Entrepreneur's Handbook

AUGUST 16, 2023

What advice would you give your past self? Most founders I speak to agree that the startup journey is generally discouraging, overrun with unsolvable challenges and many many mistakes. I posed a question to twenty-one other founders, across many different industries from media to finance, from SaaS to urban farming.

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founder peer-to-peer advice energy 84

TechCrunch

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

There are an estimated 100,000 Italians already living in London, attracting the likes of Riccardo Zacconi, co-founder of King.com (maker of Candy Crush) and Simon Beckerman of social shopping app Depop. The good news: VC funding in Italy has grown. It has an estimated 67 VC funds, with 18 of them started since 2015.

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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. It’s not uncommon for a VC to ask you how much capital you’ve raised and what the post-money valuation was on your last round. So why does a VC ask you?

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Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2018

the most counter-intuitive fund-raising advice you’ll ever get I’m about to offer you some fund-raising advice that flies directly in the face of what most conventional wisdom will tell you. So what does a VC do when he or she isn’t ready to say “no” or perhaps might like to talk with you in a year but not now?

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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

Picking a VC is hard. So I thought I’d write about out with what I would look for in a VC knowing what I know now and why. Most VCs are book smart. VCs should be more of a coach than proscriptively telling you what to do. You want a VC who will spar with you but then STFU and let you get on with things.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2019

I became a VC 12 years ago in 2007 when the pace of deals was much slower. As I was trying to figure out the role I wanted to play in the VC world I decided I wanted to focus on businesses that were building deeply technical products to solve problems for business users. VCs have different views and strategies on this.

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TechCrunch

MARCH 22, 2023

Nevertheless, investors are optimistic about their prospects in the country and feel that the global slowdown is helping founders focus more on building and strengthening their core business. How has your investment strategy changed? What advice would you give your portfolio startups to continue growing at this time?

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TechCrunch

AUGUST 6, 2021

Starting with the assumption that 90% of startups will fail and the most successful ones take an average of six years to IPO, founders must make careful decisions about whom they invite to join the core team. His initial advice? “Investors love founder-CEOs, and founders are often fantastic candidates for this role.

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TechCrunch

DECEMBER 16, 2021

In the scuffle, VCs are turning to scouts to do the legwork, but that has meant being yet another step removed from their founders. I’ve sat at both sides of the table as a founder and a VC, and I understand how difficult it is to get them on the same page. Techstars Equitech Accelerator ) and women founders (e.g.,

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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 3, 2016

In the VC insider baseball world a discussion has gone on about “VC platforms” over the past 5 or so years. While firms define platforms differently, let’s just say they are the services that a VC offers outside of investment capital and partner time on boards or providing intros.

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TechCrunch

SEPTEMBER 28, 2021

Also, Extra Crunch Live, our weekly video series with investors and founders, is now TechCrunch Live — and you don’t need to be a member to join the audience. Introducing TechCrunch+, advice and analysis to help startups get ahead. Brands considering a live-shopping strategy must lean on influencers. Is the U.S.

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TechCrunch

MAY 6, 2022

We start with a historical run of stories beginning last December, threading through the start of the year until we reach the latest data from the VC ecosystem. 3 views: How should founders prepare for a decline in startup valuations and investor interest? Cram downs are a character test for VCs and founders (April 2022).

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TechCrunch

AUGUST 18, 2023

Full TechCrunch+ articles are only available to members Use discount code TCPLUSROUNDUP to save 20% off a one- or two-year subscription “Starting a tech company today costs 99% less than it did 18 years ago when Y Combinator was started,” says Brett Calhoun, managing director and general partner at Redbud VC.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2013

And I am often approached by entrepreneurs in cities which don’t have a vibrant VC community. If you don’t live in a major VC zone, I have some tips for how to make it easier to raise Venture Capital. ” Most VCs view it as their responsibility to mentor, debate, cajole and generally assist with investments they make.

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Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 11, 2022

Between 2006–2008 I sold both companies that I had started and became a VC. SEEING THINGS FROM THE VC SIDE OF THE TABLE While I was a VC in 2007 & 2008 those were dead years because the market again evaporated due the the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). THE VC VALUATION GOD Valuation obsession wasn’t restricted to startups.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2014

I told my friend that I felt that in 2014 too many new VCs feel the pressure to chase deals, to be a part of syndicates with other brand names and to pounce on top of every startup whose numbers are trending up quickly. I know I can’t be in every deal and I know that the easy part of being a VC is writing the first check in a deal.

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Startup Grind

AUGUST 13, 2018

Who is one of your founders you think we should watch? Nancy Lublin, CEO of Loris.ai, is definitely a founder to watch. Is this a founder I want to work with for ten years? What is one thing every founder should ask themselves before walking into a meeting with a potential investor? Execute on the strategy to win.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 10, 2016

And Greg has had the most influence on Upfront Ventures’ strategy since he joined. I joined Upfront Ventures in 2007 and took over as co-Managing Partner in 2011 along with the founder, Yves Sisteron. I asked for the responsibility of setting out the firm’s future strategy and our daily operating tasks.

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TechCrunch

JANUARY 21, 2022

I’ve worked at early-stage startups where we relied on our best guesses to shape product pipelines and develop marketing strategies. But to build one, founders must first define clear goals and create value for participants. 500 Global’s Christine Tsai shares her 2022 VC predictions. Image Credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch.

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

I came across this blog post about getting a computer science degree as the best degree for getting into venture capital or working at a VC-backed start up. I just completed an exercise where I went out to hire a new associate for my VC firm, GRP Partners. I had to laugh a bit reading it. MBA fine, but not required. What you gain: 1.

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TechCrunch

JULY 15, 2021

At the TechCrunch Early Stage: Marketing and Fundraising event last week, Norwest Venture Partners ‘ Lisa Wu took the stage to discuss how founders can think like venture capitalists in all facets of their business. But, as the founder, I’ll probably tell you don’t do [the cold pitch deck]. Pitch deck or pitch blurb?

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VC pitching advice ventures 102

David Teten VC

AUGUST 21, 2019

Most founders who are raising capital look first to traditional equity VCs. Revenue-Based Investing (“RBI”) is a new form of VC financing, distinct from the preferred equity structure most VCs use. For more background, see Revenue-Based Investing: A New Option for Founders who Care About Control. Soup to nuts.

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TechCrunch

MAY 26, 2021

Sophie Alcorn is the founder of Alcorn Immigration Law in Silicon Valley and 2019 Global Law Experts Awards’ “Law Firm of the Year in California for Entrepreneur Immigration Services.” Here’s another edition of “Dear Sophie,” the advice column that answers immigration-related questions about working at technology companies.

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TechCrunch

DECEMBER 16, 2022

An example: “growth at all costs” is a fairy tale made possible by cheap money that helped venture capitalists set expectations for founders — and each other — for years. “Growth at all costs” is a fairy tale made possible by cheap money that helped VCs set expectations for founders — and each other.

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David Teten VC

AUGUST 19, 2019

Does the traditional VC financing model make sense for all companies? VC Josh Kopelman makes the analogy of jet fuel vs. motorcycle fuel. VCs sell jet fuel which works well for jets; motorcycles are more common but need a different type of fuel. . Absolutely not. So what is Revenue Based Investing?

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StartupNation

MARCH 23, 2021

” That was Lori Coulter, CEO and co-founder of Summersalt, speaking at the State of the Midwest Startup Community 2020. There’s no denying that women have made many strides in closing the gender gap in tech, but those trends haven’t necessarily been true for female founders. Lori’s advice to women entrepreneurs seeking funding?

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AsiaTechDaily

NOVEMBER 16, 2023

In the early stages, it’s really all about the founder/founding team.” For him, it’s about identifying founders uniquely positioned to solve specific problems and possessing the motivation, skills, and a solid market understanding. “In crowded spaces, things are either going to be fully valued or overvalued.

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TechCrunch

MARCH 22, 2023

The Family Fund & Founder Community , which goes by F3C, announced $25 million in new capital commitments and its focus on becoming the largest community of founders that co-invest in the late-seed and Series A stages of consumer brands. In fact, they helped him see when he needed to pivot his business, he said.

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A VC: Musings of a VC in NYC

FEBRUARY 14, 2023

First and foremost, this is not tax advice. I am not a tax advisor and you should never take anything you read here as tax advice. If you are being granted restricted stock, founders stock, or some other asset that vests over time, you should ask your employer and your tax advisor if you should file an 83b election.

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Entrepreneur's Handbook

OCTOBER 18, 2022

You’ll receive the best practical startup advice straight to your inbox every week. In this week’s edition, we share: How VCs choose which startups to fund. How you can sell your startup to VCs with a one-pager. You won’t believe how VCs decide which startups to fund Aaron Dinin, PhD teaches entrepreneurship at Duke.

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Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2013

If you are a super young, well-connected, Stanford CS or EE, worked at Facebook early, have a bit o’ dosh and have VCs chasing you … you are exempt. Delaying going out of business gives you way more chances at product / market fit than any other strategy I know of. If that’s you, you can ignore my advice.

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AsiaTechDaily

NOVEMBER 16, 2022

Register Startup founders need to be authentic and prepared when they get the chance to meet prospective investors, according to Rex Fong, founding partner at investment and advisory group Capitale Ventures. It partners with entrepreneurs in funding their growth stories through innovative market access and public venture capital strategies.

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AsiaTechDaily

MARCH 28, 2023

Register Startup founders are often too focused on the amount of money they can get from an investor that they mostly fail to see the value that other investors have to offer to grow their businesses further. Sharon Lou, venture partner at Indelible Ventures , considers this as one of the top mistakes that founders commit when raising funds.

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ventures investing investment SaaS 98

Hunter Walk

DECEMBER 30, 2022

The same can be said of startups and their founders, in the sense that so many things can go wrong in the building of a company to an exit, that success almost seems to be a statistical anomaly [more on how bees fly ]. There’s also many wonderful angel/operators and smaller supporting funds with large portfolio strategies.

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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. VC firm admin. VC firm policy or fund analysis. Helping be the VC “presence” at key events. Smart founders use this extra resource to their advantage.

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Both Sides of the Table

JULY 7, 2015

They now have a strong VC lead from Foundry Group and from experience when you get advice from Foundry it comes with authority, experience, empathy and the right amount of straight talk. I know because I have been the beneficiary of their advice for years and have appreciated it. All of my partners at Upfront do.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2009

I had previously raised VC in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2005. They picked apart holes in our strategy and they were right. Another called Parker Harris, the co-founder and CTO. In case VC’s haven’t figured this out yet, shit rolls downhill. The first VC I met with came from attending DEMO.

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