Investor Connect Podcast

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. In pitching investors, you must have a competitive advantage and be able to demonstrate it. It's not enough to say your product is better or your team will execute faster. You must identify your core competitive advantage and show how it gives you at least a 30% cost reduction or a...

In this episode, Hall welcomes John Quinn, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of EXOS Aerospace Systems & Technologies. Located in Greenville, Texas, EXOS Aerospace Systems & Technologies is a small Defense Department Trade Commission (DDTC) registered privately-owned space hardware and operations company. The EXOS team has developed hundreds of rocket engines, over a dozen reusable flying veh...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. Startups are usually shy about discussing their current revenue when they are early in the process as the revenue is not large. I tell the startup the investor doesn't care about the size of revenue, but rather the predictability of it. Investors look for systems in startups regardl...

In today's show, you'll hear investor perspectives on the growing construction tech space. This is Investor Perspectives, I'm the host of Investor Connect, Hall T Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding. Construction tech continues to grow in a number of technologies and startups working in it. In today's show, you'll hear about a new company in the sector called Qnect. Our fea...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. If you are pre-revenue, you can show traction with your startup. We'll define traction as activity with customers, albeit without revenue. Show customer engagement at all phases, even before you have a product. You should have customers coaching you on what product to build. First,...

In today's show, you'll hear investor perspectives on the growing consumer product goods space. This is Investor Perspectives, I'm the host of Investor Connect, Hall T Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding. Consumer Product brands continue to grow, in particular those products with functional benefits. In today's show, you'll hear about a new company in the CPG sector called...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Edward Dugger III, Founding Partner and President of Reinventure Capital. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, Reinventure Capital is a high-impact, high-return venture practice proven to deliver nonconcessionary financial returns along with intentional, measurable, and meaningful racial/social justice impact. Reinventure Capital consists of a diverse team who invests i...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. In the deal process, there are always issues that give the investor cause to rethink pursuing the investment. Here is a short list of dealbreakers that indicate it's time to break off the deal process. There are major surprises, such as finding out the company has significant debt t...

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Joy Schoffler, Partner at Ascendant Industries. Ascendant Industries is a New York-based investment management company that focuses on opportunities where they can support senior management to drive rapid growth and profit improvement through capital infusion, technology, innovation, and organizational expertise. They invest across a number of key verticals, inc...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. There are over 125 terms in the NVCA glossary for terms sheets. So which terms should the investor focus on? Here are six terms that are key to consider for your startup investment: Valuation or the price you pay for the equity is the most important term that impacts the return to t...

In today's show, you'll hear investor perspectives on the growing software development sector. This is Investor Perspectives, I'm the host of Investor Connect, Hall T Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding. Software continues to 'eat the world' as Marc Andreessen once said. In today's show, you'll hear about a new company in the software development sector called KiwiTech. Our...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. There are pros and cons to using convertible notes. Startups use them primarily for seed rounds and bridge rounds. They are lower in cost, as the documents are simpler than equity terms sheets. They avoid setting a price, so they are easier to negotiate. It keeps the cap table simpl...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Garin Toren, CEO & Founder of ping. Headquartered in New York, ping is a four-time-patented messaging platform that automatically reads your texts, emails, and all other message types out loud when touching your phone is unsafe, illegal, or inconvenient. Deployment is currently through Android and iPhone apps with Alexa already live and Google Home coming in November...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. There are many terms used in terms sheets but there are only a few that have a significant impact. Here are the key ones: Liquidation Preference -- a liquidation preference gives the shareholder their initial investment back first, before splitting the rest of the proceeds. Non-Part...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. There are many terms in a standard terms sheet for investing in a startup. Six terms have a direct impact on the return the investor receives. They are as follows: Pre-money valuation is the biggest factor in determining the investor's return. This is often the term receiving the mo...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. In negotiating the terms of a startup investment, the investor should develop a standard terms sheet and modify it for each deal. In going into due diligence, send the terms sheet to the startup for their review. In some cases, they may be unfamiliar with terms sheets and need time...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. In setting the valuation for a startup, there are financial calculations, and then there are non-financial factors. I call the non-financial factors the "soft side of valuations". These include the following: Current market conditions -- as the market heats, up certain sectors turn...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. The terms sheet glossary contains over 125 terms that can be used. For every risk in the startup, there is a term to place in the terms sheet to mitigate that risk. If you feel the valuation is too high, you can add a liquidation preference. If you think the team needs oversight, yo...

In today's show, you'll hear investor perspectives on the growing space sector. This is Investor Perspectives, I'm the host of Investor Connect, Hall T Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding. Commercial exploration of space continues to advance in technology by SpaceX and other companies. In today's show, you'll hear about a new company in the space sector called EXOS. Our fea...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. For a startup to raise funding it must have a legal structure. The two choices are LLCs, which is a Limited Liability Company, or a C-corp. Most startups launch with an LLC and convert to a C-corp later due to the cost. It's very easy to move from an LLC to a C-corp, but it's very h...

I'm the host of Investor Connect, Hall T Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding. Therapeutics continues to advance across the board. In today's show, you'll hear about a new company in the pharma space called BiorganicPharma who develop and make nutritional supplements in liquid form using natural ingredients. Our show host today is Ashley Matthysse. Our featured guests are: J...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. In launching your fundraise, you should always be in a position to take funding. There are many investors who want to join the deal but won't take on a lead investor role in setting the terms. A convertible note works well for this stage of the raise. It's a debt instrument that con...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. After diligence, investors who want to move forward will sign the investment documents. For a convertible note raise, the investor and CEO will sign the note. It's a rolling close, so the funds go into the business the next day. For an equity raise, there are several documents in ad...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Albert Meyer, Founder & Chief Investment Officer at Bastiat Capital. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, and established in 2006, Bastiat Capital is an asset management firm directing a concentrated and conservative large-cap equity portfolio. They apply unparalleled forensic accounting expertise, human insight and rich company-specific research as they seek to outperform...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. Startup fundraising requires investment documents. Of course, you should seek counsel with your startup-friendly attorney before committing to an equity fundraise, but here are several sources of terms sheets on the web. Ycombinator provides a set of terms sheets for SAFE documents...