Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 3, 2012

He told me he wondered if we should consider switching partners so the company could get more money and at a higher price. The truth is that I wasn’t as valuation sensitive as my original VC partner was and I would have been willing to raise price. I know it’s tempting to switch partners. He has signed a term sheet.

Term Sheet 356

Term Sheet Silicon Valley Reputation Partner 356

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 19, 2011

I recently sat down with Matt Coffin , the founder of LowerMyBills, which sold for $400 million but was very nearly a bankruptcy only a few years early, and talked “startups.&#. Matt is one of the most transparent, focused & honest startup guys you’ll meet. Or read the quick, informative summary below the image!

Acquisition 304

Acquisition Warrant Customer Term Sheet 304

View from Seed

APRIL 30, 2015

There’s been a lot of digital ink spilled around the various types of capital available to startups today. As a startup grows, venture debt becomes a viable option to continue that growth. Glen is an active contributor to the local tech ecosystem and well-versed in how and when startups can use venture debt to their advantage.

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Equity Startup Seed Stage 120

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 13, 2013

Thomas Clayton has started and run numerous high-tech startups in Silicon Valley. He is currently CEO of Bubbly , a social media startup backed by Sequoia Capital, SingTel Innov8, and JAFCO. The company is one of the largest VC–backed startups in Southeast Asia, having raised over $60M in funding. Sequoia , Accel , NEA , etc.).

Asia 132

Asia Silicon Valley India Term Sheet 132

Agile VC

MAY 26, 2011

AGILEVC My idle thoughts on tech startups. This also appears as a guest post at Fortune’s Term Sheet. Salesforce.com is a startup with 76,000 subscribers (over 2.1M Reid assembled the founding team drawing largely from his prior startups, with a few other folks he’d known for a long time. May 26, 2011.

Term Sheet 178

Term Sheet Silicon Valley Technical Review Social Network 178

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

As the venture capital industry has evolved, more and more seed investors are passing on traditionally “seed stage” startups because there isn’t enough traction. As seed funds have raised larger and larger funds, more have developed the muscle around issuing term sheets and “leading”. And by early, we mean pre-traction.

North America 120

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 120

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

If you’re a startup and you don’t have a close relationship with a few law firms you’re really missing one of the most important relationships that any entrepreneur can have. I write about some of the lessons in my post on Startup Mistakes. I know that people have an allergy to lawyers out of fear of being screwed.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2009

On December 2nd, 2006 I wrote the blog post published later in this post when I was CEO of startup Koral about my experiences in pitching VCs. I had really positive experiences such as working with Greg Gretsch at Sigma Partners where he championed us to a partners’ meeting where we sort of got crucified.

Venture Capital 274

Venture Capital Term Sheet San Diego Viral 274

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

(co-written with Jamie Finney, Founding Partner at Greater Colorado Venture Fund. More and more startups are pursuing Revenue-Based VCs , but “RBI” doesn’t fit everyone. Capacity Capital, Greater Colorado Venture Fund, Indie.VC, Reformation Partners, UP Fund, Versatile VC. Of the Inc. 5000 companies, only 6.5% return cap.

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 2, 2011

While certainly not every business needs to raise venture financing, it is the path for many high-growth technology startups. Therefore, going down the fundraising path is something many technology entrepreneurs will need to do and a critical step in the development of their business. Tip 4: Really Understand Key Terms.

Cap Table 125

Cap Table Term Sheet Liquidation Preference Technical Review 125

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 28, 2015

by John Vrionis, partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners. The program provides entrepreneurs the resources and mentoring they need to build their companies and develop their skills. The program provides entrepreneurs the resources and mentoring they need to build their companies and develop their skills. Incorporation.

Convertible Security 100

Convertible Security IP Technical Review Software Review 100

View from Seed

MAY 17, 2019

There are two distinct chapters to venture fundraising – the first is entrepreneurs pitching their startup to multiple firms to generate interest and ultimately secure a term sheet; then, the period after a term sheet has been signed progressing to close.

Term Sheet 149

Term Sheet Reputation Security Conversion 149

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 8, 2009

Traction can simply mean showing that you’re making progress with customers, product development, channel partners, initial revenue as a proof point, attracting well-known angel investors, winning industry awards / recognition. Funding is about developing a relationship over time. They hire key staff.

Technical Review 309

Technical Review Term Sheet Venture Capital Revenue 309

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 15, 2010

If you follow them you’ll know that they’re now on fire and Tristan is now VP Business Development. I was raising money for my second company and having been burned by term sheets on my first company I was eager to get myself knowledgeable before signing up to take VC again. It wasn’t always so.

Social Network 347

Social Network Networking Southern California Term Sheet 347

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 13, 2018

If you truly believe that you, your company and your products are exceptional and your company will be valuable then you’re actually doing them a FAVOR by helping them invest in your startup. If an investor isn’t engaging then they’re not suddenly going to get a term sheet. You can short-hand this as “engagement.”

Term Sheet 332

Term Sheet Due Diligence Campaign Sales 332

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 23, 2015

One of the questions we discussed is, “How much capital should a startup raise?” We talk a lot about his schooling, his early jobs as a developer and then as a VC and we talk about his decision to spend winters in Los Angeles. Startup Lessons' ” Here is a three-minute video with Fred answering this question.

Los Angeles 150

Los Angeles Silicon Valley Term Sheet Video 150

Austin Startup

JULY 22, 2021

On October 4th, five technology startup finalists will pitch to a panel of advisors and judges made up of successful investors, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders. Any software, hardware, or CPG startup in Texas with a female founder or co-founder can apply to participate. Startups, submit your application now! Who Can Apply?

San Antonio 107

San Antonio Dallas Houston Founder 107

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 8, 2018

In 2017 we began inserting an “Inclusion Clause” into our term sheets because we believe that the culture one establishes at the earliest stages of one’s business will set out the course of how it will grow and develop. Ours is: upfront.com/inclusion. one that’s inclusive across gender, ethnicity, age and national origins.

Term Sheet 284

Term Sheet Los Angeles Open Source Portfolio 284

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 5, 2014

Stage 1 : Either Satya or I are meeting the founders, usually solo, giving them an overview of Homebrew and learning about their startup through direct conversations, using the product (whatever stage it’s at) and doing some background on their industry (if it’s an area new to us). Stage 2 : Here both of us are engaged.

Software Review 103

Software Review Balance Sheet Cofounder Technical Review 103

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

We have a special program if you are pre-seed and need product development. In 2019 we partnered with several revenue-based lending providers, effectively creating a marketplace. “. We’re currently evaluating about 20 companies a month and issuing term sheets to 25% of them; those that fit our investment criteria.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

OnlyOnce

OCTOBER 31, 2013

Fred Wilson has been a venture investor and director in Return Path since 2000, first with Flatiron Partners and then with Union Square Ventures. Here are a few tips for ending up with the best long-term partner as an investor. And this is true of any negotiation, not just a term sheet. Selecting Your Investors.

Valuation 133

Valuation Term Sheet B2C Security 133

Austin Startup

MARCH 16, 2021

Greetings from Houston Mural located in Houston Heights If your startup is located in the Houston region you may be eligible to compete for a $50,000 investment! Startups, submit your application Capital Factory Ventures Application Who Can Apply? million Series A round. million in funding.

Houston 80

Houston San Antonio Dallas Texas 80

Gust

DECEMBER 21, 2011

Boston, New York City, Seattle and Southern California spawn many exciting startups…but do not exceed the Valley in any measure of entrepreneurial achievement. And, while being the undisputed leader in breeding and growing startups, the Valley is not the only place in the world (or the US) where entrepreneurs thrive.

Silicon Valley 107

Silicon Valley Southern California Tucson Seattle 107

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 8, 2011

Launchpad LA today announces it will accept applications for its third class of Los Angeles-based tech startups. To give visibility to these companies to: Sources of funding (angels / VCs), business development partners, mentors who have themselves built successful companies, the press and potential employees to hire.

Los Angeles 287

Los Angeles Silicon Valley Incubator Startup 287

www.readwriteweb.com

DECEMBER 29, 2011

While certainly not every business needs to raise venture financing, it is the path for many high-growth technology startups. Therefore, going down the fundraising path is something many technology entrepreneurs will need to do and is a critical step in the development of their business. Tip 4: Really Understand Key Terms.

Cap Table 47

Cap Table Term Sheet Liquidation Preference Technical Review 47

www.bothsidesofthetable.com

MAY 13, 2012

I recently did a post for startups on understanding sales people. A few people asked me to try and define the perfect startup organization chart. But I do have more insight into understanding your startup team. Often I’m asked by startup CEO’s about how to best build an engineering team.

Fractional VPE 89

Fractional VPE Part-Time VPE Fractional CTO CTO Hire 89

Startup Company Lawyer

APRIL 22, 2009

Always looking for ways to better serve the entrepreneurial community, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati is pleased to announce the release of the WSGR Term Sheet Generator , a publicly available online tool that allows entrepreneurs and investors to generate an initial draft of a term sheet for a preferred stock financing.

Term Sheet 39

Term Sheet Finance Preferred Stock Kentucky 39

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

As the venture capital industry has evolved, more and more seed investors are passing on traditionally “seed stage” startups because there isn’t enough traction. As seed funds have raised larger and larger funds, more have developed the muscle around issuing term sheets and “leading”. And by early, we mean pre-traction.

North America 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

Reid Hoffman

DECEMBER 10, 2020

If I’m going to find out that a set of founders lack integrity, don’t behave like partners, take on unacceptable risks that might harm their customers or society, or simply aren’t the kinds of people I want to spend a decade with, I want to know those facts before I start down the path of evaluating that investment. I think David’s wrong.”.

Hosting 69

Hosting Hockey Stick IPO Silicon Valley 69

Up and Running

FEBRUARY 19, 2014

To learn some common legal pitfalls we’d all be better off avoiding, we asked nine founders from the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) what unexpected things they found themselves needing lawyers for in the early stages of their startups. Term Sheets. Have you hired or not hired a lawyer for your startup, and why?

Non-disclosure Agreement 97

Non-disclosure Agreement NDA Term Sheet Early Stage 97

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 6, 2015

And they should be; the feeding frenzy in the innovation economy is in some cases because startups are eating the lunch of more established companies. Access to the corporate investor’s ecosystem can open up great opportunities from technology validation to customer and partner development.

Venture Capital 60

Venture Capital Balance Sheet Technical Review Portfolio 60

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

Unfortunately in early stage startups the drive for financing hijacks the corporate DNA and becomes the raison d’etre of the company. Chasing funding versus chasing customers and a repeatable and scalable business model, is one reason startups fail. The goal of their startup in this stage becomes “getting funded.”

Customer Development 262

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 262

Haystack

FEBRUARY 9, 2019

At the beginning of 2018, we almost invested in a startup with two strong founders. My old friend Krishna Gade and his new co-founder, Amit Paka, were teaming up to build a new startup in one of the most exciting technology spaces out there today — artificial intelligence. This is the story of how we invested in Fiddler Labs.

Artificial Inteligence 107

Artificial Inteligence Algorithm Term Sheet Cofounder 107

Genuine VC

JANUARY 13, 2014

Partners who would be interested in a potential investment are distracted by other new investments, portfolio companies, and personal matters. And that’s assuming a particular partner & firm is sincerely interested… it can take a number of meetings for them and especially the entrepreneur to truly suss that conclusion out.

Term Sheet 206

Term Sheet Venture Capital Valuation Portfolio 206

ReadWriteStart

DECEMBER 1, 2011

At today's roundtable, we announced 1M/1M Premium company Freshdesk's $1M funding from Accel Partners. Freshdesk is a social customer support startup offering a SaaS solution to small businesses. If you are a content producer or a freemium app or game developer, you would know, instantly, what I am talking about.

Partner 113

Partner Tennessee Nashville India 113

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2012

And I also now have to raise money myself, but this time from bigger institutions that our industry calls LPs (limited partners). Partners make investment decisions. Also recognize that WITHIN a VC you have partners who focus on different areas. So they develop short-hand ways to qualify things better. Meet in person.

Developer 366

Developer Silicon Valley PR Las Vegas 366

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 12, 2020

It was a frustrating development because I was counting on them to be a part of the first close. One just got a seed term sheet for twice the valuation I put in at in the pre-seed and the other is doing $200k/month in revenue. I started picking back up with a few LPs in May—and for a moment, things seemed pretty good.

LP 136

LP Technical Review Software Review Valuation 136