One of the remarkable things I have noticed from speaking to many driven social entrepreneurs is that their current effort is usually not the first they have worked on.And judging by the experience of Tristan Pollock it is often not the last.I first had a chance to connect with Tristan and co-founder Erik Eliason when they were cultivating and growing social enterprise SocialEarth.
SocialEarth, a Platform for Social Enterprise Content
SocialEarth—overviewed here last year (“What is SocialEarth?“)—crowdsources social innovation news, narratives, and features from around the globe. It was founded by Tristan and Erik in 2009 to provide a dedicated platform for seasoned journalists and bloggers as well as those new to penning thought to blog for the purpose of sharing and learning about impact-related events and stories.
Their endeavors resulted in favorable traction among a burgeoning community of social innovators. By 2012, the site featured 170 contributors from 25 countries, and had a fan following of over 13K Twitter followers and 14K Facebook fans. (Today, those numbers are up to 200 contributors, 23K Twitter followers, and 80K Facebook fans)
Cognizant of the challenges of running a journalism-rooted site, when Tristan and Erik received an offer in March 2012 by leading CSR content distributor 3BL–the co-founders decided to sign the dotted line. And that made way for a new adventure.
Storefront, Pop Up Retail
Within months of SocialEarth’s acquisition, the co-founders were developing an innovative new startup idea, this time focusing squarely on the sharing economy and retail marketplace. From disrupting channels of social news, the latest effort—Storefront—disrupts retail sales outlets.
Instead of committing to lengthy leases in single locations, Storefront allows retailers of all kinds (i.e. brick-and-mortar, online, and specialty stores) the opportunity to engage in short-term leases (including single-day!) in a variety of locations.
Storefront joins other startups in the “sharing economy” by championing “pop up” retail experiences. It provides the platform for retailers to connect with available space and provides ways to let audiences know about pop-up experiences nearby.
Meet Tristan
Tristan Pollock is located in one of the social entrepreneurship capitals of the world, San Francisco. He and Erik launched 
Storefront just months after SocialEarth was acquired. This effort has been unique from SocialEarth in a few respects: 1) the topic is distinct; and 2) the funding path has been different. In their latest venture, Tristan and Erik participated in AngelPad, an accelerator program for startups. Their work caught the interest of angel investors including 500 Startups, Sandhill Angels, and Great Oaks Venture Capital. They ended up raising $1.6M in initial seed funding.
The funds are enabling the duo to grow their team and expand their operations to New York City and beyond.
After following Tristan and Erik over the past few years, it was exciting to be able to chat with Tristan about his personal journey to the social enterprise space and what he has learned from two startups with very different paths and areas of focus.
Listen to the Interview
Further Reading
Storefront Gets $1.6M To Grow Its ‘Pop-Up Shop’ Marketplace For Short-Term Commercial Rentals [TechCrunch]
Making Renting A Store As Easy As Booking A Hotel Room [FastCo]
Q&A with Storefront Founder Tristan Pollock [The News Funnel]
What Launching in New York Means To Us [Storefront Blog]
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