Start Me Up
How do you think the Utah startup/tech community is different (for better and worse) than areas like NYC and San Francisco?
Way more soda. Way more kids.
How do you go about finding companies to invest in?
Ouija board.
What would you say is the one characteristic you see in a company that indicates success?
Median height of employees.
What caught your eye when you first learned about Stat?
The rugged good looks of its founder.
Has investment slowed during these last few (post-covid) years?
Yeah, sure. I guess.
What metrics do you look at when deciding to invest in a company?
Frequency of donuts being brought in.
For companies that you have invested in that have become successful (IPO or profitable), is there anything they have in common?
A founder from Wenatchee.
How would you say Stat is different than other portfolio companies?
Stat has the "IT" factor. The "je ne sais quoi" amazingness within its walls. Like the Backstreet Boys. Or Chappell Roan.
What is your macroeconomic/tech/startup outlook for the next ~5 years?
Wars and rumors of wars.
What things do you look at to CONTINUE investing in a company?
Exponential increase in donut consumption.
From your perspective, what are the most common reasons you’ve seen tech companies stall or fail after reaching $4M in ARR?
Lack of donuts.
Does a slow start to the year concern you as an investor? What would concern you?
Gone are the days of racing to $100M ARR as fast as humanly possible, buddy.
What does investor involvement look like regarding the growth of companies you've invested in?
What indicators do you look for that a company is likely to scale successfully beyond the stage we are in?
Letting chaos reign.
Was our slower Q1 industry-specific or did you see that across the other companies you are invested in?
"It's me. Hi. I'm the problem, it's me."
How do you distinguish between a temporary plateau and a systemic issue at this stage?
Have we learned nothing yet? Donuts. It call comes back to donuts.
Where do you see us needing to improve?
Median height of employees.