Category: Investment & Business Models
Bootstrap Companies Succeed Without Big Venture Capital
Five out of six of the fastest growing companies in the US grow with capital from sources other than traditional venture capital. How about the banks? Talked to an entrepreneurial banker lately? Didn’t think so. Bootstrap companies are creative in finding capital, often out of simple… Continue reading
Investment Asset Class Taking Shape: Smaller, Fast-Growing, Backed by Not-Traditional-VCs
Harvard Business School now catches up to a business trend my investment fund, Greybull Stewardship, has been focusing on for years — the increasing frequency of great businesses that have gotten to nice levels of profitability ($1-3 million) by bootstrapping (i.e., no traditional institutional venture capital).… Continue reading
Evergreen Investment Capital Gains More Traction
This idea should be obvious: Most companies will not do their best work if forced to grow artificially fast (think growth hormones). If you aim everything toward fattening up for an exit time; if you force-feed unnatural energy like corn or capital, binge on antibiotics, and then… Continue reading
Rational Investing vs Irrational Entrepreneurship (Admirable Idealism)
When asked at this year’s meeting, “What matters most at Berkshire Hathaway?” Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett quickly agreed: “Seeing things the way they are.” Rational As Opposed to Smart Warren and Charlie then went to one of their favorite topics about how the success of… Continue reading
Diverse Fundraising Market Requires More Filtering than Ever
Private company fundraising is becoming more diverse, robust, and complicated by the day. This is good news for private companies, but not without some downsides. When unique (and often better) doesn’t fit traditional fundraising A core hypothesis of my investment fund, Greybull Stewardship, is that there… Continue reading
Angel Investing Not As Prevalent nor Effective As You May Think
Angel investing has reached a new level of interest by the general public because start-ups are doing well and there are new ways to be an angel (AngelList, crowdfunding, etc.). The New York Times recently published an article about the pros and cons of angel… Continue reading
Greybull Stewardship Makes Growth Investment in Onsource
My investment fund, Greybull Stewardship, has announced a growth investment in a unique platform that connects insurance companies with third-party vehicle and property photo inspections via smart phone apps. The company, Onsource (www.onsourceonline.com), has a network of over 14,000 independent photo inspectors. I am very excited to… Continue reading