Problem / Solution
Here's the Problem
Should you and your business suffer because of it?
80% of VC-funded Companies Fail
As an average, 80% of VC-funded companies fail to reach the mountain-top (acquisition, IPO, or other liquidity event.)
Weak Founders are the Problem
It's not the product, the market or the competition that determines your success. These things change. The problem is that weak founders can't manage the pivots that such inevitable change requires.
Our Stress-Testing Finds the Strongest Founders
We want to find out if you and your team have what it takes to maneuver through the major challenges and pivots ahead and then make it all the way to a liquidity event with a great valuation.
The Goal: 80% of our Companies Win
Background: The VC Model is Broken
Each Winner Must Pay for Four Losers
So Every Investment Must be a Unicorn
So Every Investment Must be a Unicorn
In typical VC funds, only one out of five (20%) of funded companies win
So Every Investment Must be a Unicorn
So Every Investment Must be a Unicorn
So Every Investment Must be a Unicorn
Typical VC funds seek unicorns with every investment, leaving a lot of great companies behind. They have to do this because otherwise, there's not enough profit to pay for the four losers
The Unicorn Strategy Creates Losers
The Unicorn Strategy Creates Losers
The Unicorn Strategy Creates Losers
Inflated egos, unrealistic expectations, bad planning, poor execution, lack of trust between team members, and gaps in the team: all of this leads to running out of money before reaching a liquidity event
This Means They Need More Unicorns
The Unicorn Strategy Creates Losers
The Unicorn Strategy Creates Losers
To cover the cost of all of the expected losers, the typical VC fund needs more unicorns, thus creating more losers. It's a vicious circle. How do we and you escape this trap?
Stress-testing Finds the Strongest, Unstoppable Founders
And Avoids Weak Founders
Is it worth finding out just how unstoppable you are?
Stress-testing Quadruples Success Rate
In Shepherd Ventures II, this strategy was only partially developed, yet 67% of funded companies reached a liquidity event. We intend to do even better in Fund III. Don't you want the comfort of knowing you're highly likely to finish well?
You do not have to Pay for a lot of Losers
Even if the portfolio returns were the same, we prefer knowing most of our companies win. Like you, we want to make a difference while sleeping well at night. As founders what else could you ask for?
Result: a Risk-reduced Portfolio with Trusted Returns
The good news is, by finding the strongest founders, portfolio returns can be trusted and the risk of ruin reduced. Everyone wins.
The Goal: Everyone Wins
Three Tests Find the Strongest Founders
And Avoid the Weakest Founders
Is it worth finding out just how strong you are as a team?
Startup Funding Lab (Story Pitching)
Humans are wired to remember stories. Together we create the stories that go with your pitch ("Story Pitching") to generate virality, excitement and trust, while also making your pitch bullet-proof.
Sherpa-funding your Current Seed Round
Like climber and sherpa, we work together to ensure your current seed (or bridge) round is funded at the right valuation using a mix of our investor leads and your own. This solves two problems: 1) we learn everything we need to know about your team under stress so we can recommend you, and 2) you get the funding you need now.
Enhancing Valuation
Rather than using "due diligence" to reduce your company valuation, we use it to ENHANCE your valuation. We do this by uncovering and correcting how your business could run out of money. You retain control and minimize dilution. This is a win-win solution that helps both of us.
The Goal: Your Team Becomes even Stronger
Our Criteria for Investing
It's all about the Founders
Is it worth finding out if there's a fit?
Two or More Co-founders (or Equivalent)
We avoid one-person bands. We seek two or more working executives each with significant ownership in the company who know and trust each other (without a romantic relationship.)
Cognitive Diversity
We seek an executive team where there is a clear diversity of thinking methods, risk tolerance, and leadership styles, while sharing common values and goals for the company. This leads to a team that can deal with difficult decisions and major pivots.
Respect and Trust
The executive team must enjoy mutual respect and trust, as well as common values and company goals, to minimize destructive conflict and to ensure long-term viability
The Goal: Your Team has What it Takes to Win
Leading your Scaling Round
Finding a Lead is Hard
Our Commitment Helps Now
Finding a Lead is Hard
Most VCs want to follow, not lead, because leading is FAR more difficult. There's a lot of due diligence to complete and then we have to recruit the syndicate at a desirable valuation. Finally, we have to manage the relationship with your company and assist with the ultimate liquidity event. So finding a committed lead is like pushing a boulder up a hill.
We Commit to Lead
Our Commitment Helps Now
Finding a Lead is Hard
Once we have determined that you are highly likely to survive through pivots and stressful times, we are in an ideal position to set a high valuation and convince syndicate partners that you're a company worth supporting. For this reason, we led most deals in Shepherd Ventures II and will commit to lead your scaling round with Shepherd Ventures III.
Our Commitment Helps Now
Our Commitment Helps Now
Our Commitment Helps Now
Once we commit to lead your next scaling round, you can inform investors now that you already have a lead for the next round. This puts you in a strong even enviable position when raising your current round.
Our Mission
To reduce the risk of early-stage investing, we extensively stress-test founders. This avoids weak teams BEFORE investing! We invest in AI, Life Science & Fin Tech. Investments must have trusted AND driven founders. The company must have a WOW! value proposition and extraordinary upside potential.