Author: Abu Cassim
31 May 2016
Investing in startups can be tricky and can seem daunting, particularly if you’re new to it. Can you make money? Absolutely! Can you lose all your money? Yes. Investing in startups is a risky strategy and you should be aware of the risk from the outset.
This blog, along with our blog series, aims to demystify the process. We have developed some broad guidelines based on international best practices and local lessons to provide some direction. It’s important that you add your own flavour to the process as well.
So what differentiates the good startups from the bad? What should you look for in a startup before making that investment? We’ve broken down some of the key criteria applicable to most, if not all, angel investors. You’ll find that some investors quantify each of these variables, giving the startups a score out of ten for each in their assessment. We will leave the methodology details up to the individual, but the broad principles should remain the same.
Innovative Solution
The starting point of any search needs to be the product or service being provided. If it’s not unique or innovative and doesn’t have intellectual property that is protected, it’s easy for anyone to replicate. The barrier to entry is low and you’ll be competing on price in a ‘red ocean’ in most cases. This is risky at a startup where the operating model is still being established on a limited budget. Even if it does work, you’ll have fair weather customers and it’s near impossible to reposition the company or adopt another strategy. Ideally you want to invest in a “blue ocean” or an uncontested market space that makes competitors irrelevant.
Management Team
This is probably the most important aspect of any startup. The team is at the heart of the startup, the idea is secondary. Any investor will tell you they’d rather invest in an A team with a B idea, than a B team with an A idea. It’s the teams ability to execute on their strategy that matters and it’s this that will determine if the startup will succeed or not.
To your advantage you have the opportunity to meet the people behind the business. This almost never happens before you invest in a listed company. Get to know the team, understand their ability to execute on their business and their skill-set. Do they compliment one another? The passion should be tangible, if it’s not there every hurdle will seem like a dead-end.
Market opportunity
It is often said that great companies happen when passionate teams pursue big market opportunities. Investments should ideally be scalable. That is, given your investment, the company can take advantage of economies of scale to reach a broader market. Operating on a relatively stable cost base but with the ability to increase revenue.
Understand the difference between the various ways of measuring the market size: total available market and served available market. How much can they get and how fast is it growing.
Momentum
Momentum could have many different meanings. Most founders will bowl you over with their passion but it’s important to understand where the company is at and how fast they are moving forward. They will typically fall somewhere along the following spectrum:
Idea – Prototype – Complete Product – Signed Up Users – Paying Users – Profitable
Get them to talk you through the milestones they’ve achieved and those that lie ahead. It often good practice to observe how quickly they reach their next milestone(s) before investing. Think of it as dating before the marriage.
Match / fit
Investing in a startup is like getting married, but breaking up could be worse than a divorce. You’re going to be investing time and money, make sure you’re a good match. How do your skills and professional network compliment the business? Apart from the money, do you add value to what they doing? The startup will take you on an adventure, know what you’re signing up for.
Money
Money always plays a part, whether it’s the amount you invest (and the equity you get in return) or your expected return on investment. Make sure your financial objectives are aligned with those of the founder(s). Understand his financial roadmap, when will he raise capital again, what’s the likely valuation and make sure they have an exit plan in mind. Lifestyle businesses that stay in a family for generations are good, but you only create real wealth on exiting.
Remember you’re probably going to be locked in for several years, if the startup is not going to give you a sizeable return then don’t bother. The startup needs to have the ability to return a minimum of twenty times your money, 20x as it is called. The majority will fail, but spread your bets so you have a better chance of finding the one that shoots the lights out.
Contact Jozi Angels should you have any questions or need a sounding board. We’d be happy to help.
