Management Team
We invest in people. Talented people are the biggest driver of success and are our single most important criteria in making an investment decision. We like relevant experience and track record, but passion, drive and unique insight are a must.
Investment Size
Our investment size ranges from $150,000 to $2,000,000 with an average investment of $250,000 per round.
Process
No one likes raising capital. Don’t worry. We are here to help. We try to make our investment process as painless as possible. We make an effort to efficiently move companies through the investment process. Review our investment process and determine if our process fits your needs. If you believe it’s a good fit, we would like to hear from you. You may submit an application for funding by clicking here.
Stage
We like startups and early stage companies. Typically, we provide the first outside money that a company raises. However, we also fund expansion rounds for early stage companies.
Capital Efficiency
We look for companies that can generate (or expand) revenue with a relatively modest amount of capital. Capital efficient companies run a tight ship and can take a round of capital and grow a profitable business within a few years. The quicker a company can produce revenue, the more excited we become about the opportunity.
Industries
We will consider investing in a broad range of industries that span from high tech to low tech. We like companies that address major problems for large target markets and possess highly scalable business models. Therefore, we exclude investments in the following areas: real estate, storefront retail, restaurants & bars, and franchises.
Technology
We prefer to invest in first-of-a-kind new ideas, rather than incremental enhancements to common products and services. However, we approach highly complex, esoteric technologies with caution. The concept behind the technology must be proven and verifiable. Further, we avoid science projects that don’t demonstrate a clear path to commercialization. Any breakthrough innovation must be accompanied by a strong business plan.
Competitive Advantage
Companies must have features that distinguish them from potential competitors or provide barriers to entry that prevent other companies from capturing their customers with a similar offering. Companies must also demonstrate that these advantages are sustainable over time.
Pre-Money Valuation
We typically only consider deals with pre-money valuations less than $3mm for pre-revenue companies. Our sweet spot for pre-revenue deals typically falls between $1.5mm to $2.0mm for pre-money valuations. However, if a company has existing revenues, we will consider deals with pre-money valuations that exceed $3mm.
Expected Return
We invest in companies that could return at least 5X to 10X our investment within a three to five year window. This level of return on investment is essential due to the level of risk among early stage ventures.
Location
Companies need to be located in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware or New York