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Family Office as Entrepreneur Capital Source

December 15, 2020 By Tip of the Spear

The Point: The Family Office as Entrepreneur Capital Source is an avenue rarely investigated, until recently. Why? The Family Office structure is one that is a relatively new “player” in the capital source space. So what do you need to do as an entrepreneur in order to approach a family office and successfully secure capital? In this post, we’ll explore family offices as Entrepreneur Capital Source… Enjoy!

Family Office as Entrepreneur Capital Source

When you are looking into the best way to raise venture capital for your entrepreneurial effort, you need to keep in mind that there are two main options when it comes to raising capital – Angel investors and institutional investors. Angel investors are wealthy individuals who provide small amounts of money to start a new business with the intention of generating a much larger return later on. While these investors do not normally require any particular terms nor have control over organizational operation when providing capital, they are also extremely impatient and lack understanding of the technology and risk issues that you are going through in building your new company as an entrepreneur. Most angel investors will prefer to see a business plan and more importantly, a projected financials so they can get a full picture of the business you are attempting to build.

Family offices on the other hand, run more like private equity firms where joint ventures between entrepreneurs and them as business partner generally require an initial investment. Typically, this relationship is formed because it allows family offices to tap into the entrepreneurial mindset of their entrepreneur partners and receive returns that are superior to other capital instruments. Most family offices that run like a private equity firm prefer to provide capital to small to mid-sized organizations rather than large corporate companies because of the obvious benefit of being personally involved in the business and being able to contribute ideas and help direct the business (Again, don’t overlook the returns!) They also are able to provide a direct exit path from the current project to providing capital to future projects. In order to raise family office capital funding requires the entrepreneur to again submit a formal business plan along with a well-written equity prospectus and a complete financial statement so the family office knows exactly what kind of return they can expect.

Family offices provide a great way for relatively inexperienced entrepreneurs to obtain the experience needed to raise large sums of capital and have a smart-money partner along with them. Because the entrepreneur receives small investments from family offices and not from institutional investors, they typically view paying very good returns on these investments as a small price to pay in return for the capital received to accomplish goals. The key to success is in the collaboration and relationship building between the entrepreneurs and family offices. Family offices are really just an extension of a venture capital outlet, allowing entrepreneurs to access the wealth of the family office entrepreneurial team at a much lower hurdle.

Sam Palazzolo

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: capital source, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, family office, sam palazzolo

The Family Office – What is It and How Can They Fund Your Capital Raise?

December 2, 2020 By Sam Palazzolo, Managing Director

Many entrepreneurs, be they existing businesses or startups have never heard of a “Family Office.” However, the Family Office is a type of funding source that should not be overlooked when searching for funding or capital raise. In this article, we’ll explore the Family Office – What it is and how they can fund your capital raise… Enjoy!

Looking for Funding / Capital Raise

Whether you’re an existing organization, or especially if you’re an entrepreneurial startup you’ll sooner or later look to conduct a capital raise to fund your business. But where will you look to raise capital? In a “no stone left unturned” approach, one alternative for funding a Small Business that’s frequently ignored is the Family Office. Household Offices run as personal business that handle financial investments and trusts for a high-net-worth household or group of households. They’re usually extremely personal and misconstrued, however if you open the tricks to how Family Offices purchase brand-new endeavors and the requirements they try to find, it could be the secret to funding your organization.

What a Family Office Is

Family Offices are an especially crucial source of capital for small-to-medium-sized companies. According to the Family Office Club, there are presently more than 3,000 household workplaces in the U.S., and these Offices, which normally have a minimum of $100 Million in properties, frequently take a look at alternative financial investment chances– which could be your start-up.

While Family Offices can be evasive and extremely selective, recommendations, relied on networks or entrepreneurship conferences might supply entry. The business looking for financing needs to likewise line up with the Family Office’s Investment Criteria and Philosophy. Numerous have a predisposition to buy business straight or indirectly related to the core organization on which their success is developed.

Positioning of Interests

Eventually, any brand-new financier is banking on both business Plan and the Founder/CEO. On the other hand, the Founder/CEO requires to discover and determine a brand-new financial investment partner who has a long-lasting view and the time and interest to assist move business forward.
If you’re being presented to a Family Office by a monetary company, there can be costs connected with the deal. All financiers will wish to comprehend the exit technique of the financial investment and plainly articulate that it’s crucial.

If a Family Office picks to purchase your service, you might discover that Family Offices:

  • Provide extraordinary connections
  • Are able to benefit from a circumstance where markets might stop to work in a routine way
  • Are more lenient/understanding than Institutional Investors or Private Equity
  • Appreciate just how much work needs to go into beginning an effective business
  • Serve as coaches

When John Doe * (* Fictitious name to safeguard the person) went looking for seed financiers for his Biotechnology / Pharmaceutical business in Tampa, Florida, he outreached to us at Tip of the Spear Ventures for support. After structuring his effort, we recognized a regional Family Office to pitch. One casual conference with the Private Investment Firm, which handles the wealth of people and their households, was all it required to land his endeavor a high-figure financial investment early in 2018, together with continuous recommendations, client intros, and part-time office.

Such experiences are uncommon, however they do take place, and more Family Wealth-Management Groups are banking on Private Equity offers. There are some downsides: Family Offices can take longer to “Seal the Deal” than conventional Angel Investors or VCs, and they typically have a lower tolerance for Startup failures. Numerous Family Offices take pleasure in recommending and supporting leaders beyond just cutting a check (Plus, they have containers of Dry Powder to pay out!)

How to Find a Family Office

How do you go about discovering a Family Investment Office to back your organization? Not all Family Offices are so called or named, making them hard to identify by means of Web or LinkedIn search. Get to understand who the person is you’re attempting to connect with. It’s often best to let the financial investment neighborhood understand who you are and what your business does prior to you actively trolling for financing.

When you’ve got some leads on Family Offices, call to ask whether they invest in Early-Stage or existing companies, what business their existing portfolio consists of, and what Industries interest them. The truth is, if you had a list of 100 Family Offices and individual contacts at each of them, just 5 or so would be legally interested in straight investing.

As soon as You Find a Family Office … Then What?

Your e-mail ought to be created to get the Family Office’s attention. Keep these preliminary e-mails light … The concept is to prevent frustrating the Family Office and rather fascinate them enough so they desire a follow-up conference. In other words, reveal regard for the truth that these households continuously get tapped for capital, and they’ll be more most likely to invite you into their Family.

Household Offices run as personal business that handle financial investments and trusts for a high-net-worth household or group of households. They’re generally extremely personal and misconstrued, however if you open the tricks to how Family Offices invest in brand-new endeavors and the requirements they look for, it might be the secret to funding your company (See the article I wrote titled “Effect Of COVID-19 On Raising Capital: How To Secure Funding During a Crisis?“).

One casual conference with the Private Investment Firm, which handles the wealth of people and their households, was all it took to land his organization a seven-figure financial investment early in 2018, along with continuous recommendations, client intros, and a part-time workplace area (Sweet!)

SUMMARY

How do you go about discovering a Family Investment Office to back your service? Our advice – Regard the reality that these households continuously get tapped for capital, and they’ll be more most likely to invite you into their “Family.”

Sam Palazzolo

If you/your organization is looking to raise capital, we should talk. Please contact us at info@tipofthespearventures.com.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: capital raise, entrepreneur, family office, fund, funding, sam palazzolo

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