Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 16, 2014

Our 3rd fund began investing in March 2009 (raised in 2008) and our 4th fund started in April 2012 so this fund will naturally begin investing around March / April 2015. As I like to say when asked, “For entrepreneurs you generally need to go to 2-3 cities max and probably pitch 5-15 investors.

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Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 14, 2014

It was 2009 and it was terribly difficult to get any financing (if you can remember a time like that!) and I thought if we brought the community together for common purpose we could create more of a sense of community to help new entrepreneurs get funded, assemble teams, raise profiles and help with biz dev, product, etc.

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TechCrunch

NOVEMBER 9, 2020

In the long term, there needs to be foundational change to level the playing field for women entrepreneurs. of the funding raised since 2009, while Latinx female founders saw only 0.4% So, if you’re a female founder faced with the prospect of pitching to VCs — what steps can you take to set yourself up for success?

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VC startup leadership communities 123

TechCrunch

MAY 27, 2022

To learn more about the underlying market forces and hurdles facing entrepreneurs and investors in this maverick industry, she spoke to four investors: Jacqueline Bennett, managing partner and co-founder, Highlands Venture Partners. Pitch Deck Teardown: Lumigo’s $29M Series A deck. Eager Entrepreneur. Walter Thompson.

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financing finance pitching transportation 82

StartupNation

JANUARY 20, 2022

As the e-commerce industry continues to boom and work from home remains a trend amongst the corporate sector, more entrepreneurs are using their funds to create new digital startups in a number of niches. In fact, VC-based funding has boomed within the last decade, reaching a whopping $753B worth of investments since 2009.

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venture capital capital ventures startup 89

TechCrunch

FEBRUARY 10, 2021

She debuted in the tech space with the launch of LearnVest in 2009. At both events, the TechCrunch pitch-off will be center stage, giving early-stage companies the chance to pitch to and get feedback from seasoned investors. Since, von Tobel has founded her own venture firm called Inspired Capital.

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financing finance pitching venture capital 66

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012

In the early spring of 2009, the fundraising nuclear winter of the previous year hadn't yet thawed. Many of you entrepreneurs know that feeling. Back when I was pitching my previous startup to investors, it had never really dawned on me that they had experienced what I was going through--and that a VC firm was essentially a startup.

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ventures pitching VC startup ecosystem 280

Dream It

APRIL 12, 2020

In 2008-2009, the financial markets seized up, and there were quarters of complete uncertainty, but ultimately VCs started investing again and things normalized. The crisis began in August 2008, but by March 2009, deal activity in venture had picked up again and economic activity in the venture ecosystem normalized. The risk paid off.

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StartupNation

DECEMBER 6, 2020

Related: A Practical Guide to Diversity for Startups and Entrepreneurs. According to a recent Crunchbase study , the number of companies founded by women doubled from 10 percent of global startups in 2009 to 20 percent in 2019. This narrative clearly disregards some great examples of successful mom entrepreneurs and startup founders.

innovation 97

innovation startup creativity funders 97

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2012

The other entrepreneur quoted in the story is from a guy pitching a Pinterest clone. The last closed market we had was from about September 2008 until June 2009--10 months. Most founders that get funded know their backers or have close connections to them well before they officially "pitch.". There is no fork.

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ventures venture capital disruption pitching 286

TechCrunch

APRIL 13, 2022

TC Sessions: Mobility will feature speakers on the main stage, a bevy of startup exhibits, demos, networking and a live pitch-off with a pretty sweet prize. TechCrunch Mobility Pitch-off. TechCrunch Mobility Pitch-off. Who will be on our stage? Founders — apply here. Founders – apply here. Where is My Autonomous Car? .

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TechCrunch

APRIL 12, 2022

TC Sessions: Mobility will feature speakers on the main stage, a bevy of startup exhibits, demos, networking and a live pitch-off with a pretty sweet prize. TechCrunch Mobility Pitch-off. TechCrunch Mobility Pitch-off. Who will be on our stage? Founders — apply here. Founders – apply here. Where is My Autonomous Car? .

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micromobility transportation pitching collaboration 78

TechCrunch

APRIL 15, 2022

TC Sessions: Mobility will feature speakers on the main stage, a bevy of startup exhibits, demos, networking and a live pitch-off with a pretty sweet prize. TechCrunch Mobility Pitch-off. TechCrunch Mobility Pitch-off. Who will be on our stage? Founders — apply here. Founders – apply here. Where is My Autonomous Car? .

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micromobility transportation pitching collaboration 71

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 25, 2013

After all, I am no stranger to the publicly expressing the frustrations of dealing with the downside of this industry as I wrote about in 2006 when I was an entrepreneur. By 2009 had reduced to around $15 billion in capital from LPs. The best VCs don’t try to help entrepreneurs. But VC is like congress. hours / day.

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VC peer-to-peer entrepreneurs board 374

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 1, 2009

In the first post in this three part series I described why I believe the VC market froze between September 2008 – April 2009. Unemployment continues to rise – Unemployment as of September 2009 is 9.7% Tags: Pitching VCs Start-up Advice VC Industry startup technology vc venture capital. I disagree.

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VC startup advice innovation 269

Startup Grind

AUGUST 13, 2018

Pitch your startup for an opportunity to meet with Floodgate. Floodgate exists to invest in prime movers - entrepreneurs who build movements that become category defining companies - before the rest of the world believes in them. Taskrabbit; Nov 2009 What is one question you ask yourself before investing in a company?

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VC entrepreneurship pitching strategy 111

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 21, 2014

Since 2009 we’ve been in an unequivocal bull market. I’d like to do a few posts on what life looks like on the way up and perhaps how to keep your head on straight and avoid drinking your own Kool Aid because as I often advise entrepreneurs on irrational exuberance, “ In a strong wind even turkeys can fly.”

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incubation board VC innovation 354

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 7, 2012

If they are out there, others need to hear about them more--not in a pitch but in a better way to share cutting edge ideas. That's what will attract the best entrepreneurs here--an opportunity to push limits and explore the future of innovation. I don't think the Valley really took New York seriously until Foursquare rose up in 2009.

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creativity opportunity culture communities 264

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. Of the 106 judges who preceded her 105 of them were men (Sandra Day O’Connor was the first woman).

founder 256

founder peer-to-peer mentorship VC 256

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 12, 2011

Ironically enough, the second nudge she gave my career also had to do with AOL--ten years later when in 2009, she introduced me to Jon Brod who was forming AOL Ventures. Does that make it a viable strategy for every new entrepreneur? When someone comes in to pitch me, I always ask them to tell me the "origin story".

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data analysis venture capital communities strategy 281

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 9, 2012

When I first sat down with Josh back in September of 2009 to talk about joining First Round. You've got a better shot at joining a VC firm's partner ranks as a successful entrepreneur than as a junior venture professional--and I think you're going to see less and less new Principal positions over time.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 1, 2009

In my previous post, The VC Ice Age is Thawing (for now) I wrote about the reasons why the VC market came to a screeching halt in September 2008 and remained largely shut until at least April 2009. This post highlights some of the reasons why the market is moving again and what entrepreneurs should do about this.

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VC venture capital networking innovation 255

Entrepreneur's Handbook

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

Take a densely packed forest, add a steep pitch, and throw in a couple feet of fresh snow, and I’m in heaven. Remember March 2009, when the Fed began buying bonds as part of its Quantitative Easing (QE) money printing operation? The S&P 500 Index continued to rally 440% from June 2009 until December 2021.

hospitality 104

hospitality investing investment advice 104

StartupNation

DECEMBER 6, 2020

Related: A Practical Guide to Diversity for Startups and Entrepreneurs. According to a recent Crunchbase study , the number of companies founded by women doubled from 10 percent of global startups in 2009 to 20 percent in 2019. This narrative clearly disregards some great examples of successful mom entrepreneurs and startup founders.

innovation 45

innovation startup creativity funders 45

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2011

Gogii came in my office in 2009 with three of the most talented founders I had seen. As you can see – they bring both executive & domain knowledge - which I’m on record as saying gives entrepreneurs “an unfair advantage.&#. I have to love both – but it’s in that proportion.

investing 310

investing investment VC board 310

StartupNation

NOVEMBER 21, 2021

In the startup world, it’s pitch decks, not business plans that get companies funded. Making a pitch deck is an art, a science, but most importantly, a story. Angel investors and venture capitalists have also learned to expect a standard pitch deck as the first filter when evaluating a company to invest in. Demo Day pitch.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 2, 2010

I’m writing this post to explain to entrepreneurs what you should be thinking about in terms of the VC’s you approach and the size and stage of their funds. Example: if a VC is on their fourth $200 million fund that they just raised in 2009 then you might hear them talk about $800 million under management.

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VC venture capital investing investment 269

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 27, 2010

Geolocation is so 2009. I can be frustrating for entrepreneurs who can’t seem to get a VCs interest until someone else is interested as well, but there’s actually a logic behind it, believe it or not. Ok, so we’re all doing social TV now. Haven’t you heard?

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VC venture capital media board 186

StartupNation

MARCH 10, 2021

Founded in 2009, Duo Security has grown into one of the top tech companies in the Midwest—and the country. Just recently, BrandXR received funding deals in the Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch competition. Their mission was recognized at the a2Tech360 event, where they won the Social Impact Pitch Competition. Duo Security.

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startup coworking spaces culture communities 77

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 27, 2010

Geolocation is so 2009. I can be frustrating for entrepreneurs who can’t seem to get a VCs interest until someone else is interested as well, but there’s actually a logic behind it, believe it or not. Ok, so we’re all doing social TV now. Haven’t you heard? Momentum at the right time paves the way for startup success.

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VC venture capital media board 150

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 13, 2013

My mom was an entrepreneur – she was kind of my inspiration for entrepreneurship. And no one could see me as anything but a startup guy, so I started a second company and called myself a serial entrepreneur. Then everyone just started calling me a serial entrepreneur. As an entrepreneur you have to suspend disbelief.

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startup entrepreneurs consulting board 337

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 14, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series Pitching a VC. In most cases if you can’t get a prototype done you’re probably not an entrepreneur. Professional angels / former entrepreneurs / seed funds – In Silicon Valley there are people like Ron Conway, Jeff Clavier, Mike Maples and many more. That’s OK.

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advice VC pitching angel investing 291

Don Dodge

APRIL 6, 2015

Two years earlier I saw another Boston based startup called Carbonite pitch a similar cloud backup solution to investors. You get help refining your product vision, identifying the market, working out your business model, putting together your investor pitch, and at the end of the program, the Investor Demo Day. This must change!

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incubation angel investing pitching venture capital 40

Founders Coop

FEBRUARY 21, 2024

Just two years later, in 2009, we worked out a deal to create the Techstars Seattle program, with our first program running in 2010. As Techstars’ track record fell further and further behind YC, their investor sales pitch of “buying an index of the global startup ecosystem” fell flat.

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startup ecosystem accelerator communities support 195

TechCrunch

APRIL 17, 2023

Your Deck Sucks — The Pitch That Raised $18 Million in the Current Climate: Jacqueline Samira, founder and CEO, Howdy.com, raised $21 million without ever sending a deck to a single investor. Wilcox founded E Ink, which commercialized electronic paper displays and was acquired by Amazon in 2009. Currently he’s a partner at Pillar VC.

real estate 80

real estate incubation VC construction 80

TechCrunch

AUGUST 10, 2021

If your startup has a clear brand pitch, “an enticing offer” and “clear next steps,” you’re ready to reach out to influencers , he says. Last week, Kickstarter announced that people have backed more than 200,000 projects with $6 billion in pledges since the company launched in 2009.

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pitching disruption mix-use leadership 96

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2012

If you do a capped note it’s bad for the entrepreneur. Since 2009 I have been counseling people to offer discounts to the first angel investors. Here is what I recommend very often – privately – to startup entrepreneurs for angel funding. The second way is to pitch them like normal but offer them a discount.

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financing finance pitching VC 294