HackerNoon: What is your company in 2–5 words?

Karim Leduc: Integrated talent and marketing group.

Why is now the time for your company to exist?

We're in the age of innovation and our expertise directly speaks to elevating the boundaries of the digital world.

What do you love about your team, and why are you the ones to solve this problem?

We've built a people-first company culture as this industry is all about relationship building and this translates to a positive environment for everyone belonging to this community. In this digital day and age, clients and consumers alike more than ever need a human connection and our team is composed of relationship whisperers.

If you weren’t building your startup, what would you be doing?

I would be building a community devoted to improving the condition of humanity on earth. The work that I'd be producing alongside a powerhouse team would be one that can generate value for society and its people that directly addresses and solves a foundational opportunity or challenge we all face.

At the moment, how do you measure success? What are your metrics?

My main KPI to measure the success of my company is employee, talent, and client satisfaction; it's something we care deeply about. We devote the largest portion of our lives to our careers, so it's my personal mission to ensure that everyone directly and indirectly part of this company's journey feels connected and aligned with the greater vision and mission behind everything that we do on a day-to-day basis.

In a few sentences, what do you offer to whom?

Our company offers talent management and integrated marketing services. We represent talent that spans gaming, sports, social media, and other verticals. Also through our sister agency, Sundae Creative, we represent clients from lifestyle, beauty, fashion, and food & beverage arenas offering them public relations, influencer marketing, and social media services.

What’s most exciting about your traction to date?

Seeing positive sales numbers translate into a bigger community of team members and seeing that become a vibrant community with more personality and more opportunity breeds tremendous excitement. The Dulcedo community continues to see growth and that opens new doors to new opportunities.

Where do you think your growth will be next year?

Our recent acquisition, Sundae Creative, has a lot of potential to grow by leveraging Ducledo's network, which will in turn convert to even more marquee agency of record accounts in the PR and influencer marketing space. The gaming and entertainment sector will also continue to expand as streamers are increasing in popularity. Also, the influencer branch of Dulcedo will continue to see growth since there is a consistent demand and appetite for these types of creators across all business verticals.

Tell us about your first paying customer and revenue expectations over the next year.

While we can't disclose our top billing customer, our top industry is fashion/beauty/consumer products. Our evenue expectation is 35% over the next year because appetite is consistently growing for content creators in this market and we anticipate this trend to continue year over year.

What’s your biggest threat?

The creator landscape has seen tremendous growth in recent years, especially since the pandemic. Although the demand is not currently slowing, the landscape is changing, which is demanding that the business look at this industry in new and innovative ways in order to continue to foster its growth, and also open new doors for new opportunities.