Category: Business Financing & Funding
New $20 Million Investment Fund Looking for Profitable, Fast-growing Businesses
Greybull Stewardship, L.P., an investment fund, completed in January 2014 its $20 million round two capital commitments. Since the fund’s January 2010 inception, annual returns have realized 23 percent after fees. As a result, existing Limited Partners (LPs) increased their commitments and new LPs were… Continue reading
Align Your “Loss Ratio” Expectations with Your Investors
In early stage venture capital, the best investors expect that 40% of their investments will become worthless. Thus, they focus on companies that could be worth billions because the winners have to make up for all their losses. They want every company to shoot for… Continue reading
Ideal business financing for growing, profitable companies in 100 posts or less?
“Teach what you want to learn” is the theme with which I started this blog in April 2012. Since then, I have written 100 posts — which means I’ve learned for myself and shared what I’ve learned under several themes: Business financing and venture capital… Continue reading
Great Business Partners Give You Keys to Success
Business grows through partnerships — sometimes just for a brief transaction and sometimes for life. Despite the false cliche that “nice guys finish last,” my experience has been that being able to forge good partnerships forges keys to long-term success. This is because very little… Continue reading
Venture Capital Myths — Not the Answer for Many Companies
Venture capital has been tremendously successful in the United States. In some ways, it has almost been too successful in that many entrepreneurs think traditional venture capital is the only path to success. That is not true. This article in the Harvard Business Review by… Continue reading
Best Financing Source for a Business: Its Customers
Financing growth for your business with cash from customers, rather than more expensive debt or equity, makes your ownership even more powerful. In most of the investments made into operating companies by Greybull Stewardship, my investment fund, our operating companies get paid by customers before… Continue reading
Accounting & Reporting Pays Off
Accounting should not drive anything about a company, but accounting also should not be forgotten at the side of the road. Many companies choose, correctly, not to focus much attention on proper accounting and reporting — until they first have a real, sustainable business. Later,… Continue reading
Raising Capital: About Fit and Timing
I was in New York last week speaking with existing and prospective investors in my investment fund, Greybull Stewardship. The match-making activity between capital seeking returns and opportunities seeking capital is truly amazing in the United States. Nothing brings this home like New York City… Continue reading
Old School Myths About the Ideal Time for Raising Capital (of the Right Type)
Old school myths from last century have stuck around to this century — especially about when to raise capital. Modern companies often have the freedom to make a decision about when to seek capital because they do not need capital at a certain point in… Continue reading
Competitive Advantage Leads to Persistently Good Performance — Like Top Tier VC Firms
It is good to be the incumbent. Usually. They have often built competitive advantages over time. Except maybe in the ever-changing world of technology, it is usually an advantage for a business to have been around a long time and to have established customers, suppliers,… Continue reading