But what makes a brand a bland is duality: claiming simultaneously to be unique in product, groundbreaking in purpose, and singular in delivery, while slavishly obeying an identikit formula of business model, look and feel, and tone of voice.
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If there’s a sense that VC-backed blands target the woes of VC-bros, it’s because many do. As Chamath Palihapitiya noted:
“The VC community is an increasingly predictable and lookalike bunch that just seems to follow each other around from one trivial idea to another.”
This may explain the blands clustering around, for instance, hipster baby gear (Bloom, Lalo, Bumbleride), personalized supplements (Baze, Thyrve, Care/of), and valet parking (Oobeo, Luxe, SpotHero). And it certainly explains the blands that help other blands with funding (Expa), accounting (Bench), retail (Leap), returns (Loop), consumer insights (Perksy) and “high-volume hiring for the hourly workforce” (Fountain).
...
If there’s a sense that VC-backed blands target the woes of VC-bros, it’s because many do. As Chamath Palihapitiya noted:
“The VC community is an increasingly predictable and lookalike bunch that just seems to follow each other around from one trivial idea to another.”
This may explain the blands clustering around, for instance, hipster baby gear (Bloom, Lalo, Bumbleride), personalized supplements (Baze, Thyrve, Care/of), and valet parking (Oobeo, Luxe, SpotHero). And it certainly explains the blands that help other blands with funding (Expa), accounting (Bench), retail (Leap), returns (Loop), consumer insights (Perksy) and “high-volume hiring for the hourly workforce” (Fountain).
Fascinating article