Part 1 - The investor landscape in Germany
Accelerator incubator company-builder, business angels, venture capitalists - who is now looking for an investor has so many venues than ever before. At the same time it can be difficult for this flood to find the right partner or investor. Reason enough for start-up scene in order to even take a differentiated view of the start-up funding environment and present some of the most famous start-supporters.
Many new investors and incubators in Germany
Those who diligently pursued the entrepreneurial scene news in recent months, it has probably already noticed: there has never been so many ups from incubators in Germany as at present. For founders arising from increasingly extensive and fine tuned to different needs ways, firstly to get to an investor, but also for other assistance in team building, to get the ideas and networking.
In 2002 the World Bank has even set up an international network of incubators to life, to grab startups in developing countries under the arms. No longer just in publicly funded business incubators, but also increasingly from private hands while held consulting and coaching, to office space and related infrastructure or extensive services and service packages are used.
Differences between the U.S. and Europe
Looking at the incubator environment on both sides of the Atlantic, it quickly becomes clear that the dominant forms have long since adapted to the respective attitudes: while in the U.S. with a Y-Combinator (Scribd, Dropbox, Reddit, Airbnb, Disqus, Posterous) Techstars and the most successful startup based funding in many cases there Accelerator approaches, especially in the establishment stronghold Berlin before the model of company-builder, led by the now infamous company of the Samwer brothers - Rocket Internet.
In other words, in the United States more attention is paid to a quick launch for innovative ideas to fail the risk is significantly higher, but are also released to a larger market with more pronounced internet affinity. In Europe, however, stands tend to be more long-term strategic focus, including on established models with proof of concept will fall back. Innovative Approaches in Accelerator-risk-taking U.S. version emphasized Company-builder mentality in engineering native Germany.
Terms are not defined clearly
When we talk in the media of the different forms of start-up investments, the terms used are also usually not clearly distinguished from each other, which makes choosing the right investor continues. Often the programs are different in terms of the provided services and resources. For the founder of particular interest would be there, how much of the incubator, business angels, venture capitalist or fund is called part of the company in return for the start-up promotion.
A simple matrix for the classification of investors
In general it can present itself in a relatively simple (albeit somewhat simplified) matrix, which type of investor / sponsor for which company comes into question. Three components are critical: the commitment of the investor, the size of the financing and the date on which the capital is needed, because it usually can derive the associated risk.
Generally applies: The later in the growth process, the company is, the higher the required funds, so another form of financing is attractive. Above all, investors pay at later time points, higher ratings, because the risk of establishment by the insights and experience has already been reduced.
It increases with increasing levels of funding are often also the intensity of support in terms of commitment, expertise and network from. In other words: A VC is usually less often "to be comitted" as a business angel, so derive a financing comittment graphics can be.
Which investor for what time?
According to such considerations should also be chosen, the investor, which can be roughly distinguished these categories:
Persons investors: business angels
Incubators: Accelerator and Company Builders
Venture Capital: institutional and corporate-linked venture capitalists, investment funds, public funds or funds
While business angels are a startup can focus intensely, they have generally not have the financial resources needed in an A round-or later-stage financing. The other way VCs and funds are indeed financially strong, but usually have so many companies in their portfolio that they can not be present in each of them.
As a happy medium is to understand incubators, which map the accelerator model of the previous phase and the company-builder model is more experienced founders, whose founders are likely to be slightly less risky. Not least, a distinction must also be in the strategy: While business angels often limited to the national development and organic growth, is in incubators and VCs usually focus on international expansion.
In the other parts of this series defines the start-up scene and different varieties of coarse presents a selection of company-builders, accelerators, as well as VCs and Founders Fund.
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