APPROACH
PURPOSE
We believe in companies with a clear intent for their existence and refuse to subscribe to assumptions that purpose and profit are irreconcilable. We want entrepreneurs who are both visionary idealists and real-world pragmatists. Our view? Enterprises that create durable value somehow simply combine an authentic and purposeful brand narrative with a common sense business model.
PEOPLE
It’s all about people of competence and character. True success comes from scaling not just a company, but also a culture. We partner with high integrity, customer-obsessed, and passionate leaders who want big change – 10x betterment or more to the status quo. Most things can be solved by a “who” and our team stands ready to serve, augmented by a unique ecosystem of relationships.
PATIENCE
Doing things differently and with greater ambitions just takes longer. Long-term compounding wins over time and we believe in a “tortoise vs hare” principle to turn venture growth into durable growth. Our patient pool of evergreen capital focuses more on sustainable growth than it does on exit and offers flexibility to support founders from the outset while doubling-down as success emerges.
HOW WE ADD VALUE
REAL WORLD KNOWLEDGE
We get it – if it’s not specific and practical, it’s likely not useful. Our knowledge comes from “miles on the skis” as entrepreneurs and operators having founded and scaled companies with similar opportunities, challenges and mistakes. Beyond our team’s experience is an incredible founder peer group, value-add LPs, and our library of proprietary thought-capital.
REAL AUTHENTIC CONNECTIONS
Core to our job is bringing good people together. Anything can be solved with the right “who” and our relationship ecosystem is unique in diversity and depth. We love shared learning and the power of convening our founders with multidisciplinary leaders, experts, and kindred spirits at events like our CEO Summit, annual TED Dinner and flagship gathering, On Cue.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
WE’RE NOT FOR EVERYONE, BUT YOU SHOULDN’T BE EITHER
Ideas don’t make money; people do. The right people can fix imperfect ideas. But the best ideas can’t fix the wrong people. We seek passionate and self-aware leaders who can build cultural systems and teams towards common values, goals and, of course, vision.
Business model fundamentals mean more than theoretical Excel. We care most about the inputs that drive desired outputs. This means manically learning about super-fans willing to habitually pay a premium for your hero products leading to repeatable, profitable revenue.
Laser-focus on a clear niche increases the odds of being the best and being the best is always a good thing. We all want to be the best and the biggest, but starting small with disciplined focus and patience can get you there more systematically and eventually become the player to beat.
SEED
Goal
Build founding team
and demonstrate initial
commercial proof
Revenue
Up to $2M
Bite size
$100k to $500k initial investment
VENTURE
Goal
Getting the right core customer connected to the right hero product against the right repeatable business model.
Revenue
Up to $10M and path to profitability
Bite size
$1M to $5M initial investment
GROWTH
Goal
Put “Fuel on fire” and
demonstrate scale in the business model and culture
Revenue
$10M+ and, EBITDA positive
Bite size
$5 to $10M+ initial investment
- ENDURING PRINCIPLES
Ideas don’t make money; people do. The right people can fix imperfect ideas. But the best ideas can’t fix the wrong people. We seek passionate and self-aware leaders who can build cultural systems and teams towards common values, goals and, of course, vision.
Business model fundamentals mean more than theoretical Excel. We care most about the inputs that drive desired outputs. This means manically learning about super-fans willing to habitually pay a premium for your hero products leading to repeatable, profitable revenue.
Laser-focus on a clear niche increases the odds of being the best and being the best is always a good thing. We all want to be the best and the biggest, but starting small with disciplined focus and patience can get you there more systematically and eventually become the player to beat.
- SPECIFIC CRITERIA
SEED
Goal
Build founding team
and demonstrate initial
commercial proof
Revenue
Up to $2M
Bite size
$100k to $500k initial investment
VENTURE
Goal
Getting the right core customer connected to the right hero product against the right repeatable business model.
Revenue
Up to $10M and path to profitability
Bite size
$1M to $5M initial investment
GROWTH
Goal
Put “Fuel on fire” and
demonstrate scale in the business model and culture
Revenue
$10M+ and, EBITDA positive
Bite size
$5 to $10M+ initial investment