In conjunction with our Q4 Venture Financing Report, John Clendenin sat down with Kate McAndrew of Baukunst to get her take on the state of venture capital investing.
Key insights from Kate McAndrew
On recent trends in early-stage financings: “[T]he fundamentals of investing and company building are coming back. For the most part, pre-seed rounds have reset to be in the $750,000 to $2.5 million range and priced in the $5 million to $12 million post-money range.
On growing a startup in the current economic climate: “[L]ean times make for lean teams – and that is an asset in the first years after company formation. It forces founders to determine who and what is essential. It makes for a focused, customer-obsessed culture. Those values will help you grow, scale and endure.”
On building relationships with founders and mentoring companies: “A big part of this work is personal. I try to get to know founders as whole people, not just CEOs or CTOs, and to build a real relationship with them. … And then, honesty is vital. … Ultimately, you need to be able to tell founders hard truths and be very honest about what is working and what is not.”