What makes Hummingbird Ventures different from other venture capital firms?

Venture capital firms, more often than not, are more about Capital and less about Venture. This stems from the fact that they typically manage large pools of capital. In a typical firm, that means either they have lots of small investments to oversee, leaving them little time for personal attention, or they will only make a handful of large investments, which means that they have no interest in promising but smaller companies.
Enter Hummingbird Ventures! We focus specifically on early-stage, high-growth companies. We provide the funding, expertise and connections needed for companies to accelerate the early stages of development.

How does Hummingbird Ventures compare to business angels?

In general, Hummingbird Ventures and business angels are complementary. Often, business angels are successful business people who provide capital and share their expertise. Because business angels usually stay out of the spotlight and invest relatively small amounts, their importance is probably undervalued compared to venture capital firms. Unfortunately, there are not more than a handful of business angels throughout Europe who can offer a complete package for innovative startups. The right combination is: time, enthusiasm, expertise, deep pockets, professional organization, and connections to a network of key players in the technical and financial sectors in Silicon Valley and worldwide. This unique combination is exactly what Hummingbird offers.

I have an exciting business idea and I want to find out if Hummingbird Ventures is interested? What is the next step?

Briefly describe your project and yourself in clear and concise language and email this to info@hummingbird-ventures.com. If we think your idea is interesting, we will contact you to set up a meeting. If we're really excited about your business and there seems to be the right chemistry between all the people involved, we will perform due diligence and discuss the proposal with our Investment Committee. Finally, we will work with you to properly define expectations, for both sides, and arrange the appropriate legal framework to get everything going.

What is a typical Hummingbird Ventures’ investment?

We invest both human and capital resources. Hummingbird initially invests € 500,000 to €2,000,000 in early-stage capital in addition to providing hands-on assistance to help fill the gaps in your funding, expertise and connections.

How does Hummingbird Ventures handle confidentiality, non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), and conflicts of interest?

We intend to stay a trusted party in the startup community. From the very start, all email, verbal discussions, and other information we receive from you is treated as confidential. Sometimes we are asked to sign an NDA. We do not sign NDAs because this would limit our business opportunities and expose us to unnecessary legal issues. We receive so many business plans each year that taking the time and resources to review NDAs simply isn't productive. In the case of a conflict of interest (e.g. you send us a business idea that has some overlap with an existing or imminent investment) we will disclose this to you while respecting confidentiality.
If and when initial discussions and preliminary investigations result in a Letter of Intent / Interest or Term Sheet then they will include confidentiality clauses. As part of the due diligence process that starts after having signed these documents, we will expect to learn about your “secret sauce” and you should be protected for that.

What to expect in a first meeting?

OK, you’ve secured a face to face meeting with a VC. What to expect and what to do?
While it is wise to prepare and screen the VC’s website, it is still ok for you to ask the VC to present himself and his fund. Never assume that the VC has read or still remembers your plan in detail prior to the meeting. Always be prepared to start from scratch or ask the VC what he wants to cover. We personally love demos so if you have something to show then show it. Keep your slide show to fewer than 25 slides and make sure to cover your market space, product, competition, sales and marketing strategy, executive team and projected burn rate.
Please also stick to the allotted time. This will typically be one hour. Don’t spend a quarter of your allotted time to debate one single topic. Make sure you cover all the salient points and that you reserve enough time at the end of the meeting to solicit feedback and discuss next steps, if any.

Taking/Seeking no for an answer

A VC typically invests in less than three deals out of a hundred that he sees. So don’t be offended if your incredible startup receives a no. While you may get a clear ‘thanks but no thanks’ over the phone, in an email or at the end of a meeting, it is your job to solicit feedback from the VC until you get closure.
If and when the situation dramatically changes, e.g. when you can prove sufficient traction, send the VC an email explaining what successes you’ve had and why he should reconsider. Don’t be overly enthusiastic - this will typically not happen within the first nine months after the refusal to pursue.