😮 The latest Beauhurst report on UK equity investment
TL;dr - the startup fundraising market is pretty much down across the board.
For me, at early stage, this makes it a ripe time to be lean and focus on revenue/profit (vs growth at any cost). And for founders to focus on raising from angels when they’ve got a recipe that makes sense to add more capital to.
Check out the IfWeRaise courses listed at the end of the email if you want some extra help pursuing this very strategy 🚀
Report highlights
Investment activity declined during the quarter, with £2.76b invested into the UK’s private companies, across 518 rounds
Deal volume and amount raised decreased at every stage of evolution, alongside a significant drop in first-time fundraisings
Around one in two deals went to companies headquartered in London, accounting for 57% of all pounds deployed
Crowdfunding fared better than other investment types, with deal volume dropping just 7%, compared to 32% for venture capital and private equity funds
Register with Beauhurst to download the full report here
Tomorrow: members-only Ask Me Anything w/Andy Ayim
This Friday (1st September) Andy Ayim MBE will be our Ask Me Anything special guest. His remarkable range of experience includes founder, angel, VC and scale up operator - invaluable perspectives for early stage founders.
These monthly AMA sessions give our members 'money can’t buy’ access to top tier experts - for members to bring their challenges and get a fresh perspective.
But these sessions are not only about tactics. They are about inspiration to keep going and keep pushing. Because starting a business is hard. You can read all the startup theory books you want - do read them, they are valuable.
But at some point it becomes about your personal motivation to keep going on this journey of creating a business from nothing. The motivation to do that will come from having the right people around you, not from reading more theory. It’s a rollercoaster ride that takes a marathon mindset.
That’s why Hattie Willis (she/her) and I designed IfWeRaise as a blend of two things. 50% teaching proven growth skills and 50% a platform of experts and peers.
Between us on accelerator programmes we’ve taught hundreds of founders the practical techniques that help them move their business forward. And we’ve seen the benefit of having access to the right network of advisors and experts.
Which brings me back to Andy and this Friday. Andy has been that expert advisor to IfWeRaise from day one (thank you). I'm really pleased to give our members access to that same expertise.
Courses, membership and Friday discount
Want to join Andy’s Ask Me Anything session? You can sign up for IfWeRaise membership now, it costs only £25 per month.
We also have online courses starting later in September:
10% off the courses with the discount code WEEKEND if you book by Sunday.
Take care
Hattie and Tim