Jason M. Lemkin’s Post

10% of startups don’t make it through their first year. 45% don’t survive beyond five years. 65% fail within the first decade. Every first-time founder feels the weight of these numbers—I certainly did. Yet here we are, 15 years later, celebrating our journey, growth, and resilience. What got us here is our deep commitment to our vision and a relentless focus on our customers and merchants. I want to take this moment to thank them, along with our investors, Team MobiKwik , our families, and friends who believed in us along the way. We’ve had our share of challenges over the last 15 years. There were moments of doubt and many tough decisions. But we learned, adapted, and grew stronger with every setback. Now, 15 years later, I can confidently say we’re fitter, stronger, and more determined than ever. And it’s still day one for us. The road ahead is long and full of promise. Today, we celebrate how far we’ve come. Tomorrow, we move forward, towards the future that awaits.

"Hey Jeff, I've been getting your secondaries deals from your newsletter and I had a quick question. Why would I buy up equity when the startup hasn't launched yet?" Great question! It's like getting in at the Founder or F&F level where as soon as the company launches, the value instantly increases as they'll be conducting business and or raising their first real round. So, let's say that you buy up some secondaries shares at par value of $1 per share. The company launches and does a new raise at $4 per share. Sure, you're going to get diluted on the issue of the new shares, but you value increases from say $1 to $2-3. It's just another way to get into early startups when you missed their early community and F&F rounds.

How much money is “good money” for most US based founders? In my opinion, founders need $5 million to feel secure. See, over the last 5 years of working with founders, I can tell you this: - Founders need to feel assured about their and their families well-being - They feel constant stress due to high growth requirements And if you kick it up to $15 million, they will forget the company and go on a vacation somewhere in Hawaii.(don’t ask me how I know this) 😀 More money, more problems? Not in the startup world. P.S. How much money would make you “happy”? :)

If you've ever listened to your partner talk about their job at a startup, you might have heard terms like "equity" and "stock options" thrown around. And if you're anything like me, your eyes might have glazed over as you tried to make sense of it all. But fear not! Understanding startup compensation, particularly equity and stock options, doesn't have to be rocket science. Read our new blog post to learn more. https://lnkd.in/gedfAqJE

I got off the phone yesterday an entrepreneur who spent 20 years building a SaaS product for a market SeeSnap is going after. He sold that company for 8 FIGURES. It's so refreshing to speak BEEN THERE DONE THAT, IN YOUR MARKET FOUNDERS. What's different, they understand The market The challenges The competitors The product and what it solves The hiring and team challenges that happen (early days) How hard and iterative PMF is How hard GTM is How hard getting to "sticky" users is They understand pre-seed vs seed, vs series A (or bootstrapping) They understand hardship. They understand why some people need to STOP 🛑 advising your startup. (we actually talked about how 2 investors cost him a much bigger exit) These meetings are like AIR for exited founders like me. I need them, I can't live without them, I need more of this daily.n

Raising funds and boosting sales are like the ultimate boss level for early startups. 🚀 Investors are all "show me the money" with that exponential sales growth 📈, but here's the catch-22: you need their cash to make it happen! 😤 Good news, folks—cold emailing can be your secret weapon, both for clinching sales AND wooing investors. 💼💌 So gear up, send those emails, and break that vicious cycle! #StartupStruggles #InvestorHunt

You don’t need to raise a boatload of money. Capital light is the new cool way to build a company, and we are backing them at Beckett Industries. We love founders who find ways to grow without chasing truckloads of funding. In the Midwest, you also don’t have $25M YC valuation markups that don't mean shit and hundreds of people knocking on your door to give you millions of dollars to start a tech company. You have real people trying to build real profitable companies. Many startup founders may hesitate to start (and grow) a company without much backing. But you can build an incredibly fast-growing company that does exceptionally well, has an actual business, and makes profits. It forces you to ask: "Does that advice really apply to us?" It’s not for everyone. It works for some, but not for all. Capital light is where it’s at. Just look at Zapier, who raised a single $1.3 million round — and that was the last set of checks they cashed from investors. Bootstrapping can lead to incredible success. Focus on building a strong, sustainable business.

Raising equity funding is the driving force behind every startup's growth. It provides the capital needed to expand operations, hire talent, and penetrate new markets. Although many entrepreneurs are excellent at running businesses, not many are good at scaling it at a global-scale. It's crucial to understand the fundamentals of the different funding stages to understand the startup economy and see how unicorns emerge. Here's a quick guide on the different funding stages by Spice Route Finance 👇

I spent a good time at Startup Day, where I heard over 40 startup pitches. It was hard to grasp what motivated some founders about specific problems – it really got me thinking about what drives us. A question raised by investor Aleksander Tõnnisson struck a chord with me. He asked: 'If you could, would you choose to solve the problem your startup is tackling today but walk away with nothing?' I added this question to my list of important things to ask founders and myself to understand our true motivations. It's like a reality check, separating those chasing financial success from those deeply invested in solving real issues. At the same event, Madis Lehtmets shared his journey, revealing he didn't feel a deep connection to the problem his venture aimed to solve. It was more of a creative challenge than a passion. His story is a reminder: if your heart's not in it, persevering for the long haul becomes much harder. Three days later, and I’m still processing all these thoughts about the pitches. Can't wait to share more with you all next week!