Founder Friday: Lee Rubin, Founder & CEO of Confetti 🎊
Issue #12
Founder Friday is a content series from SuperAngel.Fund highlighting companies in our portfolio and the inspiring founders behind them.
In our 12th edition, we are featuring Lee Rubin, Founder & CEO of Confetti, the one stop shop for unforgettable team-building experiences.
Confetti is reimagining the employee experience with the goal of making the workweek as meaningful as the weekend. Employers around the world struggle to keep their team members engaged, especially in a virtual or remote environment. This often leads to the unfortunate consequence of employee churn. To improve culture, connectivity, and professional growth, Confetti helps employees fall in love with their workplace and team, by curating meticulously crafted experiences for companies of all sizes and across all industries.
Their platform has empowered more than 3,000 companies, such as Amazon and Meta, to discover, plan, and book experiences that range from team bonding games to “edu-tainment” style workshops and training. To date, more than 300,000 people have participated, contributing to Confetti’s explosive growth in 2021 (read how they grew revenue by 600%!).
Some of the company’s most popular event collections include:
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: enrich the workplace with fun, educational experiences designed to promote cultural diversity (TIP: Asian Heritage Month is May and Pride Month is June!)
Fun & Affordable: experiences that won’t break the bank
Shippable Experiences: that bridge the physical and virtual world by sending boxes of materials to the team, such as Mixology & Cooking classes
Only one question remains: when are you signing up?
Describe your company in 5 words or less.
Lee: Engaging experiences, making happier employees.
What was your primary motivation for starting your business?
Lee: At a former company, I witnessed coworkers struggle with the confusing and complicated process of organizing team events, with zero event planning experience. The worst part was, we didn’t even truly bond with one another. It made me ask myself: Is there an easier way to create meaningful events, that are simple to plan - ones that genuinely bring teams closer and improve work culture?
Alongside my technical co-founder, Eyal Hakim, we built an intuitive online marketplace, designed specifically for this purpose.
What piece of advice would you give an entrepreneur starting a business today?
Lee: It all boils down to knowing your customer pain points very well. For a better chance of success, you need to be receptive to advice, willing to change, and have a vision that will hopefully be “10x” better than whatever they have right now. Also, you need to build the best team to solve this problem. You may have had the initial idea and means to start the journey, but the people you hire will have insights on how to improve, grow, and expand your business beyond your wildest dreams, so you need to build a culture that ensures they continuously communicate and build on those improvements.
What do you love to do in your free time?
Lee: I dedicate a good amount of my free time to making art and listening to music. I love to create while getting lost in a playlist - it’s the perfect form of meditation for me. I also love to cook! I pride myself on rarely making the same recipe twice and just using the kitchen as another creative outlet to make new things.
What is the most interesting place you’ve visited recently and why?
Lee: During a trip to Mexico, Isla Holbox and Tulum captivated me. I had little to no electricity, so both places allowed me to disconnect for the first time since starting my business years ago. It was amazing just being with myself, my loved ones, and my surroundings. Plus, the fire-cooked food was delicious! I even discovered my favorite restaurant in the world there, Hartwood.
What is your favorite app or tool in your work life and in your personal life?
Lee: In my work life, Front App has been invaluable, and it’s hard to imagine running our business without it. The ability to tap into other inboxes and help out when someone is OOO, or draft their emails to chip in or comment in-line, in order to ensure we have the proper game plan, is key for us.
It may sound cliché but Spotify is my favorite app for my personal life. I genuinely think their AI is fantastic and am always surprised by how their music suggestions just get me. The Spotify Discover Weekly is my jam (no pun intended).
What do you believe is the most important skill or attribute of a successful founder?
Lee: You have to know how to be an effective leader. You need to have a team support your growth, but this goes beyond simply hiring more people. You need to know how to rally others behind your vision and instill them with values that drive your vision forward (especially since you won’t be able to see all the parts). But you also need to be a champion of their success and growth. Hammering down this skill is hard work, but the effort is worth it - not just because your business succeeds, but because this part of the journey makes life meaningful.
SuperAngel.Fund is an early stage fund that invests in Consumer, PropTech & Future of Work. The fund is led by Ben Zises who was the first investor and founding advisor to quip, Caraway & Arber. You can learn more and apply at SuperAngel.Fund.
