Gust

JANUARY 4, 2012

Entrepreneurs: if you’re looking seriously at angel investment, and you have the kind of product-market fit and management experience investors will like, you need to take a good look at convertible notes. Do yourself and the investors you want to talk to a favor: take a few minutes and do some homework on this issue.

angel investing 114

angel investing financing finance VC 114

Gust

DECEMBER 20, 2011

An entrepreneur has just finished his pitch. He did a good job on the pitch and the business looks like it has potential. But that was before the question and answer period after the pitch. We go on to the next pitch. He’s a man about 50, clearly smart, articulate, and knowledgeable. Raise your hand.”

pitching 93

pitching strategy entrepreneurs startup 93

Gust

NOVEMBER 29, 2011

I saw a great answer to that question in Pitching a VC: Why Financials Matter , posted earlier this month by David Hornik on his Ventureblog. David is a very well known venture capitalist, a partner in August Capital.

pitching 70

pitching entrepreneurs VC financing 70

Gust

DECEMBER 6, 2011

Ideally, a business pitch is exciting because the business potential is exciting. Frankly, in a business pitch, I mistrust shows of undue optimism, passion, and resolve. I don’t want to invest in passion unless it’s tempered by experience and based on a solid business plan. Overheard: I love your optimism. Absolutely.

pitching 70

pitching entrepreneurs investing investment 70

Gust

SEPTEMBER 12, 2011

It’s the result of several decades in high tech, three years as an investor in a local Oregon angel investment group , some consulting in due diligence for venture capital, and my experience as founder and co-founder of successful ventures. What I say here is my opinion and mine alone. Startup experience.

investing 70

investing investment startup angel investing 70

Gust

DECEMBER 28, 2011

One of my pet peeves in pitches is the triple whammy of absurdly high profitability projections. I’ve seen entrepreneurs promising 30, 40, even 50 percent profitability in their projections. Why triple whammy?

pitching 79

pitching sustainability entrepreneurs startup 79

Gust

DECEMBER 5, 2011

Angel investors can’t help you, and most venture capitalists won’t be interested in contributing the first several million. So, if you have a new technology that you believe can change the world, you need to team with someone who has really deep pockets.

technology 167

technology disruption entrepreneurs education 167

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 25, 2013

Anyone who was doing something new and cutting edge should feel connected to each other--whether or not they are building a venture backed startup. It's even more relevant now that I've started the first venture capital fund in Brooklyn-- Brooklyn Bridge Ventures --and invested in four Brooklyn based companies.

communities 315

communities innovation creativity real estate 315

Gust

NOVEMBER 28, 2011

Every investor is looking for the “dream team” of executives to put his money on. Often I find that experienced investors flip to the management page of a business plan, even before they read the product description. That’s how important the people are. What are investors looking for in the CEO and the rest of the top executives?

startup 147

startup networking energy entrepreneurs 147

Gust

DECEMBER 19, 2011

One of the most important questions you will be asked by potential investors is how your solution beats the competition’s, not just today, but over the three to five year life of their investment. There is no perfect answer to this question, but there are many wrong answers which will immediately jeopardize your credibility.

sustainability 98

sustainability disruption strategy technology 98

Gust

JANUARY 5, 2012

If large amounts of capital are required for startup companies to dominate a market, then the preferences of larger investors, such as angels and venture capitalists should be paramount in importance to entrepreneurs. Let’s be frank: neither angels nor VCs choose to invest alongside large numbers of less-than-sophisticated investors.

entrepreneurs 131

entrepreneurs investing investment capital 131

StartupNation

JANUARY 6, 2022

The way people fund their business has also been evolving and, in 2022, the traditional ways like angel investment and VCs will walk hand in hand with new and emerging blockchain-based options that offer loans outside the traditional banking system. Angel investment. Venture capital or VC. New fintech loans.

VC 110

VC incubation business incubator angel investing 110

TechCrunch

MARCH 15, 2022

raised more money from venture capitalists in 2021 than ever. We spoke with six of them to share their fundraising experiences in a venture capital market that can be unfriendly toward women. . Oh yes, I plan to make angel investments exclusively to female founders as soon ?as Women-founded companies in the U.S.

VC 115

VC founder networking investing 115

David Teten VC

JUNE 14, 2021

Former founders of successful ventures receive even fewer [emphasis added] callbacks than former founders of failed ventures. At my prior firm, ff Venture Capital, we invested in a company co-founded by Nate Jenkins , who had a successful exit, but not quite enough to buy a private plane. Full-time Initiatives.

consulting 119

consulting founder investing investment 119