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It's Over for This Outfit
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by Krassen on 2012-03-27
This recent article paints an ugly picture; game seems to be over for these guys.
http://www.xconomy.com/seattle/2012/0...
OVP's only IPO in the past 10+ years was Complete Genomics. Take a look at these blog posts to see how much hope and excitement it generated inside the firm:
The beauty of Asymmetric Warfare: "...their business model - selling the complete sequencing of human genomes as a service for just thousands of dollars each - is an asymmetric attack on the large firms selling machines for upwards of a million dollars each to do a similar function. Those firms have no straightforward way to defend against this small, nimble player who is playing by different rules."
http://www.ovp.com/blog/entrepreneurs...
Or this weirdly poetic account for their IPO: "What Does An IPO Smell Like?"
http://www.ovp.com/blog/entrepreneurs...
Sadly, Complete Genomics have been a disaster, bleeding money and missing sales targets, so now OVP has cried "uncle" and is liquidating the holding at a huge loss.
With their 2001 fund having -16.9% IRR (that is negative 16.9%), and their last fund (from 2006) already at six years and not a single exit to show for, I think the game is over for this pathetic outfit.
Now, they have been in trouble previously, and were rescued by the Kenyon College endowment, where the dad of OVP's Chad Waite had set up a committee to invest in venture capital. However, I doubt it is going to work this time. For one, I have alerted the Kenyon College alumni community of what is going on. And second, it seems like Waite is retiring in Montana.
The innovation ecosystem will be better off without OVP.
PRIVATE: Members OnlyPleasant, Attentive Pitch but Unresponsive
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by How_Matters on 2010-10-06
Pitched to Mark and Chad. Very relaxed atmosphere, they paid attention (no texting or email thank goodness!) and asked reasonable questions that showed they were listening. They offered some advice regarding how I could have made the pitch better, including "We can see why this would be a nice-to-have, but what would make it a must-have?". Fair question. The meeting ended with them saying they would consider next steps and get back to me. I followed up with thank you email and several "must-have" examples. Weeks went by with no word. Sent another email asking for thumbs up/down. Weeks later no word.
To those of us active in raising capital, the lack of response and going dark is expected behavior in the VC world. It's still disappointing, especially when you meet with folks who actually seem to have decent people skills...
PRIVATE: Members OnlyOvp Venture Partners
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by eburnssr on 2009-01-16
I always go by what Harry Truman said, you shouldn't little of what you read and only half of what you hear.
So this morning I was reading about OVP one someone getting fired for cause but then I went to the site, sent the material required by their site and the information is of such nature, that unless you're an Internet expert you're going to ask some questions. None were asked and I get this somewhat email stating they're going to pass.
Now would you think that a startup that needs $5 Million but will generate $127 Million in revenue on its 4th year be of some interest.
UCLA - Business
Vietnam Vet
Business Partner
Business Owner
ED
PRIVATE: Members OnlyFired "For Cause" by the VC's
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by Krassen on 2009-01-15
My review of OVP received a healthy dose of feedback by people who found it instructional as a general scenario. Here I offer some more thoughts and advice about about my experience being "fired for cause" by OVP, which is what got the most attention, and which too, may have implications in dealing with VCs in general.
PRIVATE: Members Only (3454 Characters)Beware: Terrible Performance!
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by Krassen on 2008-12-28
OVP led our financing at NanoString, very regular VC firm in manners. Historical performance of OVP is terrible (most funds in the bottom quartile, with exception of OVP IV in the 90s), and from my experience this is not a fluke. Nevertheless, they somehow manage to raise tons of money from LPs, which needs to be deployed, so it's probably worth pitching to them. However, if you close with them, make sure to minimize their influence on the business, or the money you raise may come at the cost of ruining your startup.
PRIVATE: Members Only (8364 Characters)People, People, People....And Wysiwyg
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by Anonymous on 2008-07-11
As with many firms, your traction with OVP will depend significantly on who you are dealing with.
They are an active investor in my company and I find that their website gives a very good indication of what their culture is like - or what they strive for it to be.
They are also a firm who remember what the "V" stands for in VC, so if your opportunity is a little bit different, they are definitely worth contacting - and they won't expect you to submit them to death-by-powerpoint if they are interested in the general idea.
PRIVATE: Members Only (1196 Characters)Just Let Me Know the Status
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by Anonymous on 2008-01-16
Pitched OVP and they seemed very interested during the meeting. Followed up weeks later to get feedback and never got any sort of status update. OVP please follow the golden rule and simply have your administrative assistant email the entrepreneurs yes or no. Entrepreneurs have very thick skin..we can handle bad news; but we have no patience for lack of follow up after we have given you our valuable time.
PRIVATE: Members OnlyNo Fault of Theirs, but Less Knowledge/Depth in Internet/Media
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by Anon on 2008-01-09
Only Worth It if You Get Chad
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by r2d2 on 2007-09-27
Having dealt with OVP for a few years I can say, only take their money if you do the deal with Chad Waite and he serves on your BOD. He is smart and does not have a big ego. They others .... I would pass.
PRIVATE: Members Only (878 Characters)Ovp Portland
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by tech_vp on 2007-05-24
Frustrated with Ovp
Fund: OVP Venture Partners
Posted by Anonymous on 2007-05-10
Surprised when some people here made OVP such great compliments . My experience was not good with them. It was waste of time.
Good side: they are not arrogant.
PRIVATE: Members Only (220 Characters)