Lukasz Gadowski

💻 For all SaaS startups - this overview of 2,500 SaaS companies gives key findings. Founders, it's time to reflect. Steady growth, driven by a strong focus on client retention and expansion, might just be the new normal for the years ahead. Now, more than ever, it's crucial to prioritize and nurture your relationships 🤝with clients. More details👇🏼

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Pleased to share some insights into our latest fund SSV II 🛰 🌌 Following the same strategy as its original SpaceTech-focused venture fund, a top-performing fund for its vintage, SSV II aims to build a portfolio of c.30 companies. The Fund has already made nine investments. The 9 companies currently making up the SSV II portfolio are: 💫 Hubble Network – Internet of Things satellite constellation for connecting directly to billions of Bluetooth-enabled devices Delos Insurance Solutions – Space data-powered wildfire home insurance provider ATMOS Space Cargo – Space cargo return service for life sciences Auriga Space – Novel electromagnetic launch system Array Labs- 3D satellite imagery on a global scale Privateer Space - constellation of small SATs for in-Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Ubotica Technologies - Live Earth Intelligence (Space: AI) Renoster - Deep Transparency for nature-based carbon projects constellr - Space data-powered high-precision smart farming services Find out more👀 https://lnkd.in/eS_9w7c3

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20 years in VC. Going from CVC to VC. Here's the story of Rainer Märkle, General Partner at HV Capital. 1/ Engineering roots: His journey began in electrical engineering. Working on exciting projects like mobile and fiber communications. 2/ A twist of fate. By chance, he landed a role at a corporate VC arm of Siemens. Investing in the very tech I helped build. 3/ VC journey: That's where the VC journey began! He discovered a passion for nurturing innovation. So, he knew his mission was to help promising startups. What inspired your VC journey? Share your thoughts with us in the comments. #venturecapital #angelinvesting #startupfunding #europe

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Germany-based venture capital fund Robin Capital closed its Robin Fund One at 13 million euros (about $13.6 million). #venturecapital #veteranventures

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Contacting high net worth investors?  Here's 17 tips I learned from my outreach (you’re welcome 😉): 1. Passion Attracts: Investors are drawn to start-ups with a clear and compelling vision, an excellent founders’ story, and backed by genuine passion and dedication. 2. Customize Your Approach: Doing my homework both before and during the pitch meeting was crucial. Learn what investors care about – then show them how you fit that thing. Tailoring my approach to fit their investment preferences made a huge difference. 3. Quality Pitch Decks Matter: The quality of the pitch deck really makes a difference. People buy with their eyes and are convinced by content. Are you an amateur or a pro? 4. Tell a Story: Personalizing your outreach with a compelling narrative can make a significant difference. Both company story and founder(s) story are huge! 5. Follow-Up: Craft well-timed and relevant follow-ups. It’s your future, fight for it! Be relentless until you receive a yes or a no. 6. Be Authentic: Authentic content is a winner. Investors appreciate genuine and transparent communication. Not to mention they are human BS detectors! 7. Use Multiple Channels: In my experience emails get ignored far more than Linkedin messages. 💡 8. Concise Pitches: Investors are still unlikely to watch a 3-minute video pitch. Deliver key points concisely. 9. Highlight Your Team: It's not all about you; talk about your team and their expertise. Investors value a strong and dedicated team. Form an amazing STORY around them. 10. Personal Branding Matters: People do business with others they Know, Like, and Trust. 11. Focus on Your Business: The best businesses get the cash. Focus on your business. (Hard to do while fundraising!) 12. Show the Numbers: Investors want to see data and metrics that demonstrate your startup's potential. The better you know these, the more pro you appear. 13. A/B Testing is Critical: Experiment with both short and long messages to see what resonates best. 14. Leverage Personal Networks: Ask the wealthiest people you know for an intro to 5 people who may be interested in investing. When you reach out, ask those people for another 5. (See how that works?!) 15. Own Your Truth: Be confident and don't be afraid to share your journey. 16. Provide Value: Provide value to the reader. Don't just take; offer insights and knowledge. 17. Build Relationships: You can't hack relationship building. Meaningful connections take time and genuine effort. 🤔 What’s the most surprising thing you've learned from your investor outreach? 📢 Comment or DM me "funding" to hear more from me about raising money for your startup. I'm here to serve! ________________________________________ 🔁 Repost to your network if you enjoyed it and follow Travis James Mathers, for more about fundraising, entrepreneurship, high performance, and reaching your full potential. #business #entrepreneurship #fundraising

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Seraphim Space Ventures II (SSV II): Meet the companies 🛰 🌌 Following the same strategy as its original SpaceTech-focused venture fund, a top-performing fund for its vintage, SSV II aims to build a portfolio of c.30 companies. The Fund has already made nine investments aligned with some of our key themes via a warehouse portfolio. Hubble Network – Internet of Things satellite constellation for connecting directly to billions of Bluetooth-enabled devices Delos Insurance Solutions – Space data-powered wildfire home insurance provider ATMOS Space Cargo – Space cargo return service for life sciences Auriga Space – Novel electromagnetic launch system Array Labs - 3D satellite imagery on a global scale Privateer Space - constellation of small SATs for in-Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Ubotica Technologies - Live Earth Intelligence (Space: AI) Renoster - Deep Transparency for nature-based carbon projects constellr - Space data-powered high-precision smart farming services Take a look at our new page to find out more - https://lnkd.in/dau2tw2d

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🔥List of Seed & Series A US VCs🔥 US investors' average valuation in the seed phase is $15m, compared with European, which is $7,1m. This is a good opportunity for US companies and European-based startups with HQ or legal entity from the US. I would love to share lists of the active US seed & Series A VCs that are actively invested in companies with a presence in the US market. To get the database, please complete BOTH STEPS (Step 1 & Step 2) Step 1: Comment on the post below Step 2: Drop me a DM/Inmail (with a connection request if we're not synced up) saying "US VC" and I will send you a link to the database. Step 3: (Optional) ♻️ Found this helpful? ↳ Repost it so your network can benefit from it, too.

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Check out this week's top stories in the SpaceTech ecosystem below 👇

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✨ Seraphim Space Index Highlights: Taxonomy 🌌 🛰 Downlink: Historically, it has been one of the smaller investment segments. However, the current and previous quarters have seen multiple significant deals with $30m+ rounds (Armada, Second Front Systems, Skyloom Global and Skylo Technologies). As a result of these deals, the category has seen the most significant year-over-year growth in investment. Technologies related to communications and cybersecurity are key enablers for satellite communications, one of the largest markets addressed by space today. 🔭 Build: is seeing increasing investment. We attribute this to the growth in the space segment, creating a larger market opportunity for businesses providing the building blocks for the space economy in terms of satellites, payloads,  and software. This quarter saw Hadrian, which produces precision machined components, raise the second largest round at $117m. 🚀 Beyond Earth: No standout deals in Q1 24. The TTM period has seen significant activity in large rounds from Sierra Space, Axiom, True Anomaly and more. In H2 2023, this sector attracted the greatest investment as investors back the next generation of space infrastructure. The sector has shown significant growth compared to the previous TTM period. Read the full index here for more details - https://lnkd.in/e2vfgrk4

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Stuck in the SaaS Dead Zone? The longer you linger, the more company value you lose! In my experience, many SaaS companies are currently facing a tough reality: stagnating growth without a corresponding increase in profitability. This is the Dead Zone, and it’s a dangerous place to be. Lingering here too long can seriously erode your company’s value. Ideally, you want to reignite growth. But if that feels out of reach, you should focus on improving your bottom line asap. A highly profitable company — even without growth — holds significantly more value than one struggling on both fronts. Public SaaS data shows that highly profitable companies with no growth have a median ARR multiple that’s 78% higher than those in the Dead Zone. I can tell you that there will be similar valuation differences in the private market. You can read more about it in my latest saas.wtf newsletter! ✌️

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Rafael Laguna de la Vera, president of Germany's Federal Agency for Breakthrough Innovation (SPRIN-D), advocates for channeling capital-funded pension assets into research and development projects, as well as the growth of start-ups within Germany. He suggests that allocating a portion of these funds to an "innovation fund" could yield high returns, particularly in the technology sector, while also mitigating the migration of companies and innovators to financially stronger countries. Laguna de la Vera points to international examples, such as France's Tibi initiative, where institutional investors support tech companies, positioning France more favorably in this arena compared to Germany. He notes that Germany lacks a dedicated vehicle for investors to channel funds into technological innovations and start-ups, despite the potential for high profitability. He also references the UK's British Growth Partnership, which aims to attract pension fund investments into venture capital and innovative businesses, supported by government investment.

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The #German government’s decision to deny Lilium’s request for 100 million euros in aid marks a significant moment for the country’s innovation landscape. Bavaria’s conditional offer of 50 million euros, reliant on federal support, was also withdrawn. Co-founder Daniel Wiegand indicated that without this critical funding, Lilium may relocate its operations to #France, which has expressed interest in providing financial support. #Germany possesses tremendous talent and potential, but to fully capitalize on this, we must protect and foster our most valuable assets: #SMEs and #innovation. Was Lilium the perfect candidate for government support? Opinions are divided. What is clear, however, is that Germany has much to learn from #Israel, the ‘Startup Nation,’ and the #UAE, where the first $100,000 in profits are exempt from corporate tax. Entrepreneurship must be incentivized—otherwise, we risk following in the footsteps of neighboring countries, where a significant portion of the educated youth aspires to civil service roles. #Germany must make the necessary adjustments to become the “Grow-Up Nation” that #Europe needs, driving growth and innovation across the continent. At TACTICAL MANAGEMENT, we continue to believe in the future of #innovation in #Germany. One of our investment vehicles is focusing on developing security robots in the #BlackForest—a testament to our commitment to pioneering technologies. TACTICAL MANAGEMENT THE ABRAHAMIC BUSINESS CIRCLE ⭕️ Quarero Robotics Marcus Köhnlein Dr. Tillmann Lauk (LL.M.)

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Why do VCs push startups to raise funds so often? This question reveals the tension between growth and strategy... 𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘴 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦; 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘺 𝘴𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘵. Why does this matter? ↳ For startups, every funding round feels like a milestone. ↳ For VCs, it’s about showcasing portfolio performance. ↳ For LPs, it’s the TVPI ratio that makes or breaks their confidence. But these facts tell a more nuanced story... 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗼 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘅 ↳ Big exits rarely occur in the first few years. ↳ Failures come quickly; moderate successes take time. ↳ Rare big winners require years to mature. ↳ Funds often raise their next round during early performance stages. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗛𝘂𝗿𝗱𝗹𝗲 ↳ Startup valuations lack clear benchmarks. ↳ Only after third-party transactions are valuations updated. ↳ Early valuations may remain static despite growth. ↳ New funding rounds reflect actual progress. 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗩𝗖𝘀 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗥𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘀 ↳ Startups may not require additional capital, but VCs do. ↳ Higher valuations highlight portfolio growth. ↳ Fresh funding rounds attract more LPs for future funds. The real question for founders: Is raising capital worth the trade-offs? Factors like: ↳ Dilution, ↳ Growth expectations, ↳ Operational focus, ...are all on the line. While VCs push for rounds, founders must weigh profitability against valuation hype. Business leaders need this perspective to align growth with long-term sustainability in startups and investments. What would you prioritize? ↳ Hitting milestones to justify valuation jumps, or ↳ Profitability despite external pressures? #venturecapital #startupfunding #sustainablegrowth

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Tips & tricks for European VCs fundraising right now. From Rainer Märkle, General Partner at HV Capital. Have courage. Step up. Don't let yourself down on some negative. Pursue your goals. Don't just try to do the same things that others have already done. Do something different. Do your own thing. Find your niche. Find your theme. Find your segment. BUT. Don't be overly ambitious at first. It's a long-term game. Don't set the bar too high. Start with a very small fund. Invest the fund for a year or a year and a half. What do you think? Join the conversation below. 🔽 #venturecapital #angelinvesting #startupfunding #europe

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This is so true for most European VCs.

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Why Return on Effort Matters as a SaaS Acquisition Entrepreneur Metrics: - ARR/FTE: Measures revenue efficiency. EBITDA/FTE: Measures profit efficiency. Operating Leverage: - Impact from fixed costs. - Efficiency in scaling variable costs. Example: Our portfolio company outperforms $50M+ firms in ARR/FTE ($350k+ / FTE)... Optimize your SaaS firm's productivity with high-leverage strategies. DM for insights.

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We're excited to continue backing Silencio in its additional $2.5mn Seed raise led by Blockchange Ventures with continued support from MH Ventures alongside new strategic backers such as Blockchain Founders Fund, @Prosper GmbH, and Advanced Blockchain. This funding builds on the $1 million raised earlier this year. Silencio is the first fully on-chain DePIN project on peaq, leveraging its security, scalability, and interoperability to operate at a global scale. It is revolutionizing how environmental data is captured and distributed. This investment will accelerate Silencio's mission to build the world’s largest decentralized noise intelligence platform, providing actionable data for smarter cities, real estate, and public health by transforming smartphones into real-time noise sensors, delivering hyperlocal data for actionable insights. By combining decentralized infrastructure with hyperlocal data, Silencio is transforming industries and improving lives through strategic applications: 🏙️ Urban Planning: Empowering governments to design quieter, more livable cities with real-time noise data. 🏠Real Estate: Enabling buyers and renters to make informed housing decisions. ❤️Hospitality: Helping travelers find quieter accommodations, improving customer and business satisfaction. 📈 Public Policy: Supporting evidence-based policymaking to effectively address noise pollution. At the core of Silencio’s ecosystem lies the $SLC token, governed by the BlockSound Foundation. It serves as both a utility and incentive mechanism, rewarding data contributors and enabling enterprises to access premium analytics. The $SLC token is integrated as follows: 🎯Data Collection Incentives: Contributors earn $SLC by capturing noise measurements and contributing to Silencio’s decentralized infrastructure. 🔑Access to Advanced Features: Enterprises use $SLC to unlock real-time analytics, enterprise-grade APIs, and advanced mapping tools. 🔑Monthly Community Raffle: Active contributors are automatically entered into a monthly raffle for significant $SLC rewards, further incentivizing engagement. This tokenized model ensures long-term scalability and fosters a thriving, self-sustaining ecosystem. Silencio addresses the global challenge of noise pollution and embodies a vision to create the world’s largest community-powered data engine. Their mission is to decentralize data collection and ensure value flows directly to users by leveraging everyday devices. Using smartphones, they aim to crowdsource diverse data types with explicit user consent and full transparency, creating a system where users are both contributors and beneficiaries. More here: Medium: https://bit.ly/3ZRWZWt CryptoGlobe: https://bit.ly/3BRr2Wc

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𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐩𝐩 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐥? Shatter that wall with No-code x AI! The NoCode UK Conference speaker lineup is LIT 🔥 and you don't need a CS degree to join (or launch your next unicorn!). This is your chance to learn from the MVPs (pun intended) who are shipping million-dollar products with no-code! 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐃 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞: 👇 Key topics and themes of the talks include: - The landscape of no-code tools and solutions from internal business operations to web and mobile apps - Combining AI and no-code tools to build exceptional software products - Building, fundraising, scaling, valuing, and selling no-code software products - Insights from replacing a custom code stack with a no-code software stack - Best practices for designing apps with Bubble - Using ChatGPT to code an entire app - Lessons learned on building minimum viable products from 30+ hackathons - Insights from running a remote, no-code product agency - The future of no-code and AI 𝐈𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮? 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 & 𝐄𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐬: Go from idea to product in WEEKS, not months. Hear how 👾 Chad Sakonchick built a multi-million dollar empire on no-code, and Milly Barker who built and sold a SaaS app...all from an airport lounge, seriously wow! ✈️ 𝐕𝐂𝐬 & 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 Your portfolio companies need a superpower? ‍♀️ No-code compresses your path to building, launching, and achieving massive outcomes. Since speed / time to market are your determinants of success, The efficiency is unmatched: Ship > Validate PMF > Pivot or Go Big > Exit. Take notes from Hazel Lim, the ex-investor, no-code whisperer who finds killer business ideas and exits them like a boss. (ps: generously shares such juicy biz ideas, breakdowns in her newsletter) 𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐬 & 𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬:  Go from no-code newbie to six-figure earner with insights and learnings from the industry trailblazers like Youssef Elkhayami & Mike Wiendels and the top 1% freelancers like Dominic Norton. 𝐒𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 & 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡: Lawyer by day, no-code superhero by night? See how Vensy Krishna built an award-winning COVID relief app in HOURS (no coding skills required!) and scaled a volunteer network to help thousands. Built a career in tech, founded multiple companies, and helped thousands to break into tech using no-code! Plus, you'll join a global no-code fam! This conference is by no-coders, for no-coders. Level the playing field, unlock endless possibilities, and ship anything you dream of - all without a single line of code. See you there! P.S. Spots are filling up faster than a one-click no-code deployment! Don't miss your chance to be part of the no-code gang. Link in the comments! #NoCode #AI #Entrepreneurship #Conference

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Three biggest learnings from a fundraising journey. Shared by Rainer Märkle, General Partner at HV Capital at EUVC 1/ Have a time box with a deadline attached. Have a defined horizon & create a clear plan. Have some urgency to get things done at some point. Execute very transparently and reliably. 2/ Stick to your narrative. But don't do it blindly. Tweak it when necessary. Adapt it. Don't let yourself be surprised by major changes. Keep focusing on delivering according to your strategy & plan. 3/ Fundraising is a marathon with many sprints. There are moments when you'll ask yourself - Why do I do this? Is it gonna work out? But don't get too negative during the down phases. Adapting and pivoting is part of our job. As it is for the founder of a company. How about you? What fundraising lessons have you learned? Join the conversation. 🔽 #venturecapital #angelinvesting #startupfunding #europe

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