Are there mechanisms that will generate documents to help claim tax deductibles for certain key countries where the majority donors on grapevine platform?

Hi Liling, thanks for this great question. In short, yes! Grapevine is currently focused on the U.S. market and provides charitable 501.c.3 donation receipts via email to donors immediately following their donation. We also provide an annual roll-up of all donation receipts at the end of the year, to make it easy for donors to complete their taxes. We are not a financial advisor, so we cannot advise on specific cases. However, these receipts can be used to claim U.S. chari...

Hi Emily! I come from non-profits and definitely understand the problem you're trying to solve, but I'm a little concerned about the revenue generating side of it. Can you address some of the following: 1) Do you intend to go from a "tipping" model to a strict transaction fee?...

Hi Zach, thanks for your questions! The revenue potential is significant and growing... we are seeing 5%+ tips on the platform and expect we can increase that to 7-8%. This corresponds to $70M+ in revenue in 2025. We also see opportunities to expand our revenue streams, including: a premium product, fiscal sponsorship, an increased share of donors' total charitable wallets. 1) We do not intend to go from a "tipping" model to a strict transaction fee, but we do charge ...

Hi Emily, I am interested in investing and have a few questions and thoughts if you don’t mind. 1) Once this round is over, are you planning on raising more money through angels or VCs? Or is the amount here enough to achieve what you need? 2) Are you planning on developing an...

Hi George, thanks for your great questions! Here are some quick responses:1) Yes! We will raise more money after this to achieve our goals.2) A native app is likely, although the timeline and purpose are still TBD. We're not worried about name confusion, as we are uniquely serving the giving space with this name and have legally protected that use.3) Tipping is a great model that enables us to grow quickly and make the platform more accessible. We will expand from that model as we extend into...

Are you raising outside wefunder as well? How long is your runway?

Hi John! Yes, we are raising additional funding outside of Wefunder this year so that we will have 12-18 mos runway.

Grapevine

The first group giving platform for everyday philanthropists

grapevine.org

San Francisco, CA

Technology Notable Angel Female Founder SaaS B2C

Highlights

Notable Angel

Raised $25k or more from a notable angel investor

$1.5M+ donated w/ 67% MOM growth from 5K donors. Revenue avg 5%+

CEO has Harvard MBA. CTO is a serial Founder/CTO with 2 prior acquisitions & raised $20M+ from a16z

Investment from XX, Y-Combinator alumni, Human Interest Cofounder, Caviar Cofounder & many customers

Fastest-growing social movement in a $410B philanthropic space

Team

We help people support the causes they love... together.

The problem: The philanthropic industry was built for the ultra wealthy, but Everyday Philanthropists are a $282Bn market.

*Golden Age of Philanthropy Still Beckons: National Wealth Transfer and Potential for Philanthropy, Boston College, Center on Wealth and Philanthropy ^Based on an Ideas42 Giving Poll, funded by the Gates Foundation

The Solution: Giving Circles are like book clubs (or AngelList Syndicates) for donating!

Launchpad Incubator for new Giving Circle Leaders (Cohort 1), created by Philanthropy Together and supported by Grapevine

We're the first platform for Giving Circles that helps groups pool their donations and decide together where to give.

We've already helped 5K donors give over $1.5M by growing donations 67% MOM - with NO MARKETING SPEND.

We're building the future of giving... and it's collaborative.

We're the first open crowdgranting platform that enables donor groups to 1) pool their money in a charitable fund before deciding where to give, 2) do this on a recurring basis, 3) track their impact over time. This community-based experience is distinct from the transactional experience of crowdfunding, where donors support the goals and passions of others through a one-time campaign. Grapevine is a paradigm-shift in how we give.

We're a team of serial founders and builders from Harvard Business School, Wonderschool, Google, AirBnB — who are on a mission to make purposeful giving accessible to all.

Emily R. has 10 years of microfinance and nonprofit fundraising experience and spent her time at Harvard Business School consulting for Kickstarter and launching a new crowdfunding platform. Arrel is a serial startup founder & CTO who built the Andreessen-Horowitz-backed company, Wonderschool, and two other startups that were acquired.

Our partners include a Gates-backed National Giving Circle initiative, and networks that cover nearly 70% of the field.

Through these partnerships we are becoming THE trusted partner and go-to online infrastructure provider for giving circles across the country. Our growth has come from these partnerships, referrals, outreach, and organic growth from donors finding us online and starting their own circles on the platform.

Our scalable business model is used by other big tech startups

We are a tip-based platform like many leading platforms, e.g. GoFundMe. We accept tips from donors when they make donations. We're already speaking with universities, wealth advisors, nonprofits and more that have reached out to us about a premium version.

*We will facilitate an increasing share of circle members’ individual donations over time - expanding donations and revenue per donor on the platform. Giving Circle donors give more than the average donor.

Why now? The opportunity to help people make a big difference together is greater than ever.

Covid-19 has created greater need in our communities than ever. It has also made it impossible for Giving Circles to meet in person to do their grantmaking, which is driving increased adoption of Grapevine's online tools and virtual meeting support.

And Giving Circles have already been growing rapidly. This grassroots movement has tripled in the past 10 years... and is expected to more than double by 2024.

Source: National Giving Circle Initiative

We project we'll move more than $1Bn dollars to charity in 2025 alone and earn $70M in revenue.

We'll do this by continuing to capture the existing Giving Circle industry through partnerships, referrals, and business development. We will also expand the market through strategic partnerships with networks and communities and digital marketing.

We'll reach $1Bn by making Giving Circles mainstream & viral!

We’re starting by making giving circles easier to start, run, and grow through online tools. Giving Circle Leaders no longer need to spend weeks or months setting up infrastructure!

And we're expanding the adoption of Giving Circles by introducing them to a broader range of donors who are eagerly adopting and spreading this new model.

Here’s just a peek at a few Giving Circles on Grapevine and the impact that they’ve made.

Ready to start your own? Head to Grapevine.org to start yours today!

Our community loves us and calls us "revolutionary"!

Now is the time... let's do this! Together.

The need in our communities and the importance of online solutions for us to meaningfully gather, collaborate, and donate is greater than ever. The opportunity for us to make a massive difference is NOW. Help us lean into this moment to support communities today and lay the groundwork for the future of giving!

*Team Grapevine Giving Circle Celebrating $1M Milestone - July 2020

Downloads

Grapevine GC Overview - Aug 2020v4 Slim.pdf