Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2010

One of the questions I’m most often asked is, “what’s it like being a VC?&# I’ve been a VC for nearly 3 years now. I always start my answer to this question with, “you’d have to be a pretty big baby to complain about being a VC.&# And the VC job has plenty of admin and minutiae.

Venture Capital 312

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Entrepreneur 312

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2010

Lots of discussion these days about the changes in the VC industry. The VC industry grew dramatically as a result of the Internet bubble - Before the Internet bubble the people who invested in VC funds (called LPs or Limited Partners) put about $50 billion into the industry and by 2001 this had grown precipitously to around $250 billion.

Venture Capital 311

Venture Capital Startup Seed Funding Rustic Canyon 311

Berkonomics

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

First, the implied promise: Taking money from professional investors such as angels or VCs usually requires that you agree to seek an exit for those investors in your plan, often targeting five to seven years as the ideal period for growth before a liquidity event. For some, that comfort is worth forgoing building high equity value.

Equity 156

Equity Course Sales Invest 156

Berkonomics

OCTOBER 1, 2015

Sometimes the end game or sale of the company is not a happy event for the early investors, including the entrepreneur or the founders. Most sophisticated investors will take either a promissory note or preferred stock, both of which come before founder or management stock in a sale or liquidation.

Angel 120

Angel Sales Pricing Equity 120

Berkonomics

JUNE 8, 2017

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder can self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). Professional angels: This is the arena where I work and play. For you who fit that description, nice work.

Venture Capital 266

Venture Capital Class Invest Equity 266

socalTECH

MARCH 2, 2018

Los Angeles-based venture capital investment firm First Beverage Ventures , which specializes in investing in beverage brands, has made an investment in vitamin-infused coffee and tea company VitaCup. Size of the equity funding was not announced. READ MORE>>.

Commerce 113

Commerce Venture Capital Equity Los Angeles 113

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2022

The problem is that professional investors (angels and venture capital) want a proven business model before they invest, ready to scale, rather than early projections and product development. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Joint venture with distributor or beneficiary.

Startup 136

Startup Technical Review Equity Incubator 136

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2010

Our guest this week on #TWiVC was Dana Settle , partner at Greycroft Partners , a venture capital firm with offices in New York and Los Angeles. Greycroft is an early-stage VC. Closing a VC fund in 2009/10 is a major achievement in and of itself. Gilt Group is currently the largest private sale web site in US.

Venture Capital 240

Venture Capital Startup Platform Technical Review 240

SoCal CTO

MARCH 2, 2015

This includes links to CTO Salary and Equity Trends, Technology Roles in Startups , Initial Conversation with a CTO or Technical Advisor , Finding a Technical Cofounder for Your Startup , Hiring a CTO for Your Startup and many others. You need to start by figuring out who your suspects are. And then how do you move them through your pipeline?

CTO Hire 150

CTO Hire CTO Coach Los Angeles Angel 150

socalTECH

AUGUST 24, 2009

Costa Mesa-based Semicoa Corporation , a supplier of military and high reliability components, announced Monday that it has relaunched the firm with backing from private equity firm Vance Street Capital, which is based in Los Angeles. Financial details of the private equity investment were not disclosed.

Equity 100

Equity Venture Capital Los Angeles Pricing 100

socalTECH

DECEMBER 27, 2018

Here, we have the thoughts of Rob Freelen , Los Angeles Market Manager for Silicon Valley Bank (www.svb.com). Over the last four years, I watched numerous entrepreneurs raise equity. In 2018, many of them sold their companies or raised massive equity rounds. Seismic, a sales software company, raised $100M and became a unicorn.

Southern California 133

Southern California SoCal Culver City Venture Capital 133

socalTECH

JUNE 30, 2021

Los Angeles-based ServiceTitan, which provides software used by contractors and the trades to manage their business, has acquired another company, Aspire Software, which develops software for the commercial landscaping business. ServiceTitan said it is hiring, particularly in customer support, sales, product, and engineering.

Acquisition 113

Acquisition Equity Los Angeles Software 113

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 21, 2014

The company--which develops software-as-a-service which helps local businesses manage scheduling, staff management, point of sale, ecommerce, marketing, and more--said the funding came from Bessemer Venture Partners, Institutional Venture Partners, Catalyst Investors, W Capital Partners and Montreux Equity Partners.

Tech Coast Angels 147

Tech Coast Angels Pasadena Angels Pasadena Venture Capital 147

socalTECH

AUGUST 1, 2018

Online luxury consignment store The RealReal is making its foray into the retail market, with its first ever bricks-and-mortar, physical store, in Los Angeles. TheRealReal said it will open up a "concept store" in Los Angeles on Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood, where it will both offer up its luxury goods and also accept consignments.

West Hollywood 100

West Hollywood Hollywood Equity Los Angeles 100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2023

There is no black magic involved in predicting the future, if you use these four simple steps, with my basic rules of thumb to keep you on the right track: Determine your margin on sales. Forecast sales-volume expectations. Forecast sales-volume expectations. Be willing to give up 20 to 33 percent of your equity to support this.

Startup 116

Startup Pricing Sales Statistics 116

socalTECH

MARCH 6, 2013

CapLinked , the Los Angeles-based developer of enterprise software for managing M&A transactions, venture deals, and other business deals, is aiming squarely at legacy, virtual data room services with its latest updates. CapLinked is headed by Eric M. READ MORE>>.

Services 218

Services Venture Capital Equity Los Angeles 218

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 21, 2019

Santa Monica-based private equity investor Arrowroot Capital is the lead investor in a funding round for parking technology developer ParkHub , in ParkHub's first instituional funding. As part of the funding, Arrowroot Capital Partner Kareem El Sawy will join the company's board of directors. READ MORE>>.

Funding 133

Funding Santa Monica Equity Capital 133

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 11, 2009

They are usually offered around 0.25% of the companies equity in exchange for their role and I’ve seen many companies hand out a total of 2% to advisers. My main advice to you if you’re considering it is don’t waste much equity on it. At a minimum their angel investments will likely take precedence.

Startup 306

Startup Venture Capital Equity Technical Review 306

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

Gross margin (GM) is the amount of profit you make per sale of your product or service taking into account your total costs of selling that product or service. If you have a very low gross margin (10-30%) it can be very hard to build a large, scalable business because you need to make a lot of sales to cover your operating costs.

Startup 383

Startup Company Companies .Net 383

From the Venture Trenches

MARCH 27, 2013

Yet despite his ability to raise over $1 billion of private equity and to build an organization that is worth $5 billion as of this writing, Mason was shown the door. Is outside capital really required? It can give you a foundation from which to launch, but usually requires subsequent rounds of capital from larger investment sources.

Venture Capital 45

Venture Capital Capital Anthem Startup 45

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2011

This thinking is largely driven by the venture capital industry (and subsequently Wall Street) who are in search of high margin, highly scalable businesses. It’s nearly impossible to get a services company financed by VCs. Why Shouldn’t Most Services Businesses Raise VC? It may be the right answer for you.

Services 332

Services Venture Capital IP Startup 332

socalTECH

JULY 22, 2010

Los Angeles-based Leadpoint , a developer of an online marketplace for sales leads, has raised $6.5M Leadpoint, which is headed by Marc Diana, has previously raised funding from Breakwater Ventures, Estalea, European Founders Fund, Redpoint Ventures, RVA Enterprises Retirement Trust, and Stanford University. READ MORE>>.

Redpoint 168

Redpoint Venture Capital Equity Los Angeles 168

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 6, 2019

The problem is that professional investors (angels and venture capital) want a proven business model before they invest, ready to scale, rather than early projections and product development. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Joint venture with distributor or beneficiary.

Startup 128

Startup Technical Review Equity Incubator 128

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2014

If your startup is looking for an Angel investor, it makes sense to present your plan to flocks of Angels, and assume that at least one will swoop down and scoop you up. The challenge is to find the right Angel for you, and for your situation. Angel investors are people too. Or does it? Keiretsu Forum.

Angel 115

Angel Startup Funding Keiretsu 115

socalTECH

DECEMBER 20, 2016

Los Angeles-based point-of-sale technology developer Appetize said Tuesday that it has raised $20M in a new funding round, led by private equity investor Shamrock Capital Advisors. Oak View Group, led by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff, also participated, along other investors. READ MORE>>.

Funding 100

Funding Sales Los Angeles Entertainment 100

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 4, 2022

The problem is that professional investors (angels and venture capitalists) want a proven business model before they invest, ready to scale, rather than the more risky research and development efforts. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Joint venture with distributor or beneficiary.

Tips 104

Tips Startup Technical Review Equity 104

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 16, 2018

The problem is that stakeholders, like marketing and sales, don’t know what the latest version of the roadmap is. Greathouse: Having run these groups, I know all about the inherent friction between sales and marketing with regard to lead quality, volume, etc., That causes friction internally. It was a viable option for us.

Venture Capital 115

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Santa Barbara SaaS 115

socalTECH

DECEMBER 30, 2016

Despite the Q1 correction in valuation, and subsequent drop in VC funding, we saw numerous LA companies not only survive, but thrive - despite the macroeconomic trends. Traditional venture capitalists will focus on leading larger rounds of equity in fewer companies. Rob Freelen: Focus.

Santa Monica 124

Santa Monica Southern California Venture Capital SoCalTech 124

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 23, 2010

Often when startups who have raised venture capital need another round of financing they will turn to their existing investors to give them money before raising from outsiders. a loan) that is later converted to equity at the time of the next financing. It starts as a debt instrument (e.g.

Startup 290

Startup Funding Venture Capital Pricing 290

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2021

There is no black magic involved in predicting the future, if you use these four simple steps, with my basic rules of thumb to keep you on the right track: Determine your margin on sales. Forecast sales-volume expectations. Forecast sales-volume expectations. Be willing to give up 20 to 33 percent of your equity to support this.

Startup 147

Startup Pricing Sales Statistics 147

Berkonomics

OCTOBER 29, 2015

Taking money from professional investors such as angels or VCs usually requires that you agree to seek an exit for those investors in your plan, often targeting five to seven years as the ideal period for growth before a liquidity event. For some, that comfort is worth forgoing building high equity value.

Equity 120

Equity Venture Capital Course Email 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2013

Initially, you may be able to rely on friends and family to put you on the top of their list, but eventually you will probably need real professional investors (Angels and VCs). Venture investing is often mentioned as the most sexy form of wealth creation, but it’s also recognized as one of riskiest. Funding risk. Defensibility.

Invest 107

Invest Startup Venture Capital Ideas 107

TechCrunch LA

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

The startup has already secured a seed investment from Maveron and CRV, TechCrunch has learned, and will receive another $150,000 in exchange for 7% equity upon entering YC next year. While angel investors like Rebecca Minkoff might be savvy to the business proposition of influencers, many investors have remained skeptical.

Platform 170

Platform Marketing Tool Venture Capital 170

TechCrunch LA

OCTOBER 7, 2021

Jennifer Schwab, the founder and CEO of Entity, has built the business since 2016 on virtually no outside funding, but said that this latest financing is a precursor to the company working on its first, more traditional VC-led equity round. Entity’s own story fits into both of those story lines.

Mentor 297

Mentor Training Startup Course 297

socalTECH

APRIL 14, 2011

Los Angeles-based MarketShare , the provider of marketing analytics software headed by Wes Nichols and Jon Vein, announced today that it has raised $32M in a follow on investment from private equity firm Elevation Partners. MarketShare's software helps companies adjust their marketing mix, to better drive sales.

SoCalTech 159

SoCalTech Equity Los Angeles Organization 159

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 2, 2011

I was thinking back to a few previous “insider baseball&# blog debates that raged for several weeks: AngelGate (aka Bin38 secret cabal), convertible debt vs. equity, bubble vs. not, and now the AngelList discussion. I would argue that all of the above topics for us VCs are noise. Probably we all have different filters.

Email 287

Email Blogging Venture Capital Writing 287

Berkonomics

JANUARY 20, 2010

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder is able to self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). Do not expect grand valuations of your enterprise from these professional angels.

Venture Capital 174

Venture Capital Invest Class Entrepreneur 174