Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 29, 2022

In the old days, every entrepreneur planned on taking their startup public, and making it big. Today the rate of startups going public (IPO – Initial Public Offering) is finally up from the dead zone of the last two decades, and is now double the rate back in 1999. Startup founders don’t fit in a public company.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 1, 2015

In the old days, every entrepreneur dreamed of easily taking their startup public, and making it big. Today the rate of startups going public (IPO – Initial Public Offering) is up from the dead zone, but is still less than half the rate of 15 years ago. Violent market swings usually hit public companies first.

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IPO SEC Prospectus Startup 120

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 29, 2021

We can trace the Midwest’s renaissance to Sprout Social’s successful initial public offering (IPO) , which saw the company debut on public markets at a price of $17 per share and rise to over $120 per share today. The national labor market has evolved since the pandemic. Today, Sprout is a $6.6

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 6, 2014

With the recent apparent successes of several startups in taking their company public (initial public offering) and raising billions of dollars, I’m hearing a groundswell of enthusiasm from new entrepreneurs to follow in their footsteps to fund their companies and become billionaires overnight.

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IPO Initial Public Offering Startup Small Business Administration 236

Up and Running

NOVEMBER 12, 2014

Initial Public Offering (IPO). ” This is because, when a company decides to sell itself to another company, the buyer will often incorporate or merge the services of that company into their own product or service offerings. See Also 3 Things Every Entrepreneur Needs to Know About Exit Strategies. Management buyout.

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Exit Strategy Lock-up Period Merger IPO 117

ReadWriteStart

JULY 20, 2023

In this article, we delve into the world of tech-ish companies and explore the seismic impact of initial public offerings (IPOs) on their growth and profitability. Despite not being a traditional tech company, Cava’s IPO shattered expectations and sent shockwaves through the market.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 12, 2019

I was reading an old article written by marketing guru Seth Godin a while back where he mentions that “it takes about six years of hard work to become an overnight success”. Six years later, he managed to land a contract with IBM to provide their IBM PC base operating system. had its initial public offering, raising $33.8

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YoungUpstarts

MAY 23, 2012

One thing is clear: mobile gaming – an industry whose market value is projected to exceed $54 billion in 2015 – is highly lucrative for the brains behind the games. And, as the operating systems for mobile devices become more sophisticated and powerful, the sky is truly the limit for game designers, animators and developers.

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Mobile Video Design Initial Public Offering 157

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 6, 2013

I was reading an old article written by marketing guru Seth Godin a while back where he mentions that “it takes about six years of hard work to become an overnight success”. Six years later, he managed to land a contract with IBM to provide their IBM PC base operating system. had its initial public offering, raising $33.8

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 26, 2018

Despite the fact that the number of IPOs (Initial Public Offerings) for startups have continued to stay low, I still hear it touted often as the preferred exit strategy. The market for recent IPOs also remains extremely volatile, and as a result many of them are currently trading below their opening price.

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Exit Strategy IPO Initial Public Offering SEC 128

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2015

The visibility of Google, Facebook and a few others continues to propagate the myth that the ultimate objective of every entrepreneur should be to take their startups public via an initial public offering at the earliest opportunity. All strategy and operational moves become public.

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IPO Initial Public Offering Entrepreneur Private Equity 120

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 11, 2013

In the old days, every entrepreneur dreamed of someday taking their startup public, and making it a multi-national powerhouse. Typical costs for startups today range from $250,000 to $1 million, even if the offering does not go through. Startups going public are laid open to competitors and critics.

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IPO SEC Prospectus Startup 242

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 31, 2016

I was reading an old article written by marketing guru Seth Godin a while back where he mentions that “it takes about six years of hard work to become an overnight success”. Six years later, he managed to land a contract with IBM to provide their IBM PC base operating system. had its initial public offering, raising $33.8

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Initial Public Offering California .Net Business Plan 148

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2013

Even though the Initial Public Offering (IPO) alternative for a successful startup seems to be coming back, it is relatively rare. IPOs in 2008, the market was up to a still trivial 128 in 2012 (compared to 675 in 1996). Consider the recent example of Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg. After a record low of 39 U.S.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2012

I was reading an article written by marketing guru Seth Godin a while back where he mentions that “it takes about six years of hard work to become an overnight success”. Six years later, he managed to land a contract with IBM to provide their IBM PC base operating system. had its initial public offering, raising $33.8

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 19, 2012

The job changes from creating a “work of art” to operating a “cookie cutter.” Initial Public Offering (IPO). The ideal buyer is someone who has more skills and interest on the operational side of the business, and can scale it. This used to be the preferred mode, and the quick way to riches. Make it your cash cow.

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Exit Strategy Initial Public Offering IPO Startup 241

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2013

None of these investment banks offer traditional banking services, as you would expect from one of the following: Retail banks Commercial banks Credit unions Savings and loans As startup founders, you first need to deal with one of these traditional banks, probably a commercial bank. Commercial banking is also known as business banking.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2012

Even though the Initial Public Offering (IPO) alternative for a successful startup seems to be coming back into vogue, it is relatively rare. IPOs in 2008, the market was up to a still trivial 159 in 2011. Consider the recent example of Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg. After a record low of 39 U.S.

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Exit Strategy IPO Investment Bankers Entrepreneur 239

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 26, 2011

I was reading an article written by marketing guru Seth Godin a while back where he mentions that “it takes about six years of hard work to become an overnight success”. Six years later, he managed to land a contract with IBM to provide their IBM PC base operating system. had its initial public offering, raising $33.8

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Initial Public Offering California .Net Business Plan 295

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2016

Despite the fact that the number of IPOs (Initial Public Offerings) for startups have continued to decrease, I still hear it touted often as the preferred exit strategy. Concerns over valuations being reset to a new normal, and a soft exit market, are seen as key drivers. Analysts want escalating profits.

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IPO Initial Public Offering SEC Stock Options 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 5, 2011

The job changes from creating a “work of art” to operating a “cookie cutter.” Initial Public Offering (IPO). The ideal buyer is someone who has more skills and interest on the operational side of the business, and can scale it. This used to be the preferred mode, and the quick way to riches. Make it your cash cow.

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Exit Strategy Initial Public Offering Startup IPO 231

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 5, 2011

Even though the Initial Public Offering (IPO) alternative for a successful startup seems to be coming back into vogue, it is still extremely rare. Opening your company to the public will change the way you do business, from reinvesting returns for the future, to maximizing growth each quarter. Only about a dozen U.S.

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Exit Strategy IPO Investment Bankers Entrepreneur 235

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 22, 2011

None of these investment banks offer traditional banking services, as you would expect from one of the following: Retail banks Commercial banks Credit unions Savings and loans As startup founders, you first need to deal with one of these banks, probably a commercial bank. Commercial banking is also known as business banking.

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Silicon Valley Private Equity Initial Public Offering Startup 211

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 29, 2010

I was reading an article written by marketing guru Seth Godin a while back where he mentions that “it takes about six years of hard work to become an overnight success”. Six years later, he managed to land a contract with IBM to provide their IBM PC base operating system. had its initial public offering, raising $33.8

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Initial Public Offering Startup California .Net 221

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

Uber , Zenefits , Tanium , Lending Club CEOs of companies with billion dollar market caps have been in the news – and not in a good way. 20th Century Tech Liquidity = Initial Public Offering. In the 20th century tech companies and their investors made money through an Initial Public Offering (IPO).

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Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 245

Berkonomics

JULY 8, 2021

How do roundtables operate? It was an Internet CEO roundtable in early 2000 (almost a year before the crash of the stock market) where it became obvious before the public was aware, that the bubble was just beginning to burst for such tech businesses.

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Berkonomics

OCTOBER 4, 2018

I’ve been involved with well over twenty successful exits and four initial public offerings over the years, some of them with monstrous gains, some more modest. First, there are at least three types of exits. Then in addition, there are the exits that returned some portion of capital, but nothing more.

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Sales Investment Bankers Initial Public Offering Early Stage 54

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 14, 2012

The more market-savvy professionals already know some of these standard shortened phrases, and business glossaries abound. But if the initial jargon has got you down, just KISS (keep it simple, stupid), and check out these nine business acronyms that you need to know. And the language of business can be hard to understand.

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Non-disclosure Agreement NDA IPO Covenant 202

Steve Blank

MARCH 18, 2011

The Golden Age (1970 – 1995): Build a growing business with a consistently profitable track record (after at least 5 quarters,) and go public when it’s time. Dot.com Bubble ( 1995-2000): “ Anything goes” as public markets clamor for ideas, vague promises of future growth, and IPOs happen absent regard for history or profitability.

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Internet IPO Silicon Valley Agile 334

Reid Hoffman

MARCH 19, 2019

There are times when small and slow is the right strategy for a specific market opportunity. When the market conditions are right, you should blitzscale for the benefit of all stakeholders: customers, employees, investors, and society. Blitzscaling is a response to market dynamics, not the cause.

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Cofounder Business Model IPO Non-Compete 28

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 11, 2015

This compensation can come in the form of a stock option , a stock appreciation right, or a similar financial instrument, which can potentially be quite lucrative for employees at the time of a merger, acquisition or initial public offering (IPO). When does a startup company need a business valuation?

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2010

None of these investment banks offer traditional banking services, as you would expect from one of the following: Retail banks Commercial banks Credit unions Savings and loans As startup founders, you first need to deal with one of these banks, probably a commercial bank. Commercial banking is also known as business banking.

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Silicon Valley Private Equity Startup Initial Public Offering 120

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2018

Tiny markets may excite your passion but won’t sustain a business or leave you with a long-term positive legacy. Investors look for a team with business, financial, marketing, and operational skills, as well as a social passion. Includes balanced and hard-hitting marketing and sales.

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Intellectual Property Initial Public Offering Merger Acquisition 48

Rob Go

OCTOBER 1, 2014

It’s the eve of Wayfair’s Initial Public Offering, and I’m so excited for the company. Big congrats to the entire team there, especially NextView Venture Advisors Niraj and Steve (who were among the first people to get behind NextView in the early days).

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Berkonomics

SEPTEMBER 23, 2011

I’ve been involved with well over a dozen successful exits and four initial public offerings over the years, some of them with monstrous gains, some more modest. Then in addition, there are the exits that returned some portion of capital, but nothing more.

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Investment Bankers Initial Public Offering Early Stage Cofounder 63

Growthink Blog

MAY 10, 2012

If it's not your plan to get venture capital down the road, then you'll probably stop in Stage 2-receiving enough funding to boost your marketing, sales, and infrastructure to grow organically from there to the point where you are satisfied or ready to sell. Series B is the round that follows series A in early stage financing.

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Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 26, 2013

Initial Public Offerings (IPO) are back as an exit strategy. According to a report just out, a record 156 operating companies went public in the U.S. Twitter was one of the most notable, with a market capitalization now up to $38 billion all by itself. A year from now that’s projected to go as high as 100.

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