5 Strategic Lessons for Series A Founders Inspired by Travis Kelce & Taylor Swift’s Relationship
The unexpected romance between Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift isn’t just fodder for the tabloids – it’s a masterclass in strategy, timing, and commitment.  For Series A founders, these elements are crucial for scaling from startup to success.  In this post we decode five lessons from this power couple’s playbook to help you elevate your startup game. (Since we’ll be mixing metaphors throughout this post, we’ll explicitly label them for each lesson.)

1.Run a process: (metaphor: Travis’s introduction to Taylor = your Finance function)
Travis and Taylor didn’t just happen to run into each other in a bar.  Travis had an interest in Taylor and knew that he wanted to connect with her.  To ensure success, he put together an approach and marshaled emissaries to introduce them.  He was proactive and didn’t leave the biggest relationship of his life up to chance.
Startup founders will learn from Travis as they build their Finance function.  Maturing from Seed to Series A changes your business and your metrics, cadence of inspection and process all need to evolve as well.  Areas such as spend controls, investor reporting and month-end close should have proactive processes to successfully drive information where it is most needed.

2. Be there for each other (metaphor: The couple’s commitment to each other = your commitment to your investors)
Over the 2023-2024 NFL season, Taylor Swift is reported to have attended at least 13 of Travis Kelce games, both at home and away.  Taylor also raced back, overnight, to the U.S. after four shows in Tokyo, to get to the Superbowl. Travis has also taken time out of his championship season to see Taylor perform in Argentina.  They’ve both literally been there for each other, even though it has not been easy. 
Just as Taylor Swift prioritized attending Travis’s games amidst her busy tour schedule, founders must prioritize regular, meaningful engagement with investors.  In addition to the BOD meetings, this could be through monthly update emails, quarterly calls, or providing early insights into strategic decisions, all while showcasing your commitment to transparency and collaboration.  Whatever your process, these should be honest, candid assessments that highlight successes as well as challenges.

3. Know your metrics (metaphor: Travis’s performance stats = your startup’s KPIs)
Taylor Swift doesn’t need to have the play calling skills of Al Michaels to know that Kelce has 69 career receiving touchdowns and ran for almost 1,000 yards in the 2023-2024 season.  She knows, because she cares.    
So, too, should you know what Key Performance Indicators (“KPIs”) are most important for your startup and what they are.  Understanding KPIs is as critical as knowing the score in a championship game.   Metrics such as customer expansion and churn, LTV, and CAC are some fundamentals.  Have these published in a weekly or monthly dashboard to you and your executive team so that everyone is on the same page.  Make sure to have a schedule of ARR-by-customer and you will be well poised to successfully navigate your business to your next milestone. 

4. Win awards! (metaphor; the Grammys and Superbowl = peer company benchmarks)
What a week for this power couple; Taylor won two grammys and Travis and his team won the Superbowl!  This is on top of an already huge pile of recognition, awards and records that they have set.  These are two people who are at the top of their game, and you know it.
Startup performance and success, especially at the Series A level, can be less distinct and self-evident.  This is why it’s important to find relevant, best-in-class, peer benchmarks and track your performance against them.  You’ll want to compare; How fast are you growing?  How efficient is that growth?  What percent of your revenues is going back into R&D?  There’s also opportunity for more literal interpretation of the metaphor where seeking out opportunities to nominate our company for relevant awards provides tools for your marketing and investor relations efforts and builds credibility to attract talent.

5. Play the field (metaphor: Taylor’s dating history = your business model and pricing)
Taylor Swift’s dating history is extensive and well documented through her song catalog.  Is Travis the ONE for her?  That remains to be seen, but what is clear is that Taylor explored relationships with other people before getting here.
Taylor Swift’s approach to relationships mirrors the importance of experimenting with different business models, feature sets and pricing strategies. Until you’ve found the ONE (combination of the above), that catches fire and launches you into the maelstrom of clear Product Market Fit (“PMF”), well-designed experiments with clear hypotheses and success metrics, along with customer feedback, can lead to invaluable insights.  When done correctly, these experiments will yield insights from the failures in addition to the successes, so you wind up winning, either way.

Navigating the complexities of scaling a Series A startup demands strategic insight, unwavering commitment, and the agility to adapt—lessons we’ve drawn from Travis and Taylor’s relationship. As Series A founders, embracing these lessons means not just understanding the importance of a solid Finance function, maintaining a strong relationship with investors, or knowing your key metrics, but also celebrating your successes and learning through experimentation. By applying the same approaches to your startup as Kelce and Swift do to their high-profile relationship, you position your venture on a trajectory towards success!