1Mby1M Virtual Accelerator Investor Forum: With Naganand Doraswamy, Managing Partner and Founder at Ideaspring Capital (Part 2)

Sramana Mitra: What is the check size that you like to write?

Naganand Doraswamy: When we started the first fund, we said anywhere around $500K to $750K. Then we would participate with another $500K in the following round. The target was about $1.25 million per company. The second is double the size.

We’re looking at $2.5 million total per company. The first check can be anywhere from $750,000 to $1.75 million. We realized that our companies needed a little bit more runway to show the traction necessary to raise the next round. $1.25 million is too small an amount to make some decisions in companies.

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Video FAQs

Thought Leaders in E-Commerce: HugePOD CEO Joe Zhou (Part 2)

Sramana Mitra: What about fabric?

Joe Zhou: We purchase from big fabric factories and we handle its stocking.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s say a designer wants to design something, they have to work within a catalog of fabric?

Joe Zhou: We have 40 kinds of fabric. They don’t need to select from the fabric. The fabric is connected to certain styles. We already have these prepared.

1Mby1M Virtual Accelerator Investor Forum: With Naganand Doraswamy, Managing Partner and Founder at Ideaspring Capital (Part 1)

Naganand Doraswamy, Managing Partner and Founder at Ideaspring Capital, adds to our thesis on great investment opportunities within the sub $100 million exit space.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start by having you introduce yourself as well as Ideaspring.

Naganand Doraswamy: I grew up in Bangalore. I did my undergrad there and then came to the US in 1999 to do my Masters in Virginia Tech. After my Master’s, I moved up to Boston. I joined FTP Software where I wrote the first implementation of IP security of Windows 95.

Best of Bootstrapping: Bootstrapped and Later Raised Money from Oregon

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page. 

PayRange Founder Paresh Patel did a superb job of validating in a bootstrapped mode and then raising significant venture capital. However, he made some mistakes after the fund raise. Eventually, he course-corrected and has built a wonderful business without further infusion of capital. Excellent case study!

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the very beginning of your journey. Where are you from? Where were you born, raised, and in what kind of background?

Paresh Patel: I was born in Vancouver, Canada. I grew up there and moved to the United States when I was about 10 to Portland. I spent the rest of my life since then in the Pacific Northwest.

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Thought Leaders in E-Commerce: HugePOD CEO Joe Zhou (Part 1)

Joe talks about a gap in designing, manufacturing, and drop-shipping small run fashion merchandise.
Excellent offering from a Chinese company to fill a big gap in SMB e-commerce.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the very beginning of your journey. Where are you from? Where were you born, raised, and in what kind of background?

Best of Bootstrapping: Solo Entrepreneur Bootstraps with a Paycheck to over $15M

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page. 

SoPost CEO Jonny Grubin started as a solo entrepreneur, bootstrapped with a paycheck, and has built a $15M+ revenue global business with a small amount of funding. Excellent story!

Sramana Mitra: Let’s go to the very beginning of your journey. Where are you from? Where were you born, raised, and in what kind of background?

Jonny Grubin: I was born in London but moved to Newcastle when I was three. My dad is American and my mom is from the UK. I grew up in Newcastle and started on my entrepreneurial journey at a pretty young age. When I was studying for my high school exams, I kicked off and ran a range of entrepreneurial ventures of my own.

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