View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

Most of these rhyme with what we’ve said in the past, but some have also evolved to fit the changing landscape and our own convictions about what really matters for founders and their investors at the seed stage. Lead investors are few. Leads that are true force-multipliers are exceedingly rare.

North America 120

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 120

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 4, 2018

Most of these rhyme with what we’ve said in the past, but some have also evolved to fit the changing landscape and our own convictions about what really matters for founders and their investors at the seed stage. Lead investors are few. Leads that are true force-multipliers are exceedingly rare.

North America 36

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 36

Hippoland

AUGUST 9, 2016

One question that seed investors love to ask is if you have a lead investor in your seed round. But once you figure out why an investor is asking, tactically speaking, what do you do? Let’s say that you find out that an investor is asking because he/she does not invest without a lead investor in place.

Lead Investor 48

Lead Investor Term Sheet Due Diligence Convertible Security 48

OnlyOnce

APRIL 27, 2021

Last week, I blogged about Bolster’s Board Benchmark survey results , which really laid bare the lack of diversity on startup boards. My new mantra for Startup Boards is simple: 1-1-1. Then 1 independent for every 1 investor. The conversation with your co-founder about only one founder/executive on the board.

Vesting 48

Vesting Cofounder Startup Term Sheet 48

View from Seed

AUGUST 12, 2015

I loved the founder but was struggling because this just didn’t seem “big enough” to me. I remember talking to one of their angel investors (and also one of my old mentors) about what the company could become and what it would look like if it ever became a really big business. But these were the early days of the company.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Marketing Angel Investor Term Sheet 120

View from Seed

AUGUST 12, 2015

I loved the founder but was struggling because this just didn’t seem “big enough” to me. I remember talking to one of their angel investors (and also one of my old mentors) about what the company could become and what it would look like if it ever became a really big business. But these were the early days of the company.

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Marketing Angel Investor Term Sheet 120

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2015

Over the years I’ve written extensively about the downsides of convertible notes for startups such as here , here and here. If you’re a solo founder and haven’t built out your team or engineers I’m likely to want 15+%. If you think the other investors will be super value-added – no problem!

Pre-Money Valuation 150

Pre-Money Valuation Option Pool Post-Money Valuation Dilution 150