Why you’re not selling: most stake holders don’t care about the intricacies of your technology
Many tech founders still carry the attitude that if you’re not from a technical background, you fail to understand their “business”. This is why many entrepreneurs fail to find their product market fit & commercialise their business. It’s one thing to bring great tech & another to actually sell that to the world.
The US: a glinting mirage – look elsewhere to find the hidden pots of gold
US investment is often seen as the holy grail, the land of overblown valuations & investors begging to offload their burdensome cash. Often the UK is overlooked, simply seen as a stop off & primer for business en route to the US. But examining the number more closely, 2016/2017 saw the UK attract 2200 new foreign direct investment projects. The US invest in three times as many projects into the UK than any other countries. It’s time to put down the ‘Silicon Valley coolaid’ & look elsewhere.
What if VCs downed some of their own medicine? (would it be poison?)
They think they are different but most VCs are all the same. What would happen if they had to be as clear on their own positioning as they were their portfolio companies?
Distressed assets in FinTech are a very exciting untouched prospect
We know not all firms are created equal and not all can win. There is lots of noise about when PE will venture into tech following the KKR move into Cyber with Darktrace. We remain enthralled by the concept of stripping the tech as an asset, repositioning it & how that would shift the way VCs prioritise tech.
You want to be liked & you like to think you’re a tough negotiator – but are they mutually exclusive?
At Thursday’s Startup Grind event, Robin Klein (of LocalGlobe) was both described as nice by VC mates & a tough negotiator by Steve O’Hear. The best of both worlds seems an attractive option but does it really exist. How “nice” do you want your VC investor to be when his niceness obscures the value of the firm & softens the hard return that is deserved?
