Brett Renzenbrink’s Post

Brett Renzenbrink Scott Jacobs Tyler Mantel Ryan Retcher Patrick Henshaw Sue Bevan Baggott Some highlights from the panel Funding AI powered startups Midwestern companies that overlook raising capital in the Midwest are overlooking opportunities We’re in a valuation reset period, and what happens on the coasts is invest across the board and see what sticks, whereas investors in the Midwest are a bit more conservative and wait for the excitement to burn off before investing 20% of the nations GDP is generated in the Midwest but only about 3% of venture comes from the Midwest… something is off there Focus on solution <> market fit more than product market fit One of the most powerful things we have in the Midwest is an abundance of midmarket companies that are easier to get We’re seeing valuations at 4-7x times revenue in the market right now #cincyAIweek

I was lucky to have the chance to sit down with award-winning investor Tasneem Dohadwala from Excelestar Ventures LLC and discuss her amazing career, and outlook on the startup market. Some choice quotes from our conversation: ▶ On her push to promote women in the workplace: "In many ways things have changed; there are so many more female-focused funds. While the numbers are still small in terms of the amount of female-led startups, there are more people looking to invest..." ▶ On Excelestar Ventures: “When we’re doing our due diligence, we’re looking to see whether the company has seen a gap in the market and then innovated, creating a dramatic innovation to address that gap.” ▶ On generative AI: “You have to be really careful with AI, because everybody's trying to figure out a way to weave it into their story. Do I think that AI in general is going to dramatically change multiple market landscapes? Sure. Am I changing my investment thesis? No.” ▶ On her outlook for the year: “We're continuing to see relative tightness in 2024. I think that valuations have continued to stay at that lower range, and are not creeping up in my opinion.” Click below to read more, and as always, thanks to Startup Boston for publishing this one. https://lnkd.in/eFMyPrr2

🗣 "I always feel more comfortable backing someone that has that follow-through and that drive and that feeling that nothing that gets in their way is going to stop them". 🍸 Carl Hartmann is a serial founder, starting logistics software startup Temando in 2008 and taking it to exit in 2015. More recently, he co-founded Compono and Lyre's Spirit Co. 🏄♂️ Carl is now increasingly investing in early-stage startups, allocating anywhere from synthetic biology to jet boards, with a particular focus on health/wellness and AI. 📺 Sophie Robertson joins Carl to cover his approach to angel investing, having spent so long as a founder. Full interview, summary and transcript in the comments ⤵ 👼 Want to become an investor like Carl and receive angel investment opportunities straight to your inbox? Join TEN13: https://lnkd.in/gEMRJfqk (wholesale investors only)

Join Lowenstein partners Lesley Adamo, Meredith Beuchaw, Alyssa Frederick, and Chandra Shih for a discussion among women in venture capital on the current market for startup and growth companies and their investors on November 28. For more information and to register, please visit: https://bit.ly/47hjTt3 #venturecapital #startups #techlaw #womeninlaw #womeninbusiness

🚀 Meet Julien Coustaury from Fil Rouge Capital, where they don't just follow trends, they set them! 🌟 Their secret sauce? Well, according to one happy founder, they're simply the "𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬". No biggie, just bringing unmatched operational expertise and incredible knowledge of the VC ecosystem. 2023 was THE year for them! Exits, portfolio company growth, NAV soaring – they aced it all. Highlight? Julien says it’s simply impossible to pick one. Looking ahead to 2024, they're steering from hyper growth to still growth, focusing on those unit economics. But of course, we just had to ask him about next year’s Podim and his expectations for it! He’s 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐀𝐈 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥-𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐬, not just riding the trendy AI wave. 🤖 Oh, and if Julien had a superpower? Making sure he never pops up on any Forbes list – humble to the core! 😎 Pssst, there's more to Julien. Some might think he lacks humility, but those who know him? They swear 𝐡𝐞'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐠𝐮𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝. 😇 We’re on the best guy in the world train too!

So far, “VC & Founders: Friends with Benefits” is one of my favorite sessions at the #LagosStartupWeek. Moderated by Damilola Thompson, FRSA of Diligence Africa, Bernard Ghartey of Norrsken22, Tito Cookey-Gam of Partech, and Clafiya’s Jennie Nwokoye discussed the complex dynamics of founder-VC relationship. It was one of the most engaging sessions. Key take-aways for me are: 🚩Red-flags with founders: - not knowing the existing gaps or not ready to accept them. Founders must have good assessment of where they are and what is lacking. -Placing valuation before fundamental metrics. Valuation must be derived from real metrics such as revenue, active customers, products; and not the other way round. -Founders unaware of their data or numbers. Founders must be current on their data. 🤝Managing VC-Founder relationship: -Transparency and communication. All differences can be sorted out by understanding the key needs of each other and solving them. -Constant monitoring by VC using data and metric to present informed suggestions. -Clear boundaries/roles and mutual respect. VC shouldn’t take the role of founder and founder shouldn’t take the role of VC. ❤️Good Founder Material: - Deep understanding of the market - knowing key drivers and competitors - Domain expertise - character. Thank you guys for the very engaging session! #startup #startupfunding #VC #Privateequity

"The reality is that the vast majority of businesses cannot possibly support the type of super-linear growth required to go from zero to $100m+ in annual revenue in 7-10 years. Marvin Liao of Diaspora Ventures noted that companies whose revenue grows linearly with the number of employees, like consulting firms, will never be able to achieve this. That doesn’t mean those aren’t incredible businesses — it just means that they’re not a fit for VC funding. Unfortunately, many founders aren’t ready to hear this. Between the deafening hype of VC in the media and the encouraging yet often misguided notion that all founders need to do is find “just one investor” who sees their vision, too many founders get caught up on an endless quest to find mythical investors that simply don’t exist." https://lnkd.in/gdqTXxUR

"There’s one highlight that everyone consistently says. Even during super bad times, it’s the Monk's Hill Ventures team that hand holds founders till the end.” We had the privilege of leading Hypefast's Series A in 2021 and have since witnessed firsthand the firm’s significant strides in growing and scaling during the pandemic. Within just three years, Hypefast has grown its net revenue to 45 million and achieved profitability. It’s been a journey of resilience and innovation, spearheaded by Founding CEO Achmad Alkatiri - who shares his journey with us here. 💪 Unwavering commitment to our founders through the toughest times 💪 Raising the bar of how investors can contribute beyond funding 💪 Truly understanding the tough decisions founders face as ex-entrepreneurs and operators Over the past decade, we’ve partnered with 60+ visionary founders with the creativity, discipline, and drive to build companies impacting millions of lives in #SoutheastAsia and beyond. In our #MHVFounderStories series, we ask our founders to share their defining moments and cherished memories with the team. #10YearsofMHV #EntrepreneursBackingEntrepreneurs https://lnkd.in/gZqMYnBj Got a great idea? Share it with us: https://lnkd.in/gBUeGhDC

Very cool way to visualize how entrepreneurs are made...

Did a Q&A session about how to secure local government clients with the Leading Cities startup cohort yesterday. Thought I’d share some of the key points we covered… 1. IIJA is a once-in-a-generation opportunity, with cities actively seeking ways to integrate new technologies into their investments. However, in many cases city leaders are understaffed and rightfully overwhelmed with the deluge of funds. Building partnerships with players who already have existing relationships you can leverage is a particularly good GTM strategy for startups right now. 2. As projects get more integrated across departments (a good thing!) the buying committee grows. It’s now more crucial than ever to define your target personas. I specifically recommended that each startup articulate their ‘user buyer’, ‘economic buyer’ and ‘executive buyer’. 3. ROI doesn’t always mean the same thing in government as it does in the private sector.  Promises of savings and efficiencies are only as good as they can be trusted. That said, because O&M $ isn’t included in the federal funding, there is a really compelling case to be made if your solution is easier to operate and maintain in the long run. 4. City decision makers are being bombarded, rendering email a less productive channel. When it comes to BD with local government, providing insightful resources (even if they are not directly related to your product, and perhaps especially then!) helps position you as a partner. Which stands out in a pile of pitches. 5. And as always…remember to focus on solving the city’s problem, not promoting your product. Michael Lake what a great group of startups building solutions to big, hairy challenges! Excited to see them grow.