Former Banker Pete Smack Sold Small Slices of His Income to Fund Stand-Up
Pete Smack has raised nearly $60,000 from 104 people who each bought a small stake in his comedy career. Variety reports that the money came in by early last year, which is early 2025.
Smack is Pete McEntegart, a 57-year-old North Carolinian. Variety says he has worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs, a sports columnist for Sports Illustrated and a startup co-founder. He took the stage name Pete Smack to pursue stand-up comedy. His website bio calls stand-up his sixth career and describes him as a clean stand-up comedian and writer based in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The fundraising ran through Wefunder, a crowdfunding service where many people each put in small sums to back a business. Smack became the first entertainer to ask investors for money on the platform, according to Variety. Most of his investors put in between $100 and $150.
They did not buy ordinary shares. Smack offered each investor a share of 10% of his gross revenues, meaning his total income before expenses, through 2029. On January 1, 2030, that arrangement turns into equity, which means ownership in the business. The conversion is set at a $1 million pre-money valuation, a figure for what the business is worth before new money goes in.
The cash has already been put to work. Smack used the seed money, the first funds raised for a project, to film a special called Last Man Standing. It debuted on September 22 on video-on-demand services, where viewers pay or rent to watch at a time of their choosing. The distributor is Comedy Dynamics. Variety also reports that Smack spent $5,000 on lawyers to set up the investment round.
Investors hear from him regularly. Smack sends a monthly newsletter with updates on his progress, Variety says. His LinkedIn profile lists him as chief entertainment officer of Smack Talks LLC.
What stands out is the size of the cheques. Most investors put in about the price of a couple of comedy club tickets, and their return depends on how much money Smack's work brings in before 2030. Each monthly update is the only regular window they have into how that is going.
