Not All Angels Are Created Equal [Video]

Written on October 7, 2010 – 4:32 pm | by Michael Harris

I suppose the most frustrating aspect of being an entrepreneur is others “not getting” your idea. Obviously you “get it” as you created the idea. Of course you don’t want to be wasting your time or money pitching to Angel Investors that will never see the potential – even if you had a machine that could turn “puppy turds into gold” and only needed $37 for a bus ticket to the park. Do you think you would could always get angel investment regardesss of how you sought Angel Investors ? Even if the calculated return is 47,000%? Well, you’ll get what I’m talking about when you watch this:

The problem is some Angels just can’t spot a good deal if it was handed to them on a plate … unlike those attended this week’s Angels Den SpeedFunding event where the 21 Angels were presented to by 10 entrepreneurs. The eventing resulted in 60 individual requests for follow-ups by the Angels and for the observant amongst you that works out to an average of 6 follow-ups per entrepreneur whilst each had at least one request for further talks.

Unfortunately there were none that turned puppy poop into gold, but there were a wide variety of entrepreneurs with ideas ranging from online training modules, a web platform for the contractor recruitment industry, technology for the clinical trials supply chain industry, an online craft retailer, an outsourcing service for in-house counsel and law firms, a radio frequency identification solution, a clever data storage company and does it differently, a new type of combustion engine and two others that cannot be disclosed.

If you can turn your had at alchemy, or something more investable, then why not pop along to the next SpeedFunding events in your area. You can find details here.

Money, Football And Selecting From The Best

Over recent years finance and football have become intertwined more closely than ever. But perhaps I should say debt funding and football? Which brings me to the circus that is the ownership and future owndership of Liverpool Football Club. Back in 2007 Hicks and Gillete “invested” in the club and even though 3 1/2 years is a common length of time an Angel Investors and venture capitalists are typically looking to be involved in an investment, I’m sure this isn’t the sort of exit strategy that the current owners were looking for.

At the time of purchase Hicks and Gillette said they had the cash to buy the club’s assets outright and would not require any debt finance. As we know now, the situation was completely different. It begs the question … Is honesty always the best policy? But on a serious note. The FA has brought in the ‘fit and proper persons test’ to try and prevent ‘a Portsmouth’ from happening again which draws some parallels with Angels Den – thankfully positive ones.

We don’t have the issues that fans and current board of Liverpool FC have as all the Angel Investors registered with us and active at our SpeedFunding events are certified as a High Net Worth Individual or a Self Certified Sophisticated Investor as defined by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Furthermore, our Regional Managers are in regular contact with these Angel Investors and ensure they have confidence in their investable capital and suitability to be an Angel Investor – we’ve put hoops in place for all concerned to protect everyone’s interests. I wonder if for the former Liverpool FC owner David Moores wishes he was as robust with testing the character and funding capabilities as we are with the Angels wanting to be a part of Angels Den?

Scottish Success

On a happier note. This week saw the 1 year birthday of our Scottish office with Cameron Thomson opening and we’ve already attracted over 300 members and are expecting the details to tally up to over £10 million when they’ve all been completed.

So if you’re an entrepreneur or inventor and haven’t taken the opportunity, you’re missing out. You may end up feeling as positive as Matthew Horbury, Founder of Dice Room Games who recently commented “The SpeedFunding event was the first day of the rest of my life. A life changing event that I would recommend to anybody. It is probably the best money I have spent in my whole life. Words can’t convey how much I thank you for all Angels Den has done for me. You and all the team at Angels Den are stars.”

You’ve got to be in it, to win it.

Perfect Business!