Adding my personal pronouns

On Friday I added my personal pronouns to my profile on LinkedIn.

I wish to show my support for those it is important to in the LGBTQ+ community and that I respect their choices.

I held off on this because I was worried what people would think. Then I realised that was the least important thing.

This isn't virtue signalling. It is signalling.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 6 Jan 23

#TodayI

Posted about Making it Happen.
Met a friend for coffee.
Was pitched by Jimmy Braimah, BSc, MBA of Goodtalent Corporation.
Was finally able to add my personal pronouns on LinkedIn. I will post about this on Monday.
Had a great chat with Edward Kandel of Founders Factory about investing, tango and improv, not necessarily in that order.
Was pitched by Abraham Sillah of CloutScore who also told me jokes generated by ChatGPT.
Dealt with some admin.
Found out I have been matched on the University of Sussex's mentoring scheme.
Made plans for a short London trip at the end of the month.

Have a great weekend everyone.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Make it happen

It is easy to complain about things we are not happy about in our lives. Complaining achieves nothing.

What are you going to do about it?

If you want change, go out and make it happen.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update 5 Jan 23

#TodayI

Focused on unbundled vc's strategy and a framework for making sure I always focus on the right things. It has energised me.

I will continue that focus tomorrow.

I also spoke with Lucy Ann Kirby of Digital Greenhouse Guernsey about how I can help.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Strategy day

I am working today on strategy for unbundled vc.

I need a strategic framework for continuous evaluation and to unbundle venture capital into its constituent parts.

I'd appreciate advice and insight on either or both, please.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 4 Jan 23

#TodayI

Posted about Total Addressable Markets.
Chatted with old friend Vikas Brahmavar who is doing great things at Transwater system.
Was pitched by Tanuvi Ethunandan of Data Duopoly.
Shared Maria Bruna Moscatelli of Shamy LLC's video pitch.
Was pitched by Sohaib Ahmed of &facts.
Was pitched by a founder who wishes to remain anonymous.
Was pitched by Susan Kabani of Ugenie.io.

#NowI

Have to buy and make dinner for the kids.

#TomorrowI

Have a strategy and admin day. I may ask for help with the former tomorrow morning.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Public pitch - Maria Bruna Moscatelli of Shamy

#PublicPitch

Delighted to share, with permission, Maria Bruna Moscatelli of Shamy LLC's video pitch.

Shamy LLC aims to make digital space tourism accessible to everybody.

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

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Large existing Total Addressable Markets

Founders, sometimes your startup is in a space with a huge existing Total Addressable Market (TAM). The main thing that tells me is there are large existing players.

Tell me what pain point they are not addressing, why that pain point matters, how you solve it, how big a market that could be and why.

That market size could be much bigger or smaller than the original TAM. The existing one is irrelevant.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 3 Jan 23

#TodayI

Caught up on my LinkedIn messages and connection requests.
Posted about intentional self-improvement.
Prepared for a meeting.
Had that meeting.
Was pitched by Maria Bruna Moscatelli of Shamy LLC.
Shared Tanuvi Ethunandan of Data Duopoly's video pitch.
Had a meeting with Bobby Phillips of Virtus Financial Planning Limited, Partner Practice of St. James's Place Wealth Management.
Was pitched by Arseni Santashev of Gigimot.
Had coffee with a friend.
Got back into the swing of things.

#NowI

Have to reply to a few emails.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Public pitch - Tanuvi Ethunandan of Data Duopoly

#PublicPitch

Delighted to share, with permission, Tanuvi Ethunandan of Data Duopoly's video pitch.

Data Duopoly connects spaces, places and people using data and AI.

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

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Intentional self-improvement

I don't make New Year's resolutions. I am continually looking for areas I can improve.

Like us all, I have many of those in both my personal and professional life.

Professionally, I need to break down (unbundle) all the parts of venture capital, assess myself in each area and determine where to focus on improvement.

I have been relying on self-reflection. This feels more intentional.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Rest Less raises Eur6.8m

Delighted for Stuart Lewis, Sara Stephens and the whole team at Rest Less UK!

I led 1818 Venture Capital's first investment into Rest Less UK in my previous role and continue to be a huge fan of them and their mission.

In the new year, I will share how investing in Rest Less UK changed my life. No exaggeration.

Edit: How Rest Less changed my life.

Rest Less raises Eur6.8m

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublicun

Late update - 17 Dec 22

#YesterdayI

Had breakfast with a friend.
Shared Peter Graham of Kudo Insurance's video pitch.
Chatted with Marco Morgado.
Met a friend for coffee.
Had a founder call postponed.
Chatted with Paul Archer of Duel Tech.
Was pitched by Sean Conley of Stealth Startup and ran out of time.
Had another call with Sean Conley of Stealth Startup who is about to close his round.
Was pitched by a founder who wishes to remain anonymous.
Posted my 2022 learnings.

#ThisWas

My last post of the year.

#HaveA

Wonderful Xmas and New Year everyone!

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

2022 learnings - Reputation, Investment Process and LinkedIn

Reputation -

Reputation matters more than ever. Landscape means if you have a bad reputation you'll only get the deals other people don't want.
If you charge fees to companies for investing (I don't) there will be a whole load of deals you don't see. There are VCs that charge 5% or even 10% and sometimes monitoring fees on top of that.
If one of those companies is leading a deal, it can be a red flag, but reputation is the most important factor here.

Investment Process (credit to Fred Soneya for the question) -

Think hard about your investment criteria and make sure your process is designed to match that. Be intentional.
In my first meeting, I am trying to find out as much about the founder as I am about the business. I do that by asking how they got to this point of the business and how the product has changed from what they first thought it would be. If it has changed, how did you figure that out. I am trying to understand you and your skills by asking about the business.
Move fast if you can. Figure out if you are likely to change your mind with another meeting or day to think about it. If you won't, make that decision today. People appreciate promptness.
If you need another meeting at any stage then make sure you know what you are uncertain about and prepare how you will figure that out. If you are ill-prepared founders can tell and you still might not know if you want to invest. That serves nobody.
Know what your perfect pace of investing would be. Periodically adjust your bar upwards or downwards to reach that. Happily, I've had better deal flow than ever before so I've had to adjust mine upwards.
I do that by comparing an opportunity with the last three or four things I've committed to. If it's in the top half I will invest, if not then no. I will review after a few months and again compare my pace of commitments against perfect.

LinkedIn -

It's a grind, you have to post every day.
It's like a muscle, it gets easier over time.
Learn your authentic voice and stick to it. Don't try and copy somebody else's. People can tell.
If you have a genuine question in your post, people will comment and that can drive engagement. The question has to be real rather than just designed for comments.
Sometimes you have no idea which posts will get traction and which won't. Accept that.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Public pitch - Peter Graham of Kudo Insurance

#PublicPitch

Delighted to share, with permission, Peter Graham of Kudo Insurance's video pitch.

Kudo Insurance rewards better drivers with better car insurance.

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

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 15 Dec 22

#TodayI

Shared my investment performance in numbers.
Had a founder postpone because they got a huge order they need to fulfil.
Had a great coffee with Henry O'Brien of Mural and discussed all the things.
Finally got to share that I have invested in Dom Maskell and Ben Parker of Runna alongside Jon Coker at Eka Ventures .
Had a founder postpone for family reasons - hoping everything is ok 🙏
Got the train to Gatwick.
Spoke with a professional adviser.
Am meeting a friend for an early dinner at the airport.

#LaterI

Am flying home to see my family.
Have to write a few emails.

#TomorrowI

Will post my learnings since I've been unbundling.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Investing in Runna

Very excited to finally be able to announce that unbundled vc has invested in Dom Maskell, Ben Parker and the whole team at Runna in a round led by Jon Coker at Eka Ventures .

A super strong team, great product, crazy growth, great unit economics and a huge market. What's not to like?

Olympic athletes back £2m raise for sports app Runna

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Investing career by numbers

Investing career with numbers broken down into Angel, 1818 Venture Capital and unbundled vc because hopefully I am getting better!

Angel - £495k invested, £498k value, 1.01 multiple

1818 - £1.188m invested, £2.106m value, 1.77 multiple

unbundled vc - £706k invested, £940k value, 1.33 multiple

Overall - £2.388m invested, £3.545m value, 1.48 multiple

Notes:

Angel - 2018-2019.
Contains some early 1818 investments before I was partner.
The first £142k of my angel investing went to zero (not 1818).

1818 - 2019-2022.

unbundled vc - 2021-2022
£489k of the investments were this year with no opportunity for a valuation change. The remainder has a multiple of 2.08.
Any investments pre leaving 1818 were not in scope for 1818.

Overall - Contains some fund investments.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

Evening update - 14 Dec 22

#TodayI

Posted my Good and Bad of unbundled vc's 2022.
Had a no-show.
Prepared my numbers for tomorrow's "Investment performance" post.
Spoke with angel investor, NED and adviser Samantha Tubb who I haven't seen since we were at university together a long time ago!
Had the pleasure of meeting Farhan Lalji of Anthemis Group for coffee at his office to understand his investment remit.
Listened to the Twin Peak's soundtrack in honour of Angelo Badalamenti who recently passed away.

#LaterI

Am having dinner with an old colleague.

#TomorrowI

Will post my investment performance with amounts invested and current value broken down by the three stages of my venture investing career.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic

The good and the bad of unbundled vc’s 2022

The Good and the Bad of unbundled vc's 2022.

Four categories:
Openness
Investing
Treating people right
Legal issues

Openness/building in public/posting every day -

Good - people really seem to respond to openness. There is not much transparency in VC. There aren't many other people doing this. It helps build an audience and empathy with people before I've even met them.
Bad - I had coffee with a friend and they asked how it was to build in public. I said it was easy when everything was going well. That evening was when I was described on Landscape as "the reason why British VCs get a bad reputation".
Good - serendipity. Many people have contacted me and said they have inbound requests about investment or their product after being mentioned on LinkedIn.
Bad - one VC was upset after I publicly committed to a startup. They accused me of disintermediating them because they were trying to raise directly from clients for that deal and it made it too easy for people to invest directly with the startup.
Good - serendipity meetup. It was great to meet so many interesting people, the atmosphere was just people making friendly connections, I know at least one person got work from this and one person got investment 😉

Investing -

Good - when I left my previous firm, I didn't know if anybody would be interested in talking to me because I am tiny in the VC world. I've had an incredible response from founders and have better opportunities to invest than I've ever had. Thank you everyone!
Bad - the direct counterpart to this is having to say no to founders who have great, highly investable businesses. It may look like I don't think you will succeed. That's far from the truth. I am not infallible. I will get some things very wrong.

Treating people right -

Good - it feels right. People respond to it. It's not that difficult.
Bad - giving feedback. It's hard to give feedback that is helpful. It can upset people. It takes considerable time and energy to do it right. I don't always give it as much time as I should.

Legal issues -

Bad - you may have seen me mention meeting professional advisers from time to time. Sadly this is lawyers. It consumes time, mental energy and money.
Good - once you realise you are not prepared to be pushed around and there is something you can do about it, it is energising standing up for yourself. That feels good.

#founders #startups #venturecapital #buildinginpublic #investinginpublic