I cofounded a robotics startup a decade ago and one point we needed cash to keep going. We received 2 offers:
1. VC offer of a couple million dollars for significant share and crazy expectations about growth and scaling up and short timelines etc.
2. Half a million from a private investor for a reasonable share ask who insisted we just kept doing what we were doing.
We opted for 2 and have been running the company successfully ever since. Slow manageable growth. Moderately profitable-nothing a VC would be happy with but it’s enough for us and our 25 employees. I’m not a multi-millionaire but I’m making decent living and have a great work-life balance.
Looking back this is probably the only way we could’ve made this company work. Attaching an industrial air compressor up to it would’ve blasted it to smithereens.
To each their own, YMMV, different types of companies have different financial needs, etc etc but if I ever did a startup again this is the way I’d choose again! It’s manageable, sane, low pressure, etc.
1. VC offer of a couple million dollars for significant share and crazy expectations about growth and scaling up and short timelines etc.
2. Half a million from a private investor for a reasonable share ask who insisted we just kept doing what we were doing.
We opted for 2 and have been running the company successfully ever since. Slow manageable growth. Moderately profitable-nothing a VC would be happy with but it’s enough for us and our 25 employees. I’m not a multi-millionaire but I’m making decent living and have a great work-life balance.
Looking back this is probably the only way we could’ve made this company work. Attaching an industrial air compressor up to it would’ve blasted it to smithereens.
To each their own, YMMV, different types of companies have different financial needs, etc etc but if I ever did a startup again this is the way I’d choose again! It’s manageable, sane, low pressure, etc.