Raising Capital - our key learnings from the experts

Last week we hosted a brilliant event on raising capital in collaboration with The Startup Grind and Found & Flourish at the beautiful Platf9rm co-working space in Brighton.

We thought we'd share some key insights and tips shared by our brilliant panellists Kristina Pereckaite, Founder of South East Angels and Mae Yip, Co-founder of The Eric app.

But first, let’s set the scene:

In 2023, venture capital investment hit $300 billion globally, showcasing a clear confidence in the startup and investment world.
Startups now access funding from various sources like angel investors, crowdfunding, and corporate venture capital. All of which we covered during our conversation.
Despite progress, diversity in investors remains a challenge, with data showing that only about 2% of venture capital funding goes to startups led by women founders, and minority founders receiving even less investment, with only approximately 1% of venture capital funding directed towards them.

In terms of key learnings:

Fundraising is all about people buying into people
Be human, and embrace your story, nail your elevator pitch and practice saying it everywhere
A common misconception is that people often assume raising money + success
People connect with people
Social impact, healthcare platforms, tech for good and sustainable ventures are becoming more popular to invest in
SEIS and EIS is an amazing tax relief benefit for angel investors
It’s a numbers game, so pitch yourself out, cold email, network, talk to people and get in front of as many people as possible
Negotiation is key, keep negotiating and believing in your worth
You have to trust the people you’re being invested by and if you have an ounce of doubt, trust it
Follow that gut feeling when it comes to making decisions, it’s rarely (if ever!) wrong
When you’re going for investment, have a plan, raise in small chunks to begin with and know what you’re going to do with that money. Often people who raise lots of money end up burning through it without careful planning and execution
When you’re pitching for investment, know the headline of your business, have a hook and know what makes you different
Focus on storytelling, what's the ‘why’ behind the business and what are you building? What is the vision and purpose of the business and why should others care?

An investor may judge your valuation based on:

What you have validated/ proven/ built to date
How much traction/ revenue/ sales you’ve generated (or the worth of your pipeline)
The market opportunity
The uniqueness of the technology
The value of any intellectual property
The strength of the founding team
The stage of product development
The competitive landscape (whether you have a moat that protects your business or an unfair advantage that will help you stay ahead)
The reputation/ support of other investors already committed
Perceived risk of failure/ success

Download the full valuation guide here.

Resources:

👉Grant funding‍

👉 VCs vs Angel Investing

👉Swoop.com

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Got any questions about raising? Feel free to send us a message: hello@foundflourish.co.uk and we'll do our best to help!