Pitch Me!
One of the most controversial parts of fundraising is the emphasis on warm introductions. In virtually every fundraising playbook (mine included), a key part of the strategy is to leverage your network to get introductions to partners at VC firms.
Warm introductions help you rise above the crowd. They help you get past email filters, junior associates and other gatekeepers to the decision makers in a firm. A warm introduction unquestionably increases the likelihood of successfully raising from a firm.
They’re also blatantly exclusionary.
As an industry, our reliance on warm introductions place first-time founders, particularly those without a strong network, at a significant disadvantage. They make it harder for women and minority founders to raise funding. There’s also increasing evidence that they lead to lower overall returns for funds (which makes sense, since VC is a business of outliers).
I can’t do away with warm introductions – nor will I minimize their importance in the fundraising process in my posts – but I can make it easier to get to me.
And with that, I’d like to introduce the “Pitch Me!“ button:
Ok…it’s less a giant cartoon button and more a link on a website, but you get the point.
On my blog you will now find a link at the top that says “Pitch Me!”. Click that link and you can directly submit your startup information.
And I will look at it. Personally.
What’s the Catch?
There’s no catch.
I’m trying to make it easier for ambitious founders across Canada to get their pitch in front of a VC. I’m also trying to reach beyond the limitations of my own personal networks to founders whom I might otherwise not get to meet. My goal as a VC is to invest in the most ambitious founders in Canada, not the most ambitious founders who happen to be one degree away from me on LinkedIn.
Is it Really that Easy?
Yes.
…and No.
At the end of the day, I am VC at a firm that has a specific investment thesis. And the reality is that most startups (no matter how awesome they are) aren’t a fit for that thesis.
If you visit the “Pitch Me!” page on my website, you’ll see a full page describing what we invest in at Panache. There are some strict requirements on that list, including:
You must be a Canadian startup, but your market cannot be only Canada
There must be a core technology aspect to your business
Your business must not be inherently capital intensive
Plenty of great businesses have been built that don’t match our requirements. They’re just not a fit for Panache. (If you want to learn more about me and what I invest in, follow me on Twitter).
So I Might Not Get to Pitch You? 🤦♂️
Correct.
If I can tell right away that your company isn’t something we’re likely to invest in, then I don’t want to waste your time or mine. But I will send you an email back explaining the reasoning.
My Promise to You
While I can’t guarantee that you’ll get to pitch me live, I promise that every pitch deck submitted will be reviewed and every founder will get an email back with one of two things:
An invitation to schedule a call
An explanation as to why your startup is not a fit for Panache
My goal is to respond within two weeks of submissions. We’ll see if I can pull it off…
So if you’re a Canadian founder looking to raise Pre-Seed or Seed funding, I hope that you’ll reach out to Pitch Me!
