Comments on: Atlanta VCs At the Hot Dog Stand http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html Blogging, opining, ruminating, and pontificating on entrepreneurship, venture capital, process improvement, technology, online communities, business networking, IT Management, online social networking, and other things that melt in the warm Atlanta sun. Mon, 15 Feb 2010 01:53:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Paul Freet http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html/comment-page-1#comment-5527 Paul Freet Fri, 30 Mar 2007 13:01:03 +0000 http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html#comment-5527 Scott, I could not agree more. The sad thing is that making all those trips to North Carolin and DC takes valuable time away from building and marketing an amazing product. Georgia startups already have two strikes against them in many cases - this doesn't help. I remember Guy Kawasaki's advice to entrepreneurs at a TAG event seven years ago - "move to California". Scott, I could not agree more. The sad thing is that making all those trips to North Carolin and DC takes valuable time away from building and marketing an amazing product. Georgia startups already have two strikes against them in many cases – this doesn’t help.

I remember Guy Kawasaki’s advice to entrepreneurs at a TAG event seven years ago – “move to California”.

]]> By: Knox Massey http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html/comment-page-1#comment-5396 Knox Massey Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:45:14 +0000 http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html#comment-5396 Scott-- Sure would like to hear more about the early stage seed/angel funds you know about! Knox Massey Scott–

Sure would like to hear more about the early stage seed/angel funds you know about!

Knox Massey

]]> By: Scott Burkett http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html/comment-page-1#comment-4874 Scott Burkett Sat, 03 Mar 2007 22:11:30 +0000 http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html#comment-4874 Well said, and I agree! Well said, and I agree!

]]> By: PacManFever http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html/comment-page-1#comment-4873 PacManFever Sat, 03 Mar 2007 21:39:57 +0000 http://www.scottburkett.com/index.php/atlanta-business-scene/2007-03-02/atlanta-vcs-at-the-hot-dog-stand.html#comment-4873 On the surface, that clearly doesn't look good. We could be charitable and perhaps assume that these VCs simply had to take phone calls at the same time. Or that that particular deal wasn't very interesting, although others were, so that was the opportunity the VCs took to check their voice mails. On the other hand, we can also conclude that it is exemplary of the widespread feeling that venture capital (as classically defined) is absent in Georgia. Private equity firms want to have lower risk-return profiles and that's their perogative. An investment banker I spoke to says he advises his clients to go out of state first to seek traditional venture capital. Maybe that's the useful takeaway. I'm not inclined to just summarily kill the private equity firms' seeming lack of appetite for true venture deals; who are we to tell them how to invest? That's their limited partners' job. The true negative element is the widespread belief that the private equity firms are true venture capital investors, which leads to lots of wasted time, energy and hope, all of which the typical entrepreneur can ill-afford to waste. Maybe that is the private equity firms' collective fault, or maybe it's the fault of a poorly-informed entrepreneurial community that doesn't do enough homework on their audience before presenting their investment opportunities. I'm guessing it's a little of Column A and a little of Column B. If out of state capital is coming in to fill the void, then that's OK by me. Their money is as good as anyone else's. The key, if you're an entrepreneur, is to recognize that looking for money locally may be disproportionately difficult and the capital raising experience may yield a higher return on effort by starting outside the Peachtree State. On the surface, that clearly doesn’t look good. We could be charitable and perhaps assume that these VCs simply had to take phone calls at the same time. Or that that particular deal wasn’t very interesting, although others were, so that was the opportunity the VCs took to check their voice mails.

On the other hand, we can also conclude that it is exemplary of the widespread feeling that venture capital (as classically defined) is absent in Georgia. Private equity firms want to have lower risk-return profiles and that’s their perogative. An investment banker I spoke to says he advises his clients to go out of state first to seek traditional venture capital. Maybe that’s the useful takeaway.

I’m not inclined to just summarily kill the private equity firms’ seeming lack of appetite for true venture deals; who are we to tell them how to invest? That’s their limited partners’ job. The true negative element is the widespread belief that the private equity firms are true venture capital investors, which leads to lots of wasted time, energy and hope, all of which the typical entrepreneur can ill-afford to waste. Maybe that is the private equity firms’ collective fault, or maybe it’s the fault of a poorly-informed entrepreneurial community that doesn’t do enough homework on their audience before presenting their investment opportunities. I’m guessing it’s a little of Column A and a little of Column B.

If out of state capital is coming in to fill the void, then that’s OK by me. Their money is as good as anyone else’s.

The key, if you’re an entrepreneur, is to recognize that looking for money locally may be disproportionately difficult and the capital raising experience may yield a higher return on effort by starting outside the Peachtree State.

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