Steve Blank

APRIL 26, 2022

Cram downs are back – and I’m keeping a list. At the turn of the century after the dotcom crash, startup valuations plummeted, burn rates were unsustainable, and startups were quickly running out of cash. Except, that is, for the bottom feeders of the Venture Capital business – investors who “ cram down ” their companies.

Cram Down 414

Cram Down Founder Venture Capital Recapitalization 414

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 20, 2011

As a courtesy if you enjoyed his write-up please check out his startup company, ChannelStack. In the early 80’s he left academia to work on venture capital investing with Jim Simons, Renaissance Technologies. He also says it is important to be able to participate in follow on rounds so as not to get “crammed down”.

Pre-Money Valuation 284

Pre-Money Valuation Technical Review Cofounder Cram Down 284

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2013

Since Angel investors put money into 60 times as many companies as venture capital funds, according to Wikipedia, early-stage startups need to focus first on the key thresholds that drive these investment decisions. The same hold true for venture capital investors. They bet on the jockey, not the horse.

Angel Investor 269

Angel Investor Cram Down Intellectual Property Venture Capital 269

Growthink Blog

MAY 23, 2011

With this seed capital – more often than not totaling between $100,000 and $1,000,000 - the company accomplishes a number of key technical milestones, gets a beta customer or two, and then goes on a "road show" to venture capitalists around the country for capital to “scale” the business. There are a lot of dark, hard days.

Angel Investor 112

Angel Investor Venture Capital Sweat Equity Cram Down 112

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 2, 2009

For those of you who have been following the discussion, a Lean Startup is Eric Ries ’s description of the intersection of Customer Development , Agile Development and if available, open platforms and open source. Over its lifetime a Lean Startup may spend less money than a traditional startup. Lets see why.

Lean 260

Lean Silicon Valley Startup RSS 260

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 2, 2014

When we started NextView, there were relatively few seed focused venture capital funds in the country, even fewer on the east coast, and almost none in the Boston area. Getting Crammed Down. Many seed funds have significant follow-on capital, but not to the degree of traditional venture funds.

Cram Down 66

Cram Down Institutional Investors Dilution Seed Stage 66