm or belief:
  • “We need to make sure we feel conviction about these deals before we just send them out... that's going to make us look bad if you don't do that.” (31:27, Rachel)
• Discusses how to cultivate instinct using research tools like Crunchbase, Pitchbook, and by pattern-matching deal backgrounds.

Sourcing and Screening Process

• Advocates for due diligence, understanding company needs, and optimizing for efficiency and improvement.
  • "Learn everything about everything. The more you understand about a company and every single part of it... it saves time, it saves money." (38:23, Rachel)

VC as a Generalist, Consumer, and Tech-Enabled Platform

• Sweater Ventures looks for consumer-touching products, but remains open to B2B SaaS.
  • "It has to be consumer touching... B2B does count, which is very cool." (44:47, Rachel)
• Open to exploring deep tech and new sectors as the platform and market evolve.
  • "Never say never." (45:37, Rachel)
• Rachel wears multiple hats—investment, product, growth marketing—embracing the startup nature of a modern fund.

Memorable Moments & Quotes

• On Resilience:
  “You have to just stand there, not cry... really comprehend it and be like, okay, this is how this affects my work... it really helped me with resilience and criticism.” (04:14, Rachel)

• On Handling Public Scrutiny:
  "Being able to handle that level of public criticism does make you just really tough." (11:54, Rachel)

• On Conviction:
  “You know it when you see it... if you don’t have a champion for the deals, a lot of times the deals just kind of fizzle.” (29:05, Joel / 31:05, Rachel)

• On Diversity in VC:
  "I've found [female support] in VC but not in tech or business." (54:42, Rachel)

• On the Value of Community:
  "I think you need to have more communities... where you can really feel safe and share ideas and kind of bounce it off of people." (55:25, Joel)

• On Happiness:
  "My life goal in terms of happiness is a consistent like 70% happiness throughout a day for a year at a time... If I'm excited to wake up in the morning and begin my day... that's what happiness is to me." (58:46, Rachel)

Notable Segment Timestamps

• Early Career, School & AD/HD: 02:04–05:45
• Media Backlash & Virality: 08:35–11:05
• Dow Jones to Venture Interest: 14:58–17:00
• Getting into Sweater Ventures: 18:25–19:18
• Democratization of VC / Retail Investing: 21:39–24:19
• Advice for Aspiring VCs / Breaking In: 25:30–34:47
• Conviction and Deal Flow: 30:53–34:37
• Product, Growth, and Efficiency: 38:23–41:50
• Consumer Focus and Openness: 44:47–45:49
• Women in VC Community: 54:36–56:41
• Final Reflections on Happiness and Meaning: 58:05–60:22

Closing Wisdom

Rachel’s Top Advice (Mentor’s Wisdom)

• "My dad says everyone who says they know what they want to do with their life is full of shit... Everyone is still trying to figure it out." (58:05, Rachel)

On Happiness:

• Rachel strives for “70% happiness” each day, accepting that some discomfort is a natural and manageable part of growth and achievement. (58:46, Rachel)

Tone and Takeaway

The conversation is candid, direct, and often humorous, with both host and guest displaying vulnerability and open-mindedness. Rachel’s journey illustrates the value of resilience, self-advocacy, and adaptability—while also underscoring the importance of community, authentic self-presentation, and conviction in venture capital.

For Aspiring VCs

• Embrace non-linear paths.
• Start building community—especially through syndicates or VC affinity groups.
• Be resilient and self-advocating.
• Conduct thorough due diligence, but trust your instincts.
• Seek out companies with genuine product-market fit, but also consider business fundamentals.
• Find your “conviction” and don’t be afraid to challenge consensus.

Rachel’s Offer: Always happy to connect and help others break into venture: "If you want to be in this industry... I'm always about it. Always happy to help." (61:07, Rachel)