Evening update -13 Dec 22

#TodayI

Sent some emails in the early hours of the morning.
Posted unbundled vc's year in numbers.
Met Oluwatobi Oseni of Payshiga.
Shared Santiago Schmitt of FoodLama's video pitch.
Had Reuben sandwiches and chopped liver for lunch with Jonny Plein of Kuai Commerce (see photo).
Attended Playter's board meeting.

#NowI

Am going for post board meeting drinks with Jamie Beaumont, Nick Ellwood, Jon Cholak et al.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Public pitch - Santiago Schmitt of FoodLama

#PublicPitch

Delighted to share, with permission, Santiago Schmitt of FoodLama's video pitch.

FoodLama takes the guesswork out of finding the perfect products as you scroll, starting with food.

Please let me know if you would like an intro or feel free to reach out directly.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

My year (four months) as unbundled vc in numbers

Businesses raising - 250
New businesses invested in - 4 - none of which are on my website yet for various reasons
Existing businesses invested in again - 1
New business commitments that have not yet closed (but should soon) - 2
Existing businesses I have committed to invest in again that have not yet closed - 3

LinkedIn:

Most impressions -103k - leaving 1818 Venture Capital to start unbundled vc - https://lnkd.in/eEm47zXT
Most likes - 167 - going all in on Spacemade - https://lnkd.in/eidGsR3Q
Most comments - 95 - everyone says their team is incredible - https://lnkd.in/efrZ8Z5W

YouTube:

Most viewed #PublicPitch - 245 - Hamish Blythe of Trilo - https://lnkd.in/e3s6DgKp
Honorable second - 231 - Caitlin Rozario of interlude - https://lnkd.in/eW5Jk2MS
Interesting fact - 62 of Caitlin's views came via YouTube itself.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 12 Dec 22

#TodayI

Posted about why I take the approach I do at unbundled vc.
Caught the 7am flight to Gatwick.
Had coffee with Damilare Ogunleye and Santiago Schmitt of FoodLama.
Met Susan Kabani of Ugenie.io and made her watch me eat lunch.
Spoke with a professional adviser.
Had a very enjoyable and much longer-than-planned in-person with Gary Izunwa of Tangent.
Had a call with a founder.
Was late to see Neil Goulder and AdLibretto perform Petticoat Lane the Musical at Toynbee Hall.
Posted about Willo®'s latest raise which unbundled vc participated in.

#NowI

Have to work on some emails. It may take some time.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Why I take the approach I do at unbundled vc.

Summary -

Treat people the right way, help them and stay fresh in their minds.
Then when someone is raising they will say, "You should talk to Marc".
When they raise, treat them right, help them as much as you can and they want and, if the deal is competitive, you are more likely to get into the round.

It's not rocket science.

Detail - what do I do?

Pitching and investing -

Anyone can pitch me from my website starting with a video pitch.
There is a clearly set out process.
There is an FAQ answering lots of the common questions founders have of VCs.
I make fast decisions and get them back to you fast.
Everyone gets feedback and I try and make it helpful.
I will share your video pitch if you want.
I will share publicly when I make an investment commitment if you want.
I will try and introduce you to relevant other VCs if you want.
I will help you in any other way I can. That has included recording client calls to share with other investors, helping with term sheets and strategic advice around the raise.
In general, treat people right.

LinkedIn -

I post content every day.
I post a #TodayI every day so everyone knows who I've been meeting, always with permission.
I share video pitches when I have permission to do so.
I repost significant posts from my founders and investee companies.

Why?

LinkedIn for these reasons -

To build a network.
To help founders.
So I am fresh in people's minds.

Process -

To do the right thing by founders. Too many VCs take advantage of the power imbalance between VC and founder by either not treating them with respect or as equals or forgetting to get back to them or a whole host of other issues.

It seems like treating people the right way is an edge in VC. It shouldn't be this way.

Summary, because it needs repeating -

Treat people the right way, help them and stay fresh in their minds.
Then when someone is raising they will say, "You should talk to Marc".
When they raise, treat them right, help them as much as you can and they want and, if the deal is competitive, you are more likely to get into the round.

It's not rocket science.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 9 Dec 22

#TodayI

Posted about what I intend to share next week.
Took sons 3 & 4 to school (wife still not well).
Had breakfast with a founder friend.
Had coffee with an old colleague.
Shared Chieu Cao of Mintago's public pitch.
Arranged some in-person meetings in London.
Intro'd a founder to some investors.
Collected son 1 from the airport
Collected sons 3 & 4 from school.
Watched Croatia beat Brazil on penalties with son 2.

#NowI

Have to do the exercises I didn't do this morning because yesterday evening was a late one.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Review of the year

Next week is my last working week of the year. I plan a series of posts reviewing the year.

Here's my current list:

1. How are my investments doing giving actual numbers - amounts invested, current values - broken down by stage of my investing career.
2. The top posts and public pitches and #TodayI's.
3. Why I take the approach I do with unbundled vc.
4. My top three good and bad things.
5. My learnings over the last three and a half months.

Please tell me what you'd like me to post about!

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Public pitch - Chieu Cao of Mintago

#PublicPitch

Delighted to share, with permission, Chieu Cao of Mintago's video pitch.

Mintago is an end-to-end financial wellbeing solution that helps employees have financially happier and healthier lives.

Please let me know if you would like an intro or feel free to reach out directly.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 8 Dec 22

#TodayI

Posted about AI and content creation - https://lnkd.in/gHnX9BMy.
Took the kids to school again (wife is still not well).
Met Barrie Baxter of Brixx Software for breakfast and was the fortunate recipient of his advice.
Attended another of my children's swimming galas.
Listened to Jamie Beaumont of Playter on the Riding Unicorns podcast - https://lnkd.in/g9tfabQS.
Was pitched by Chieu Cao of Mintago.
Worked on an important email relating to board issues (not Playter!).
Attended Paul Archer of Duel Tech's webinar on the future of social commerce - https://lnkd.in/gMpbiiR8.

#NowI

Have to collect dinner for the kids before going out to friends for dinner.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

AI is "Whatever hasn't been done yet"

Anyone who's played with ChatGPT or seen the content it's generated knows we've hit a new era.

Content creation will become using tools to generate drafts, expertly drafting your queries (as in the early days of search engines) and manually editing the results.

AI sceptics will continue to say AI is "Whatever hasn't been done yet". That is an ever-shrinking target.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 7 Dec 22

#TodayI

Took the kids to school.
Had coffee with Mila Whitman who is the new Secretary of the Guernsey Cambridge Society and talked about our plans for next year and her five-week-old baby.
Posted about how Gen Z are unfairly complained about.
Chatted with Ezechi Britton MBE of Impact X Capital Partners LLP about deal flow, the joys and tribulations of investment banking, and fundraising. Impact X Capital Partners LLP invests in underrepresented founders across Europe.
Was pitched by Peter Graham of Kudo Insurance whose car insurance rewards better drivers.
Had a remedial massage from Todd Patterson of Infascia.

#NowI

Need to collect my son from table tennis.

#ThenI

Have to get back to a founder.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Everyone complains about Gen Z

Older generations, Millennials included, complain about how Gen Z live their lives and in particular their work expectations at startups where the culture can be work every hour.

I believe every generation lives the values their parents espouse. Their parents talk about those values but live their parents' values.

Gen Z are likely living lives closer to your values than you realise.

What do you think?

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Late update - 7 Dec 22

#TodayI

Took the kids to school because my wife wasn't well.
Attended a site meeting for my house build. (Thank you Infinity and DLM Architects Ltd.)
Watched son number four at his swimming gala.
Made a personal post.
Prepped for next week's posts which is my last week of the year.
Had a call with Fred Warren of Wonder 14 who has a very interesting business. Thank you Andrew Warren for the intro.
Had a call postponed with a fund I have recently co-invested with.
Was informed some board minutes have been signed off which were clearly in dispute.
Watched Morocco beat Spain on penalties.

#NowI

Am cooking dinner for the kids.
Have to take the bins out.
Need to get back to five founders.

#NextWeek

Meet me for coffee in London. Link in comments.

Old enough to make his own decision (personal post)

Personal post (don't read).

We are going away to the Cotswolds over Xmas and New Year. My 15yo is complaining and insisting he will spend all his time on his computer and saying he's old enough to make these decisions for himself.

Any tips?

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 5 Dec 22

#TodayI

Ran to the office courtesy of Runna.
When I got to the office, realised my backpack was open and I was missing various items of clothing. (Runna, please sell running-appropriate backpacks in-app.)
Had to improvise (don't ask).
Posted about a great question to ask investors.
Was pitched by Kevin Lenehan of Fanzine.
Spoke with Jan Deruyck of Guud whose round is about to close.
Shared Kevin Lenehan of Fanzine's public pitch.
Attended Lunchtime Meditation at Guernsey Library.
Chatted with Adam Whyte of Stealth Web3 Startup about web3, how tokens are a way to get past the cold start problem and the power imbalance between investors and founders.
Had a call with Lucy Mullins and Matthew Addison of StepLadder UK.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Public pitch - Kevin Lenehan of Fanzine

Delighted to share, with permission, Kevin Lenehan of Fanzine's video pitch.

Fanzine's mission is to become the biggest sports fans community in the world.

Please let me know if you would like an intro or feel free to reach out directly.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

The best founder question I’ve ever been asked

Last week Hamish Blythe of Trilo asked me the following question:

"What's your two-sentence pitch of what we do?"

This is a fantastic end-of-pitch question. It checks the investor was paying attention and it may help you with your elevator pitch. I recommend all founders use this.

What's your two-sentence pitch?

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 2 Dec 22

#TodayI

Posted about the features of startups I have recently committed to.
Had breakfast with Barrie Baxter of Brixx Software.
Made an investment commitment.
Had a no-show.
Was pitched by Hamish Blythe of Trilo.
Shared Hamish Blythe of Trilo's public pitch.
Caught up with Euan Cameron and Andrew Wood of Willo®.
Spoke with a stealth startup.

#NowI

Need to buy milk.

Have a great weekend everyone.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Public pitch - Hamish Blythe of Trilo

Delighted to share, with permission, Hamish Blythe of Trilo's video pitch.

Trilo is making getting paid by friends, settling up bills, and hitting the shops, rewarding and hassle-free.

Please let me know if you would like an intro or feel free to reach out directly.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Recent investment commitments

The startups I have recently committed to fall into two categories:

Pre-seed: Very strong founders, strong signs of early traction, huge potential markets.

Seed: Very strong founders, fast growth, strong conviction they will hit £1m ARR in less than a year, great unit economics.

These aren't criteria though they could become them.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic