Raising Capital During a Pandemic: Entrepreneurs
During “The Current State” webinar, presented by BrownWinick, LWBJ and the Greater Des Moines Partnership, panelists discussed the ongoing challenges of raising and deploying capital during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is the second post in a three-part blog series covering the August 13, 2020 event. It is moderated by MakuSafe CEO Gabe Glynn and focuses on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and how this changed communication with investors. View this portion of the event beginning at timestamp 1:02:00-1:41:31.
Investor panelists at the virtual event included:
Impact of Challenging Times
Krone talks about how through the COVID-19 pandemic, PowerPollen had to make some quick maneuvers to steady the ship. He found that investors weren’t asking new questions of founders, but the frequency with which they asked them went up. For example, many are questioning financial models and wanting to dig deeper into specifics.
For Pitchly, Gerhardy says that COVID-19 brought about questions that focus on surviving the crisis. He talks about how investors questioned momentum and how employees working from home might influence people adopting their technology.
Jordan explains how there were deals that were scheduled to close during COVID-19. He says investors became more interested in ROI of software, technology and products.
Learn more about the questions investors are asking by watching the webinar below:
You can count on The Partnership to continue to share accurate and fact-based updates. See more on COVID-19 here.
Find these tips useful? Learn more tricks on how to maximize the potential of your business through The Partnership’s Small Business Resources Hub.
Mike Colwell
As executive director of entrepreneurial initiatives of the Greater Des Moines Partnership, Mike Colwell leads works with startups to build their business model, financial model, marketing strategies and capitalization plan. He is also co-manager of Plains Angels, a group of Iowa-based Midwest angel investors. Mike spends his days coaching, mentoring, consulting and asking tough questions to help entrepreneurs reach their full potential. Mike assists with business strategy, business planning, business plan execution, business model development and capital acquisition strategies.