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We got a cold email from an associate after he saw an article, talked a bit more over email, then set a time to meet. The meeting went well but we're fairly early so I didn't sweat it. Then we got a call back for a meeting with Vinod a couple weeks later - great.
Vinod was direct and moves quickly (like the speed of dialogue in West Wing - you had better keep up), but he was quite respectful. I hate talking to VCs that just sit there on their phones and only half listen, but Vinod actually engaged with us. Yes, there were some tough questions... but I would be more concerned if there were just a bunch of softballs. There are comments on here about Vinod being an ass, but we certainly did not experience that. Even if we had, I'm not looking for a friend. I'm looking for someone that will write a small check now so I can write them a really fucking big check in 5-10 years. In the meantime, I expect them to ask difficult questions, challenge me and my company to do better, and help out with whatever skills and non-monetary resources they can.
I'm not sure what, if anything, will come from this but I had as good of an experience as I could have expected. Obviously, I'd love to get a term sheet or another meeting, like, yesterday. So far they seem to move on the same timeline as other VCs we've talked with - unless you're doing a hot round, it can just take some time. The staff and associates we've talked to are all very professional and seem easy to work with - bodes well if we do move forward.
Private: 1223 Chars
The Founder Institute, which was spawned from TheFunded.com, has helped launch over 600 female-led businesses across six continents since 2009. These companies have collectively raised over $65M in funding.
On Tuesday December 13th, we will host an online "Female Founder Demo Day" event, where five up-and-coming female-led FI startups from across the globe will present their businesses to top investors for feedback.
If you would like to see presentations from the companies you will be reading about tomorrow, sign up for the Demo Day at https://app.webinarjam.net/register/2...
Hope you can join us.
The title sums up our experience.