Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2021

It has historically been the case that VCs would rather fund the promise of 100x in a company with almost no revenue than the reality of a company growing at 50% but doing $20+ million in sales. Think about how much more value was created for all these constituencies (and society) by Snap staying independent vs. Instagram selling to Facebook.

Venture Capital 363

Venture Capital Capital Funding Startup 363

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 30, 2018

VC firms see thousands of deals and have a refined sense of how the market is valuing deals because they get price signals across all of these deals. As an entrepreneur it can feel as intimidating as going to buy a car where the dealer knows the price of every make & model of a car and you’re guessing at how much to pay.

Venture Capital 324

Venture Capital Pricing Startup Invest 324

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2018

There’s a quick litmus-test conversation any early-stage VC will have with the founder and it’s one that you should be as prepared for as your elevator pitch. It goes something like this … VC: “How much money are you raising?” Founder: “$8–10 million” VC: “What’s your current burn rate?” This is a red flag for VCs.

Venture Capital 247

Venture Capital Capital Funding Demand 247

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 13, 2018

As a VC and former entrepreneur let me offer you some advice. This is part of a series on how to improve your fund raising game. Remember that the goal of an email to a VC or an introduction from a trusted mutual connection is simply to get you the meeting. The first post & the full outline if you click the link.)

Venture Capital 261

Venture Capital Slides Email Startup 261

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

What is a principal at a VC firm and how does it work at Upfront Ventures? ” Associates have different functions at different VCs. ” Associates have different functions at different VCs. VC firm admin. VC firm policy or fund analysis. Helping be the VC “presence” at key events.

Help 365

Help Invest Venture Capital Technical Review 365

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

Today we’re announcing that my partner Kara Nortman is becoming Co-Managing Partner at Upfront Ventures and I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to welcome her to her new role. I’ve become fond of saying “if I had a dollar for every person who told me just how much they loooooved Kara Nortman, I’d have a 10x fund.”

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361

TechCrunch LA

AUGUST 2, 2022

Shein has shown the world how combining social media marketing, data analytics, and China’s well-oiled supply chain has created a $100 billion fast fashion behemoth. Its success naturally spawns imitators and challengers. Cider has racked up roughly 7.4 And Cider has broken into the crowded U.S. Data: Data.ai.

Startup 217

Startup Los Angeles Social Media Venture Capital 217

Berkonomics

AUGUST 3, 2023

How important is this issue for your business? The subject of raising money is critical to many businesses and a passing option to others, depending upon the capital efficiency of the enterprise. It is for this group that we explore the implications implicit in raising money for growth. There is a lot to say about retaining control.

Venture Capital 295

Venture Capital Startup Class Invest 295

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 13, 2014

After years of trying to persuade Kara Nortman to become a partner at Upfront Ventures I can officially announce now that she’s joined us effective immediately. Investment experience (5 years a VC at Battery Ventures). I can’t speak for other VCs but it may interest you to at least know our thought process at Upfront.

Venture Capital 408

Venture Capital Startup Outsource Development CitySearch 408

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2014

The VC market has right-sized (returned back to mid 90′s levels & less competition). But it still takes VC to scale a business (thus large capital into industry winners like Uber, Airbnb, SnapChat, etc). It doesn’t take a huge leap to see how well the VC industry is positioned for the immediate future.

Venture Capital 398

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Seed Funding 398

TechCrunch LA

MAY 31, 2022

billion — and its first fund is “ranked as one of the top 5% of VC funds globally,” while the second fund is in “the top 10% of their respective vintage years.”. billion — and its first fund is “ranked as one of the top 5% of VC funds globally,” while the second fund is in “the top 10% of their respective vintage years.”.

Software 163

Software Startup Funding Venture Capital 163

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2021

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of talking to Samir Kaji on the Venture Unlocked podcast about a wide range of topics that we as venture capitalists think about everyday, including: How to build a generational firm?—?retaining LPs, VCs, everyone. Let me explain. But here’s the thing?—?it’s it’s not just startups who do it.

Sales 375

Sales Startup Invest Funding 375

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 12, 2019

Over the past month a colleague ( Chang Xu ) and I sifted through data on the venture capital industry (as we do every year) and made a bunch of calls to VCs and LPs to confirm our hypotheses. What gives? As a result of the IPO window shifting we saw a massive inflow of public-market capital into the latest stages of venture.

Venture Capital 328

Venture Capital Invest Seed Funding Startup 328

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 2, 2021

Over the past few months a few people have asked me, “How did you do it? I’m sorry to write so much about losing weight. I promised people I would write a few posts about this and I wanted to cover eating, mental game, measurement, what gear I’ve used, sleep, water consumption / tracking, etc. I have a solution. Will you share your tips?”

Email 293

Email Startup Writing News 293

Berkonomics

JULY 23, 2020

How about outside investors? Most all experienced VC and angel investors have found themselves in such a situation, since it is the unfortunate truth that half of their investments fail, on average, within the first several years of the investment. Sometimes the end game or sale of the company is not a happy event.

Company 156

Company Companies Sales Venture Capital 156

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2018

The idea is simple enough: several female VC partners at top funds will hold 1-hour meetings with 40 promising female entrepreneurs looking to get advice on their business and pitch in a friendly, non-judgmental, safe environment. LA Female Office Hours. So why is this initiative so important for men, women and other gender identities?

Venture Capital 256

Venture Capital Examples Screening Help 256

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 29, 2014

One of the hardest things for most entrepreneurs to know is how hard to push in situations where people tell you “no.” I once went to a startup event where a VC told the audience that if a VC doesn’t respond to your email to move on to the next VC – that VC is clearly not interested.

Venture Capital 389

Venture Capital Email Startup Conference 389

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

I love how transparently Danielle lives her startup (& encourages other to join in) because it provides much needed transparency to other startups. . ” I highly recommend reading it. But what IS the right amount of burn for a company? Turns out like most things there are no simple answers. Let’s set up a framework.

Startup 383

Startup Company Companies .Net 383

Berkonomics

JANUARY 10, 2019

Investors will invariably try to tell you that they know much more about the “how to” than you do, and that you should listen to them. How to respond to “change the course” suggestions. How to respond to “change the course” suggestions. Business plans rarely survive market contact. Are investors smarter than you?

Venture Capital 136

Venture Capital Course Email Ideas 136

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2013

I spent countless hours with VC firms, startups & LPs (the people who invest in VC firms). On my first real day back the first thought I have is that most entrepreneurs don’t manage their VC relationships as well as they could. But you need to understand that VCs are partnerships. We make decisions as groups.

Venture Capital 309

Venture Capital Summary Organization Entrepreneur 309

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2013

It is simply the most important way to proactively control your career development and how the market perceives you. Frankly, many of their views are shaped by unconscious biases, word-of-mouth feedback, stereotypes and how they perceive your communication style in the world of open, social communication fora. It is neither.

Technical Advisors 385

Technical Advisors Marketing Startup Venture Capital 385

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 23, 2017

As the end date nears and the cash-out date becomes more predictable the pressure mounts and every decisions becomes more consequential. When you run a startup you’re always on borrowed time. You have cash in the bank, a monthly burn rate and a “cash out” date that few in the company truly comprehend.

Funding 238

Funding Venture Capital Startup Course 238

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 1, 2016

VCs strangely never seem to weigh in on other VC funds. I have no incentive to do so other than to help those reading the WSJ piece better understand how I believe most insiders think. As an entrepreneur I never really knew what to make of VC return data. Let me offer you an insider’s take. Can that really work?”

Venture Capital 264

Venture Capital Invest Funding Competition 264

Berkonomics

JANUARY 10, 2019

Investors will invariably try to tell you that they know much more about the “how to” than you do, and that you should listen to them. How to respond to “change the course” suggestions. How to respond to “change the course” suggestions. Business plans rarely survive market contact. Are investors smarter than you?

Venture Capital 120

Venture Capital Course Email Ideas 120

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 12, 2013

” In it he talked about how he gets daily emails asking for intros to Oprah (he does a lot of work with her) and his advice. ” In it he talked about how he gets daily emails asking for intros to Oprah (he does a lot of work with her) and his advice. I have a motto in business and life, “give before you get.”

Venture Capital 407

Venture Capital Press GRP Partners Blogging 407

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 1, 2015

*. What is the role of a VC for entrepreneurs? I suppose it can be different for every founder and for different VCs but I’d like to offer you some context on what I think it is and it isn’t. They become obsessed with why the problem exists and they start chipping away at ideas for solving the problem.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Course Guide Entrepreneur 150

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2012

There is all sorts of advice on the Internet about how to raise capital. And of course I’ve sat on the other side of the table: As a VC. This is not just the perspective of a VC although I can’t say I have zero VC bias. Raising money is hard. Of course much of it is conflicting. Executive Summary.

Develop 366

Develop Development Funding Venture Capital 366

Berkonomics

MARCH 30, 2023

Now to the reasons to want to impress your banker: How did you open your first bank account? Now to the reasons to want to impress your banker: How did you open your first bank account? Let’s get right down to it. Your banking relationship can be like a great marriage or a bad trip to the DMV. We want to impress our bankers.

Venture Capital 156

Venture Capital Email Examples Company 156

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2022

Venture capitalists (VCs) have long been seen as the top of the pyramid for startup funding sources, but in fact angel investors now fund over twice as many companies, according to a classic Crunchbase article. Individual angel investors and crowdfunding have been adding to the momentum, some say exceeding VCs in total amount invested.

Guide 136

Guide Venture Capital Funding Class 136

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 22, 2011

Lately I have seen a number of deals announced on TechCrunch in which 5 or more different VCs were participating in the deal. When this first ran on TechCrunch I got the greatest comment in the world that I had to repeat here, “VC’s are like martinis: the first is good, the second one great, and the third is a headache.&#

Venture Capital 314

Venture Capital Startup Invest Pricing 314

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 25, 2013

But VC is like congress. They see how hard she does her job. “This essay is dedicated to the great VC’s on my board who I am lucky to work with: Sameer Gandhi from Accel, Jeremy Liew from Lightspeed, and Kirsten Green from Forerunner. .” Their data looks at tech VCs. Because they know him or her.

Venture Capital 374

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Invest Funding 374

Tech.Co

JUNE 28, 2021

Startup tech businesses used to land on the scene with big ideas about how their tech could change the world. ” The vision was grand and amorphous, with no clear indication of how or why Facebook would carry out its mission. Are new tech businesses becoming less ambitious in their lofty goals?

Startup 104

Startup Ideas Venture Capital Course 104

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2014

These tensions seep out in some angels or seed funds publicly or semi-privately deriding later-stage VCs for their “bad” behavior. I have seen bad behavior from later-stage VCs, believe me. Prorata rights are one of the most important rights of a private market technology investors and yet are seldom fully understood.

Guide 336

Guide Venture Capital Startup Writing 336

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 7, 2017

If you take smart money from a good angel or venture organization, the lead investor usually becomes your board member and has a vested interest in your success. If you take smart money from a good angel or venture organization, the lead investor usually becomes your board member and has a vested interest in your success.

Coach 243

Coach Organization Resource IBM 243

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2011

It’s nearly impossible to get a services company financed by VCs. It’s nearly impossible to get a services company financed by VCs. They have created two internal technology “products&# and wanted to figure out how they could turn their services business into a product business that could be financed.

Services 332

Services Venture Capital IP Startup 332

socalTECH

DECEMBER 23, 2019

The biggest lesson learned this year has been how hot the LA tech ecosystem has become. Due to this, seed rounds have become more competitive, with more expensive valuations and more oversubscribed rounds. Im looking forward to seeing how AI continues to unfold. Since 2010, $6.3B Since 2010, $6.3B READ MORE>>.

Capital 100

Capital Technical Review Truecar Venture Capital 100

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2015

” Today I want to talk about how a VC thinks about equity pricing on your round and particularly if you’re coming off of a convertible note. I can boil it down to how this tension plays out. In the old days VCs funded off of a “pre-money” valuation. How much am I willing to invest in your company?

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Pricing Startup Invest 150