“Think big, think positive, never show any sign of weakness. Always go for the throat.”
The experience
• You marry your co-founders
• Roller coaster• Little things take up
the most time• You’re in it for the long
haul
“I'd like to explain a little bit about the Peter Blunt system.”
Lawyers
• Recommend Chris Grew (Orrick) and Barry and Danvers (Winston & Strawn)
• Legal cost should be less than 5% of the round
• Always ask for a flat rate• Be fair with their time• Ballpark £5-10k per round
Meeting Investors
“I got a meeting with the Bobs in a couple of minutes”
• Introductions!• Key angels in London:
Stefan Glaenzer, Saul and Robin Klein, Sherry Coutu, Brent Hoberman et al
• Balderton, Index, PROFounders, Eden, Mangrove, Dawn et al
• Seedcamp• Everybody wants to hear
something di!erent• “Interested” and “too
early” mean “no”
“We’re not just doing this for money! We’re doing this for a shit load of money!”
Raising Money
• Raise from friends and family first
• Figure out how much to raise -> burn * months
• Equity: pick a pre-money (£500k - £1m)
• Convertible Note: 1 year, 20-50% discount, 8-10% interest
• Always set a close date• Maintain a deck
Hiring
• Only hire closers• Get involved with local
hacking groups• First hire is almost as
important as co-founder • Trial your new employees• Interns good way to
groom talent• Ballpark pay £20-50k• Equity options vary
widely (0.01% - 10%) “Co!ee is for closers”
“We’re looking down on Wayne’s basement. Only that’s not
Wayne’s basement.”
O"ce Space
• Your flat• White Bear Yard,
TechHub, The Hub at Kings Cross, British Library, Moo, Songkick, TalkTalk
• £100-400 per desk
“Raised lettering. Pale Nimbus. White.”
Networking
• Seedcamp, Barcamp, MiniBar, Open Co!ee, DrinkTank, founder/VC poker, conferences, Digital Mission, Web Mission, launch parties, Open Soho, sponsored days, et al
• Have business cards (they matter)
• Somebody from your startup should always be networking
Marketing
• Think about this early• Biz dev partnerships• Newspapers• SEO• Facebook/Adwords
Advertising• Viral loop
“You think the pet rock was a really great idea?”
“That’s as good as money sir. Those are IOUs.”
Accounting & Insurance
• Pain in the butt• Peter Rogol (Goodman
Jones) or Complete Accounting Solutions
• Online: Xero or Free Agent Central
• £5k / year• Insurance: E&O, Key Man,
Liability, Property, Business Continuity
“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing”
General Tips
• Be able to explain your business in a sentence
• Hang out with other founders
• Be ready for the hard knocks
• Don’t listen to anything I just said
[email protected]/jasontrostGeeknRolla London - April 2010
Thanks!