How Seva Exchange Corporation Onboarded 224 Communities and Raised $250K on a SAFE (Interview with CEO Anitha Beberg)

Introduction and Company Overview

Nathan Latka

00:00Hey, folks. My guest today is Anitha Beberg. She's an alumni of the Silicon Valley Founder Institute, is the founder and CEO of sevaexchange, which is a platform using machine learning technologies to galvanize global volunteerism by reinventing time banking and other mutual reciprocity based services for the modern digital economy. Check her out at sevaexchange.com. Anitha, are you ready to take us to the top?

Anitha Beberg

00:23>> Yes. Alright. It is seva, by the way. Seva.

Product Launch and MVP Timeline

Nathan Latka

00:26Seva. S e v a. When did you guys launch? When did you write the first line of code?

Anitha Beberg

00:33>> Oh, we only started building our product probably December 2019. So it's in two years almost. Almost, not quite.

Who Are the Customers

Nathan Latka

00:43Okay. And walk me through what are companies or what are nonprofit? Like, who are you serving? Who are your customers?

Anitha Beberg

00:50>> Well, what I wanted to do because while our MVP launched in March 2020, as you know what happened March 2020, So the I decided just throw this out there to communities. Our platform really is, there is nothing else like this where anyone can ask for help when they're in need and anyone can offer help any way they would like to, whether it's through time of service, through fundraising like money donations, through goods donations, and even lending

01:22>> out stuff. So no one can give you any excuse that they can't help their community on our platform because we've given you every option.

Nathan Latka

01:30Well, so who's paying for it? Like, is it the government of the community or an HR lead or something? Who's paying?

Anitha Beberg

01:35>> Yeah. So it would be the public sector that would pay for this. Cities, smaller towns. We're going after those because we don't want to charge members. However, for nonprofits, I mean, what do nonprofits need? They always need volunteers and they always need money. So our platform helps them with both. So they would pay because we've created features for them that's conducive for them. And then we've also

02:05>> included an enterprise version so businesses can connect. It's like we're bridging the gap and building a completely new ecosystem of connecting all of these different sectors.

Pricing Model Explained

Nathan Latka

02:17And so, Anitha, what's the average city or nonprofit paying you per month to use this technology you've built?

Anitha Beberg

02:24>> Honestly, the best number, if it's a large city, we have to separate. So I know there's a borough in New York. Is it Hudson? No. Redhook. I think it's Redhook. Hudson's another one in New York. You would have to break it down. I mean, if it's like 10,000,000 people, the whole point of our platform is to build trusted communities. So if Facebook were to be redone, like envisioned, I would say that it would be sevaexchange.

Nathan Latka

02:54Well, so sorry, Nathan, just to dig deep, I just want to get a sense of pricing, though. So you price based off number of citizens the city's managing?

Anitha Beberg

03:00>> Yes. Yes. For the citizens. However, right now, if you are a community, a neighborhood, it's free for neighborhoods. And then it's only $15 for a smaller community of, let's say, 200 to 500. We'll just give it to you for $15 just to start it off. It's really based on the features that you need.

Nathan Latka

03:19Okay. So it's 15 per month for a smaller community of 200 to 500 people?

First Paid Customer and Community Count

Anitha Beberg

03:23>> Yes.

Nathan Latka

03:24Okay. Got it. And when did you sign up your first paid community? Do you remember?

Anitha Beberg

03:28>> Yes. That was last year because we had already negotiated with them. It was the Poor People's Campaign. It was a nonprofit in Alaska, Anchorage, Alaska.

Nathan Latka

03:38Holy mackerel. Okay. So last year, first customer. Now, how many customers are you working with today?

Anitha Beberg

03:43>> Well, we've got two twenty four communities onboarded that from around the world.

Nathan Latka

03:50So Are they all paying?

Anitha Beberg

03:51>> They're not all paying, but it's okay. I'm not I'm not focused on paying. I'm focused on getting people on there. Right? Without the humans, the people to volunteer, there's nothing. Right? It doesn't matter how fancy a platform you are.

Nathan Latka

04:03Sure. You onboard them and then you can upsell. But how many have you successfully got onto a paid plan out of

Paid Conversion and Client Backlog

Anitha Beberg

04:07>> the We've two twenty got several nonprofits now and several communities paying, but it's, I don't really want to give away numbers right now. We got to work. We're, we focused all this time on building this incredible software. Now I'm shifting focus to converting our clients. We've got like an $80,000 backlog of clients that we can convert right now. So I don't know if that's helpful.

Nathan Latka

04:31Okay. Got it. But so two twenty four onboarded and maybe like 10 ish, 20 ish or so, you've gotten over to paid and that's your focus sort of moving forward is to convert more of those over to paid plans?

Anitha Beberg

04:40>> Yes. Yes.

Funding History and SAFE Round

Nathan Latka

04:41How have you funded yourself to date if you've you've basically sort of been pre revenue?

Anitha Beberg

04:45>> I had a few like friends and then mostly family. Yeah.

Nathan Latka

04:50So you raised the whole angel round?

Anitha Beberg

04:51>> Not quite. It was very informal. So it's just people who knew me.

Nathan Latka

04:56Did they did they get did you give them did you sell them equity?

Anitha Beberg

04:58>> It's a safe.

Nathan Latka

05:00Oh, okay. Well, that's pretty standard. I mean, are we talking like a $100,000 raised or like a million bucks raised?

Anitha Beberg

05:05>> No. About a 250,000.

Nathan Latka

05:070.25. Okay. 25,000.

Anitha Beberg

05:09>> No. 250,000. So 2 A 250,000. Yeah, yeah.

Nathan Latka

05:12Okay. And that was back last year, you said in 2020?

Anitha Beberg

05:15>> No, no, I was Because it's family, I just get it as needed. So it's about $250,000 at this point. Yeah.

Nathan Latka

05:23But when did you do your first, I guess your first dollar on this safe?

Anitha Beberg

05:29>> It Oh, pre

05:30>> yeah, definitely pre COVID because I actually met with someone who is a CIO of a company. It was a friend of my mother's and I was going to talk to him about technical people and he literally wrote me a check for $10 that day.

Nathan Latka

05:43That's very cool.

Anitha Beberg

05:44>> Yes. But that's not, you know, that's not a normal occurrence as I've learned.

Nathan Latka

05:48Sure, sure, sure, But okay, but this is great. You hustled your way. You've gotten some seed funding here. You raised on a safe. Now you mentioned you might be thinking about sort of going out and looking at additional capital. Are you looking at raising more or no?

Raising $1.5M Equity Round

Anitha Beberg

05:59>> I am right now wanting to raise 1,500,000 for equity round of 20%.

Nathan Latka

06:06Okay. So, how much? So, got it. So, you're trying to raise that evaluation of what? What would that be? 9,000,000 post money? Something like that?

Anitha Beberg

06:13>> Uh-huh.

06:13That could

Nathan Latka

06:14be You wanna sell 20% for 1,500,000?

Anitha Beberg

06:17>> Yeah.

06:17Okay. And why is that the right amount?

06:21>> Just because my teammates, both of us have looked and studied like Jason Calacanis, you've heard of him this weekend started. We looked in all different ways and how we would convert based on how much we're just starting post revenue,

06:39>> the stage we're in, how much we built the product, where we're located. We're in the Silicon Valley. Our team is strong. So all of those factors that put in, it kind of helps you figure out your valuation.

Nathan Latka

06:50So got it. So 1.5 on basically a six pre or 7,500,000 post means you'd be selling 20% of the business. Now, do you think you need to really get revenue going in order to go get that valuation or you think you can raise that valuation right now with the 224 savings?

Anitha Beberg

07:04>> I can raise that right now. If I get more and more clients, the valuation will go up. So it's better people if they want it'll be a Yeah, I think the valuation definitely will much be higher. So, I'm doing both because I can't stop. I'm still trying to sell it to as many people and I'm fundraising at the same time.

Nathan Latka

07:23But right now, I mean, again, 224, you mentioned, you know, a handful are paid at $15 sort of per city or community. So if you get 10 at $15 a month, MRR today is about $150. So post revenue, but not sort of scaling.

Enterprise Pricing and Monetization Strategy

Anitha Beberg

07:34>> Yeah, it's not that much. But again, if I get enterprises, it's a dollar to $2 per employee per month. So, like I said, I'm not trying to make a buck off the citizens who are going to be volunteering and helping out. It's really off the nonprofits and enterprises based on the features.

Nathan Latka

07:54I love that. You keep saying we. Tell us about your team. How many folks?

Team Size and Structure

Anitha Beberg

07:57>> Let's see. We've got Martin Hoist. He is my digital strategist. He's from England originally. He's been with me the longest.

Nathan Latka

08:06Well, how many total, Anitha? I don't want to

Anitha Beberg

08:08>> Oh, total. Well, he's I had to do a shout out to him. He's basically my co founder. About seven. And we have a team in India of about seven. Mhmm. They're contract developers.

Nathan Latka

08:23Did you find them via KodiTAS or any of those tools? Or are these developers that you met like one on one personally and hired them?

Anitha Beberg

08:29>> No, it was a personal recommendation from another friend and I did not regret that. I'm very blessed. Think of this as their baby. Very And that's very rare to get.

Nathan Latka

08:40Yeah. No. Very cool. So, you own most of the equity, but your friend, it sounds like has a little bit as well. Plus, you've sold $250,000 worth to your friends and family.

Anitha Beberg

08:48>> Yes. I mean, friends and family, it's always, they they're not they're not in it to to make a ton of money. I mean, I just wanna pay them back essentially, at least. At least that. So

Nathan Latka

08:58Very cool. Okay. Well, this makes a lot of sense. What about getting new cities on board? How are you growing?

Growth Strategy and Community Organizers

Anitha Beberg

09:03>> Well, I'm actually working with community organizers, one in Oakland, the city of Oakland and San Francisco. So as you know, the city of Oakland and also Chicago. So having people there who are part of the community, the person I'm working with is Africa Williams. She's also joining my team. It's weird. Every time I meet someone, I talk about it. Like, can I join? Can I join? I wish I could pay all of you. But it's volunteer

09:31>> based right now. But she is going and getting all the primarily African American communities who really have been hit the hardest by COVID, but also by violence, gang violence. It's scary. I literally live forty five minutes from Oakland, but it's a completely different world. And I feel very blessed where I am.

09:55>> We need to help people. And that's the whole point of seva. And my belief system is like dharma. If we are able to, we must. So, I feel being in a privileged place, a privileged state in life, I have to help. And I mean, we all should if we can.

Famous Five: Favorite Book

Nathan Latka

10:15Seva, on that note, which we love, let's wrap up with the famous five. Number one, what's your favorite business book?

Anitha Beberg

10:20>> My business book? I've actually just finished reading one by Jenny Kassan. I can't remember the name right this second.

Nathan Latka

10:27No problem, Jenny Kassan.

Anitha Beberg

10:29>> Yeah. She has I actually liked her book better than Brad Feld's Venture Deals. I mean, I know people are gonna yell at me, but for a female social impact entrepreneur, it's the best book for fundraising.

Famous Five: CEO Role Model

Nathan Latka

10:43Number two, there a CEO you're following or studying?

Anitha Beberg

10:46>> Yes. There's two CEOs. I actually like the one who created Papa, which is it's a company that helps with social isolation for older generation. And they match people, like elderly people up with younger people to talk to and stuff. I mean, our platform already does that type of thing. But they focus just on that and they've raised a ton of capital.

Nathan Latka

11:10Okay. So the Papa Founder.

Famous Five: Favorite Online Tool

Nathan Latka

11:11>> Number three, what's your favorite online tool for building seva?

Anitha Beberg

11:16>> We were using You mean the online tool? Oh, Flutter, for sure. I mean, our whole tech stack was Flutter? Flutter because you can build Android, iOS, as well as web all on one code in Dart.

Nathan Latka

11:29Very cool.

Anitha Beberg

11:30>> I will shout that out. I mean

Famous Five: Sleep and Time Zones

Nathan Latka

11:32Anitha, number four. How many hours of sleep do get every night?

Anitha Beberg

11:35>> That's a good question. I'm working on that.

11:39>> Four four, maybe four. Four for sure, but six if if I'm lucky.

Nathan Latka

11:44That's not healthy.

Anitha Beberg

11:45>> Well, I'm on time zones everywhere, all over the world. I'm working with another great founder and civil rights activist, Tim Jenkin in South Africa. I'm working with people in Taiwan. So yes, I'm on different all over.

Nathan Latka

12:00Okay, great. And as we wrap up here, can we get a little bit more about your situation? Married, single kiddos?

Anitha Beberg

12:05>> Single kiddos.

Nathan Latka

12:07How many kids?

Anitha Beberg

12:08>> Two.

Nathan Latka

12:09Very cool. And can I ask how old you are?

Anitha Beberg

12:12>> I'm in my mid forties.

Nathan Latka

12:13>> Mid forties. Okay.

Advice to Her 20-Year-Old Self

Nathan Latka

12:14We ask because the next question is, and this is the last question, take us back to your 20. What's something you wish you knew back then?

Anitha Beberg

12:21>> Oh, wow.

12:24>> I wish I had the confidence to know that I could do anything I wanted.

Nathan Latka

12:29Guys, there you have it, sevaexchange.com, helping cities, communities, and nonprofits manage their volunteers, grow their causes more effectively and faster and more cost efficiently. Two twenty four cities, municipalities. Again, nonprofits are using the platform today. Anitha is just now focusing on converting that into revenue. She's gotten $250,000 of support from her friends and family, now looking to raise 1,500,000 at a $6,000,000 pre money valuation, selling 20% of the business. Team of seven cranking along as they

12:54scale. Anitha, thank you for taking us to the top.

Anitha Beberg

12:57>> Thank you.

Nathan Latka

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