venture-capital, angel-investors, pitch, bootstrapping, non-profitCrazy Idea I know! I’m a non-tech founder of three different startups (one’s an NGO). I only planned on one and since I’m an idea factory the other two just fell into my lap. The first I’m the only founder, second I have a tech cofounder and early employee, and NGO in the process of building out board. For all three we have pretty good traction and I’ve been 100% bootstrapped through my w2’d salary from my actual job, how I survive is beyond me. All three tie into each other very well, while being three separate companies. It’s almost time to raise a seed round and get donations. I wanted to pitch as a package for really good reasons. I’ve ran in my head the how are doing this, and the one founder startups fail, etc.
Any advice
The one founder startup fail is a myth.
However selling 3 companies packaged as one will definitely not work. There is no one in their right minds who would go for such a deal. You will need to put it all under 1 legal entity.
As for the activities themselves you could either re-brand everything under one umbrella concept or keep them separate, that really depends on how you want to tell your story.
Try to craft this into a single story. It is hard enough to get investors sold on a single laser focused idea. You are essentially offering two (or three) dependent ideas that they must buy into. If they have any concerns about one idea they won’t buy into the package as a whole.
Then there is the cap table. Messy cap tables really turn investors off. Who owns what percentage of what? You currently own 100% of some portion of the package. The other portion of the package is owned partially by you and partially by your co-founder. Messy.
This would also simplify things for you as the founder. Why compound things with two separate operating entities, two separate boards, two separate accounting books, two separate corporate filings, two of almost everything? As founder you need to be focused on conserving resources, both money and time. Two sets of everything is not very conservative.
If the NGO is not a critical element of the story I would consider shelving that for now. If that is intended to be a non-profit it can’t be part of the same enterprise you would seek seed funding for anyway.
I realize that this may require restructuring of the existing operating entities, and perhaps an uncomfortable conversation with your partial cofounder.
Best of luck!
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