Antler’s Post

Pre-seed and seed stage investors: Today I'm making 152 intros based on requests from investors who attended our 53rd pre-seed/seed stage deal flow call this week. 54 companies shared on the call had intro requests, from VCs, FO's and angel investors alike. If you'd like to get involved and share/see some quality early stage deals, shoot me an email at mike@mikemaccombie.com, with the exact title "Pre-Seed Deal Call #54"

If you decline an early stage deal even with no context or background, there is a high probability that you will be right eventually as more than 90% of the companies don't proceed from seed to series C funding. Hence there is very little value in the VC world for being proven right for declining a deal. What matters is making the right bets.

Since so many people reacted to the last post about VC led by ex-McKinsey types. My experience with one fund. Completely transactional. Zero empathy. I know better. My way or the highway. Again, I want to caveat that this is one specific fund. I do not want to generalise and say that all ex-consultant VCs are bad. Equally, not all ex-founder VCs are good. My advice to founders is to do your due diligence. Speak to other founders. Hell, speak to me. Hard to get investors on your cap table. Even harder to get them off.

"Why are we the best investor to be on their cap table?" If they can't answer this question with conviction, they won't write a check. Which VC firm am I talking about? It's Sound Ventures. Alexandra Burbey just joined the firm as their newest investor, and in this clip she breaks down this unique part of their investing philosophy ⬇️

Partner Alon Kapen discusses the complexities of the rise in down rounds in 2024 VC deals, introducing strategies to mitigate their impact in his recent New York Venture Hub blog post. Read the full blog post here: https://lnkd.in/e6VN6a2R

Product-market fit is important across industries – and it’s definitely important in tech. But what is it, and how do you find it? And do investors really care? With the help of VC investor Zach Coelius (Managing Partner at Coelius Capital) we explore product-market fit on the blog, and dig into why it really matters. Click here to find out more: https://bit.ly/3zLYf42 #LEAP25 #investors #productmarket

What does it take to scale a venture capital firm to billions in AUM? I asked Mark Allen, #CFO of General Catalyst, about their rapid growth and how they've adapted to industry shifts in the latest Turpentine Finance episode. We discuss: - Providing ambitious but realistic projections in VC pitch decks - Building systems to streamline fund management and support large-scale growth - Investing strategically across geographies and sectors - Balancing portfolio needs with LP alignment. Founders, if you aim to understand #VC growth strategies or seek capital, don’t miss this one. Link to the full episode is in the comments.

How to stand out as a VC: Be on time for meetings with founders

This looks like a good list every early stage founder should import into their VC database. Good luck with your fundraising! #StartupLeadership #startupadvice #startupfunding  #vcfunding #Startups #StartupEquity #startuptech

The absolute #1 method to create HYPE with investors 🔥🔥🔥 👀 After working 1-1 with SO MANY Founders from early-stage to Series B. There's ONE common trait which creates the biggest excitement amongst investors... And that is... There's already big names joining the round / have previously invested ✅ This immediately creates Credibility, FOMO (fear of missing out), and that there's Movement in the Round (whereas most opportunities are stagnated for a while)!!!! The best strategy is to hustle quickly to get strong investor names associated with you (VC and highly credible Angels), and then leverage that to get lots of other investors interested 🚀 .... We get Founders back-to-back VC deal-flow, Pre-Seed to Series B https://www.easyintro.vc/