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. Every town has firms that focus on startups – find them.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 6, 2023

For the elite startups and entrepreneurs who manage to attract the investor they dream of, and survive the term sheet negotiation, there is still one more hurdle before the money is in the bank. Make sure everyone accurately posts their role with your startup on social media profiles, resumes, and references.

Technical Review 296

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Bankruptcy 296

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

Even though the color of their money is always green, all startup investors are not the same. Taking on equity investors to fund your company is much like getting married – it is a long-term relationship that has to work at all levels. Personally visit another startup funded by this investor. It’s no fun for either side.

Technical Review 257

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Offshore 257

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 29, 2009

You finally get your first term sheet. They’re giving me 48 hours to sign the term sheet or it expires? Will they really pull the term sheet if I don’t sign? Will they really pull the term sheet if I don’t sign? First, every term sheet has an expiration date in it.

Term Sheet 197

Term Sheet Technical Review Due Diligence Venture Capital 197

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2011

If you are going to do the tour up and down Sandhill Road to try and raise your 1st round of financing you need a pitch deck because the vast majority of those meetings you are going to be sitting around a table and you will be presenting to one or more partners and that is going to be your first engagement.”. Is that when it became big?

Technical Review 288

Technical Review Venture Capital Silicon Valley Software Review 288

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 2, 2010

If you’re a pure startup and haven’t raised any money – you might change the life of every person you hire. You can also spend time with a newer startup helping them navigate the world of product management, venture capital or team building. His term sheet series helped me at a time when I needed help.

Europe 352

Europe France San Francisco Chicago 352

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. And I know many stories of Benchmark or similar investors writing term sheets after the first meeting.

Technical Review 309

Technical Review Term Sheet Venture Capital Revenue 309

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 15, 2020

Many companies need venture capital funding, including startups. It is a type of financing that investors can provide to startups and small businesses which are believed to have the potential for success in the long term. Understand VC Term Sheets. What is Venture Capital Funding? What is Venture Capital Funding?

Venture Capital 176

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Security 176

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2014

Because the hundreds of millions that it takes to greenlight a theatrical film could never be absorbed by a startup and because they way we experience media & characters has evolved dramatically over the past 20 years to a point where the starting point for media is often digital, gaming or even graphic novel oriented.

Technical Review 373

Technical Review North America Los Angeles Cofounder 373

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 15, 2010

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. I started reading Brad’s “term sheet&# series. had a great evening talking tech and startup.

Social Network 347

Social Network Networking Southern California Term Sheet 347

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 17, 2009

Ability to Pivot – I don’t like to invest in people that I’ve never met before who come through my office wanting to have a term sheet within 30 days. Yes, there is the mythical company you all heard about that walked into Sequoia and had a term sheet 24 hours later. I’m sure that happens.

Entrepreneur 291

Entrepreneur Term Sheet Early Stage Affiliate 291

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 23, 2017

When you run a startup you’re always on borrowed time. There is no way to run a startup business without accepting at least a little bit of cognitive dissonance as you persuade yourself that one way or the other you’ll find a way to make it work while suppressing the very real possibility that you may not. Knowing this is valuable.

Burn Rate 238

Burn Rate Term Sheet Fractional CTO CTO Hire 238

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2010

I know that sounds trite but that is exactly how my firm talks about things in partner meetings. It becomes a large part of the conversation in our partners’ meeting afterward. Tags: Entrepreneur Advice Start-up Advice Startup Advice. If we’ve seen a company present where we feel that the CEO is shady.

Technical Review 284

Technical Review Due Diligence Entrepreneur Early Stage 284

VC Cafe

AUGUST 11, 2022

A bond between a founder and investor is a commitment for a long term relationship – that’s why it is important to have the right partners on your side. If you agree that the top founders are likely to receive multiple term-sheets, then the importance of founder-investor fit increases. Personal fit.

Founder 187

Founder Term Sheet Cofounder Venture Capital 187

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 270

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 270

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 17, 2015

For the elite startups and entrepreneurs who manage to attract the investor they dream of, and survive the term sheet negotiation, there is still one more hurdle before the money is in the bank. Make sure everyone accurately posts their role with your startup on social media profiles, resumes, and references.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Startup Term Sheet 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

www.quora.com

JANUARY 16, 2011

Find Questions, Topics and People Add Question Add Question Venture Capital Venture Capital Term Sheets Startups Term Sheets What are examples of good startup term sheets? Ycombinator open source term sheet is a good start for Seed deals. Was hoping to link to just the term sheet.

Term Sheet 41

Term Sheet Startup Angel Investor Wiki 41

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 2, 2011

While certainly not every business needs to raise venture financing, it is the path for many high-growth technology startups. As Steve Blank explained earlier this week on ReadWriteStart from research at The Startup Genome Project : One of the biggest surprises is that success isn't about size of team or funding.

Cap Table 125

Cap Table Term Sheet Liquidation Preference Technical Review 125

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

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 27, 2016

Even though the color of their money is always green, all startup investors are not the same. Taking on equity investors to fund your company is much like getting married – it is a long-term relationship that has to work at all levels. Personally visit another startup funded by this investor. It’s no fun for either side.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Offshore 120

View from Seed

AUGUST 17, 2021

It’s by far the longest time I’ve spent working on any one thing, and I feel very blessed to have been able to work with my partners, colleagues, founders, and collaborators. My partners will tell you that I am an incredibly impatient person. You want someone who will challenge you and be an intellectual sparring partner.

IRR 205

IRR Dilution Founder Portfolio 205

www.paulgraham.com

APRIL 28, 2010

Want to start a startup? A typical startup goes throughseveral rounds of funding, and at each round you want to take justenough money to reach the speed where you can shift into the nextgear. Few startups get it quite right. 1 ] A startups life will be more complicated, legally, if any of theinvestors arent accredited.

Technical Review 76

Technical Review Startup Software Review Angel Investor 76

Mucker Lab

AUGUST 27, 2014

My father eventually decided on Santa Clara (Saratoga, more specifically), and so I grew up in the shadows of the orchards of Cupertino and the nondescript concrete startup boxes of Santa Clara. Encyclopedic knowledge of term sheets and startup buzzwords can be quickly learned, trained, and packaged.

Los Angeles 138

Los Angeles Southern California Silicon Valley Technical Review 138

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 120

Software Review Balance Sheet Cofounder Technical Review 120

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 20, 2019

by Alejandro Cremades , cofounder of Panthera Advisors and author of “ The Art of Startup Fundraising: Pitching Investors, Negotiating the Deal, and Everything Else Entrepreneurs Need to Know “ Why should entrepreneurs intentionally be generous when negotiating with investors? Startups seem to be raising later and later rounds.

Technical Cofounder 127

Technical Cofounder Entrepreneur Cofounder Post-Money Valuation 127

Gust

NOVEMBER 11, 2011

Startups and investors discover each other, and the community wins because the event becomes visible evidence of new business and new jobs locally. Or the in-kind winning includes legal work or management consulting, but the startup that wins has its own providers. But before the term sheet is signed, problems come up.

Software Review 79

Software Review Term Sheet Due Diligence Angel Investor 79

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”. Belief #1: The best time to invest is early.

North America 120

North America Seed Stage Early Stage Lead Investor 120

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 28, 2015

by John Vrionis, partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners. This article highlights their advice on issues ranging from financing to patent trolls: While startups may believe lawyers are too costly, working with one early on avoids potentially serious problems later. Lightspeed is in the business of encouraging entrepreneurship.

Convertible Security 100

Convertible Security IP Technical Review Software Review 100

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

View from Seed

AUGUST 17, 2021

It’s by far the longest time I’ve spent working on any one thing, and I feel very blessed to have been able to work with my partners, colleagues, founders, and collaborators. My partners will tell you that I am an incredibly impatient person. You want someone who will challenge you and be an intellectual sparring partner.

IRR 156

IRR Dilution Founder Portfolio 156

K9 Ventures

APRIL 27, 2011

The day before we were supposed to sign the term sheet for the investment, Like.com sued Ugmode (the parent company of Modista.com) for patent infringement. Google so far has played nice with startups and has had a positive impact on the startup eco-system (especially for exits, less so for hiring!)

Software Review 134

Software Review Technical Review IP Finance 134

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2013

I had them at my partners’ meeting the next Monday. We had them a term sheet the same week. Didn’t I make myself clear about celebrities & startups ? Turns out she’s done this startup thing before. And they’re both full time committed to their startup – Moonfrye.

Haiti 398

Haiti San Francisco Startup Turkey 398

NZ Entrepreneur

AUGUST 4, 2021

And if you’re a high-growth startup looking to get off the ground or expand, it’s likely you’ll need an injection of capital to do that. Byron van Vugt from NZ Growth Capital Partners explains. Lead investors and term sheets. Unless an interesting proposition comes along, try and stick to the terms on the term sheet.

Technical Review 65

Technical Review Software Review Founder Due Diligence 65

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 23, 2015

One of the questions we discussed is, “How much capital should a startup raise?” We talked in the full interview about some of Fred’s partners and the role that they play in the firm. Startup Lessons' Last week Fred Wilson and I sat down in Santa Monica for an hour+ discussion with the video cameras rolling.

Los Angeles 150

Los Angeles Silicon Valley Term Sheet Video 150

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

Rob Go

DECEMBER 14, 2016

When a VC invests in a startup, the two parties usually sign a term sheet that lays out the major terms of the investment round. 90%+ of term sheets result in a closed deal that is more or less equivalent to what was discussed. In the M&A process, an LOI feels an awful lot like a term sheet.

Term Sheet 28

Term Sheet Technical Review Due Diligence Private Equity 28