Should All Startups Raise Venture Capital? Featuring Leigh Sevin of Endear

For many founders, raising outside capital, including venture capital, is the accepted path. But is this always the case? This episode features Leigh Sevin, co-founder of Endear, a retail clienteling software startup. Leigh and I talk about her fundraising journey, choices they’ve made and how to think about VC versus other fundraising options.  

• Raising early-stage funding for a tech startup with a profitability-first mindset
• The difference between pre-seed angels and VCs and how they think about investing at the early stage
• The concept of “portfolio of one” and potential alignment or misalignment with VCs
• Finding your own right path for fundraising
• What alternatives exist to VC, because you still probably need to raise at least some outside capital 
• When different kinds of debt make sense for startups
• Exit considerations for founders, and the importance of cap tables
• Use your founder network to get help throughout the process

Music by Eino Toivanen, kongano.com
 
Edited by Deven Shah

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To submit a pitch or to find out more about Sapna Shah, check out Red Giraffe Advisors.