FFF is the new PMF for VCs

A few weeks ago, I reconnected with a partner at a beloved firm to share a deal in her primary sector. To my surprise, she told me that she’d actually pivoted to focus on a completely different industry and type of company. I get it: interests change and markets shift. 

And while jumping between market shifts and just backing “great founders” may seem like it casts a wider net, in actuality, it makes you forgettable. And in a future with so many VC firms, the funds that win will be the ones with clear, consistent brand that align with the founders they back… or as I like to call it firm-founder fit.

🪢 Like Attracts Like

Great firms mirror their founders, and vice-versa. Take Designer Fund: it's run by designers, backing design-led companies. Everything from their aesthetic to their network and decision-making embodies the same principles they tell their founders to embrace. There's authentic connection between founder and investor because they speak the same language, and there’s a synergy that just makes sense. 

Similarly, consider Andreessen Horowitz: bold, polarizing, media-savvy. They back bold, polarizing, media-savvy founders who feel like natural extensions of the firm’s dynamic. They're not trying to be everything to everyone, they're attracting founders who share their DNA. What they back (think: Adam Neumann at Flow or Roy Lee at Cluely) and what they build feel one in the same. 

This synergy goes deeper than sector focus or founder persona. It's about ethos that doesn’t always rely on industry experience. It's about whether the values, energy, and operating style of a fund truly resonates with the people they invest in and how that resonance can build trust at a time where software, capital, and many of the things that used to differentiate venture firms are becoming increasingly commoditized.

🚶 Walking the Walk

At Park Rangers, we talk about backing "elephant founders", people building durable, purpose-driven companies with staying power. But we also look inward to make sure we’re building an elephant fund. We live the same advice we give our founders: build in public, own your distribution, grow with purpose. Our essays, our podcast, even how we structure our LP base are all part of practicing what we preach.

And it's working. Founders trust that we understand what they’re trying to do because we’re doing it ourselves. LPs feel pulled into the mission rather than just writing checks. Operators actively seek out roles in our portfolio companies because they want to work for "any elephant,” knowing that our filter creates a certain type of company and culture that they want to be a part of.

❌ The Cost of Being Forgettable

Contrast this with firms that lack a clear POV. 

If I can't associate a firm with a clear word, a distinct archetype, or an authentic stance, why would a founder choose them? More importantly, why would they remember them when it's time to take money?

The most successful firms I know have something you immediately associate with them. It’s not even just about being remembered and known by founders, it’s also being remembered by other VCs. Everyone knows each other, but deals only get passed between VCs who have that one-word association perfected. 

When I think of people doing this well, I think of VCs like Sheel Mohnot at BTV, who lives and breathes fintech. From launching The Mint Accelerator to sharing sharp macro-level fintech perspectives online, he’s a magnet for fintech founders. Or Nichole Wischoff at Wischoff Ventures, whose love for blue-collar tech and passion for gritty, overlooked hustlers shows up in everything from the deals she backs to the way she champions her portfolio. Ashley Mayer at Coalition Operators is always posting thoughtful comms takes on Twitter, so founders know that’s not just what she invests in, but it’s who her firm is. And Peter Boyce at Stellation doesn’t just back Gen Z founders; he creates spaces for them to connect, hosting events where they bring their friends and build community. All of these GPs have built firm operations, marketing, and personal brands that embody their ethos so the right founders can’t help but find them.

While there are dozens of great VCs who are carving out a place for themselves by building a clear, memorable ethos, too many VCs are stuck in a generic middle saying they do all the things that everyone else is doing without a clear point of differentiation.

🎯 The Era of Specialization

This industry doesn't reward being forgettable. As more capital floods the ecosystem and founders have endless options, firms need to plant a flag. Not a trendy flag that shifts with the market but one that's true to who they are, what they believe, and what type of founders they can make a difference for. 

Today, specialization and authenticity will separate the firms that survive from those that don't. The venture landscape is contracting after the fund formation boom of recent years, and the survivors will be those with clear identity and authentic alignment with their founders.

Because at the end of the day, founders aren't just picking capital. They're picking a partner. They want to see themselves reflected in the firm that backs them and work with people who understand the journey they’re on and what fuels it.

Going forward, firm-founder fit won’t be a luxury. It will be a prerequisite for building something that lasts.

At Park Rangers Capital, we believe the next generation of great companies will be elephants, not unicorns. If you're building a business that turns customers into community members, we'd love to meet you so email us at [email protected].