Both Sides of the Table

JULY 13, 2013

You have been at five startups, you had an exit at your last company where you were the Chief Revenue Officer. And for every time I’ve felt hugely stressed that our burn rate was getting too high, and I didn’t know who else was going to fund the company, and I’m all in on this company, right?”

Cofounder 337

Cofounder Technical Cofounder Startup San Diego 337

The Equity Kicker

JANUARY 10, 2020

They find a niche in the market where they can grow some revenues and then they raise some more money. It’s got a big burn rate, it’s too big to pivot, and it goes bust. Plus, step one of the pivot is to get your costs really low in order to preserve the runway to give yourself a chance of succeeding – so the team has to go.

Partner 68

Partner Early Stage Portfolio Metrics 68

VC Adventure

SEPTEMBER 4, 2015

A few months ago we held a “SaaS Summit” for about 130 people from across the Foundry Group portfolio. It’s important to note that there weren’t material differences in revenue size, geography, target market, etc. In fact, a 10% (meaning 30% to 40%) increase in growth rate translated into a 3x (3x!!)

Burn Rate 48

Burn Rate Portfolio Revenue Valuation 48

www.chubbybrain.com

SEPTEMBER 28, 2011

spent $20 million to get back to the same revenue that I had when I was CEO. created a vastly higher cost structure; I had 80 people mostly on base salaries under $100,000 and was bringing in revenue at the rate of $20 million annually. .”). Company: Home Portfolio. During this year they.

Software Review 79

Software Review Startup Technical Review Vesting 79

abovethecrowd.com

APRIL 20, 2016

The pressures of lofty paper valuations, massive burn rates (and the subsequent need for more cash), and unprecedented low levels of IPOs and M&A, have created a complex and unique circumstance which many Unicorn CEOs and investors are ill-prepared to navigate. The same thing happened to many Internet stocks.

IPO 40

IPO Term Sheet Silicon Valley Valuation 40

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2016

They either had a portfolio company in market and weren’t getting offers as quickly as expected or they knew a friend in the biz who was recounting this to them in a session VCs strangely call “comparing notes.”. Here are some stats to give you a sense: • Year over year revenue grew 51% in 2015 and we’re forecasting the same again for 2016.

Balance Sheet 150

Balance Sheet Burn Rate Valuation Forecast 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

Most are sitting on large portfolios of private companies that are raising money now or will need to do so in the future and they know that they’re up against some headwinds. Huge funding increases lead to massive wage inflation, rent inflation and thus higher burn rates. There is reason for despondency.

Valuation 150

Valuation Down Round Startup Later Stage 150

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 9, 2011

Companies with less than $2 million in revenue were asking for $50-60 million valuations and getting them. I thought about things I never had to as an entrepreneur: check size, ownership percentage, deal stage, portfolio construction and risk. Companies raised too much money in 2005-08 and had high burn rates.

Stock 305

Stock Technical Review Marketing Greece 305