As the co-managing partner of Hauser Private Equity, Mark Hauser has been thrust into the forefront of many conversations with potential start-ups. A professional with decades of experience in the industry, Hauser has made a career out of finding the right places to invest his money.
An esteemed venture capitalist, Mark Hauser, understands how difficult it can be for a start-up to garner the right attention from a potential investor. To help individuals find the path to the funding they need to succeed, Hauser took time out of his day to detail some key insights that he had learned along the way.
What Is Venture Capital Funding?
Obtaining funding to make a goal a reality can require a lot of luck and a whole bunch of effort. A venture capital firm will manage a pool of funds that have been generated by its limited partner. These venture capital businesses will look for numerous early-stage companies to add to their portfolio in exchange for funding.
There are a few different arenas where funding typically will happen including.
- Seed Stage Funding – Businesses at the very beginning of their journey will begin here.
- Early Stage Funding – A business one early-stage funding has already launched its product into the marketplace and is now ready to expand its sales channels.
- Late-Stage Funding – Finally, late-stage funding revolves around businesses that have already defined their target demographics while refining their core product offerings.
What Do Venture Capitalists Look For?
Mark Hauser understands that it can be difficult for businesses to acquire the funding that they need in order to make it onto the market. As a result, startup investors are frequently going to be receiving solicitations from businesses still in the early stages of their growth.
When Mark Hauser looks for a start-up to invest in, he wants to see a few of the following traits:
- Distinct Products / Services – By the time that you are soliciting funding, you should have your business’s product or service neatly defined. The easier it is to define what you have to offer, the easier funding will be to acquire.
- A Passionate Team – Startup investors want to see an emerging company headlined by passionate leaders. Organizations structured around passionate leaders tend to have more success than their apathetic counterparts.
- Sustainable Foundation – Companies are increasingly looking to market to the ethical practices of their Millennial and Gen Z consumers.
- Potential For Growth – Startup investors are uniquely suited to investing in the potential of a concept rather than whatever it is that stands before them. Mark Hauser wants to see businesses that have outlined expansion plans and have an idea as to what they want to accomplish in the future.
While finding a successful path to the marketplace is difficult, Mark Hauser believes that a little bit of preparation can go a long way toward significant accomplishments.
