Golden Seeds New York

Investor Training 301 & 401 - May 4, 2011

2011-04-13T15:18:00.000-07:00

Raise the level of your investment experience! This is training for angel investors interested in more active, leadership roles -- in deals and with investor companies.

Instructors: Peggy Wallace, Vanessa Wilson and Jo Ann Corkran. This team of Golden Seeds Managing Directors brings a wealth of highly successful, financial industry and angel investing experience. They will lead two practical, hands-on sessions, combining instruction with case-study workshop exercises:

Angel Investing 301: Leading A Deal 10:00 AM-12:00 PM
• Successfully managing the deal process
• Staffing an effective deal team
• The due diligence playbook
• Executing final deal terms/deal memo
• Closing the deal
• Hard copy of Due Diligence Playbook provided ($40 print value)

LUNCH (included with registration): 12:00 – 1:00 PM

Angel Investing 401: Boards and Exits 1:00 - 4:00 PM
• Board membership in early stage companies
• Board roles, responsibilities and processes
• Advisory Boards
• Preparing for Exits
• Private company exits and valuation

Where: Golden Seeds Offices, 6th Fl
750 Lexington Ave (59th St), NYC

Cost: Members - $175/Session or $300 Day
Non-members $225 /Session or $400 Day

Register online: http://www.goldenseeds.com/investors/registration.
Questions: Mirella Cicio at mrc@goldenseeds.com

New Training Session: Effective Board Membership, September 30th

2010-08-22T13:23:00.000-07:00

Effective Board Membership 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM
This course provides important information that all potential board members should know, ranging from fiduciary duties to best practices for effective board membership. Material covered includes understanding board member roles and responsibilities, and an overview of Sarbanes-Oxley implications for private companies. Attendees will gain an understanding on issues that specifically arise on the boards of early stage companies and how to handle such issues, with outlines of best practices and processes.

You may register online at http://www.goldenseeds.com/investors/registration.

The Agile Board

2010-06-08T06:13:00.000-07:00

This is a great article, well worth reading by entrepreneurs and investors alike: The Agile Board

2010-05-26T05:04:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in attending the following training session, please register at www.GoldenSeeds.com/investors/registration/

New York
Wednesday September 28th

8.45am to 1pm
Angel Investing 101
This half day introductory course enables a new or prospective investor to understand how to think about angel investing as an asset class, how the investment process works, and then how to put a deal together, including valuing a company, completing due diligence, structuring a deal, essential elements in a term sheet, and closing the deal. Exercises throughout the series provide practical learning experience based on actual examples.

1.30pm - 5.30pm
Angel Investing 201
This half day course enables an investor who has had some exposure to angel investing improve their decision-making and deal skills through a more critical analysis of the market opportunity, a more detailed review of the term sheet, and a more in depth understanding of the capital structure of early stage companies. Exercises throughout the series provide practical learning experience based on actual examples.

2010 SmartStart UNYTECH Venture Forum

2010-05-07T08:51:00.001-07:00

Center for Economic Growth
2010 SmartStart UNYTECH Venture Forum
THE LARGEST VENTURE FORUM HELD IN UPSTATE NY

May 17-18, 2010 | Syracuse, NY
www.smartstartvf.com

Seeking New York State Entrepreneurs
Venture ready companies and early stage university start-ups are encouraged to participate and have the opportunity to exhibit and present their business plan to the investment community May 17 through 18 in Syracuse, NY.
Now in its tenth year, SmartStart UNYTECH has to date highlighted 220 high-quality companies from throughout the state and beyond to the VC community, and their success speaks the quality of deal flow we select. Of these companies, 62 have raised over $390 M in equity financing, including over $71 M directly attributable to their participation in the forum.
Presenting companies will have the opportunity to pitch their business plans to a diverse cross section of the investment community, spanning venture capital funds, seed investment funds, angel groups and other public and private investors. Application materials are available at www.smartstartvf.com, and the deadline to apply is March 19, 2010.
Marketing Opportunities
This is one of the premier technology venture forums in New York state. Both promising start-up and emerging growth companies will be presented for investment opportunities. Come network and get exposure to the best deal flow that New York state has to offer.
Who attends?
• Venture capitalists interested in quality deal flow
• Angel investors interested in quality company investment opportunities
• Corporate venture groups interested in exposure to potential strategic start-ups
• Service providers serving the venture community
To find out more information about sponsoring this event, please click here or contact Elena D'Agnese at 518-465-8975 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 518-465-8975 end_of_the_skype_highlighting, ext 228.
Presented by:
Center for Economic Growth

VC Trends Event

2010-05-07T08:47:00.000-07:00

for investors:

12th VC Trends Event
NYC on May 19th.

There's a breakfast panel during the session (filled with networking) running from 8:30-12:00 on Wednesday, May 19, 2010.

The breakfast event is 250+ people, limited to C-level execs from angel, VC or PE backed companies, investors (we had more than 80 VCs and PE funds last year from all over), some corp dev folks from large players in the space and a few i-bankers in our space. The event is invitation only, no advertising and no cost to attendees. We generally have 4 or 5 panelists and only do one panel.
The confirm from last year appears below. Stay tuned for this year's panelists -- we have some great ones lined up.
If interested reply to tgevents@lowenstein.com. Happy to discuss.
Thanks
Ed Zimmerman

Second Annual Columbia Venture Showcase

2010-05-07T08:45:00.001-07:00

Murray B. Low, PhD
Director of The Eugene Lang Entrepreneurship Center

&

David Lerner
Director of Venture Lab at Columbia Technology Ventures (CTV)

cordially invite you to attend the

Second Annual Columbia Venture Showcase
Featuring select ventures launched by
Columbia Business School and Columbia Technology Ventures

Tuesday, May 18th
5:30-7:30PM
The offices of Reitler, Kailas & Rosenblatt LLC
885 Third Avenue, 20th Floor
New York, NY 10022

RSVP:

Please contact Laura Lee, Administrative Director
The Eugene Lang Entrepreneurship Center, Columbia Business School
lh2139@columbia.edu | 212-854-1686

Book signing - Survive to Thrive

2009-12-01T12:34:00.000-08:00

Phil Geier will be signing his new book at the Four Seasons Restaurant on Monday December 7th from 5pm to 8pm. Golden Seeds members are welcome.

New York Angel Investor Forum

2009-10-04T14:47:00.000-07:00

The New York Forum will be held on Thursday October 8th at 11am
750 Lexington Ave (at 59th)
8th floor

BY INVITATION ONLY

Entrepreneurs should submit an application (see Entrepreneur tab on our website). Investors should send an email to our Investor Liaison, at mrc@goldenseeds.com

September Forum

2009-08-27T13:10:00.001-07:00

The September Forum will be held on Thursday September 10th at the offices of Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge at 11am. 750 Lexington Ave.

The Pre Forum training session will be held at 10am. The topic is EXITS.

BY INVITATION ONLY

Investors should contact Mirella Cicio mrc@goldenseeds.com
Entrepreneurs should contact Michelle Young msy@goldenseeds.com

Members Only - Winter Walk

2009-01-28T19:58:00.000-08:00

Friday afternoon Feb 6th 2009

Would you like a wild and windy walk by the sea in the dead of winter?
For hardy souls only!

Leave from Grand Central on the 3.10pm train to Old Greenwich, CT. You will be met at the station and driven to Greenwich Point, where you will enjoy a brisk 40 minute walk by the sea. Back at Old Greenwich station, you can choose to catch a train back to the city at 5.39pm or stay for a drink and/or dinner at MacKenzie's which is right by the station. Trains back into the city leave every half hour. Dress warmly. The trail is both on and off road, and might be icy. Hats, gloves, gaiters and boots are recommended.

Pre-forum Training Session: Investing in the Consumer Goods Sector

2009-01-28T19:44:00.000-08:00

The February pre-forum training session in NY is called: "Investing in the Consumer Goods Sector"

It is on Thursday Feb 12^th at 10am

By invitation only

Pre-Forum Training Session October 16th

2008-10-11T09:03:00.000-07:00

A guest from Digitas will discuss the new media business model at 10am prior to our monthly Forum.

Pre-Forum training session on June 12th

2008-05-27T14:16:00.000-07:00

The training session on June 12th at 10am is titled Researching a Public Company. The purpose of this training session is to support members who might be interviewing for public company board positions, as well as those researching public companies for investments. The training will be led by Vanessa Wilson, former ranked Wall St equity research analyst, and supported by Peggy Wallace, former Wall St veteran.

Pre-Forum training session on May 15th

2008-05-13T09:59:00.001-07:00

The training session at 10am on May 15th will be on investing in the consumer goods space, and will be led by Andrew Whitman of 2X Consumer Products, the VC fund with whom we invested in gDiapers.

Golden Seeds mentioned in Venture Wire report

2008-04-28T08:58:00.000-07:00

Angel Investors Watch Over Women Entrepreneurs

By Ty McMahan

Rhonda Kallman is known for opening doors for women to a business dominated by men.

As co-founder of Boston Beer Co., she helped build the manufacturer of Samuel Adams into one of the largest craft brewers in the U.S., while also making a commitment to recruiting and promoting women through the years. The Institute for Brewing Studies once awarded her with the title "Pioneering Woman in the Beer Business"

So when she struggled to raise capital for her next beer venture, New Century Brewing Co., it seemed fitting that she turned to an investment group devoted to making an impact in an industry largely controlled by men. Golden Seeds, which invests only in women-led companies, provided Kallman with seed financing in 2006 to get the start-up off the ground.

The firm is part of a grassroots effort by angel groups and other investor organizations to exploit the lack of venture capital devoted to companies run by women, who historically have run into obstacles raising money. Their hope is that they will realize strong returns on investment, creating a chain reaction of successful business owners who in turn will enter the investment game.

"We want entrepreneurs to come in and see women investors in the room," Golden Seeds Managing Director Stephanie Hanbury-Brown said. "Our main objective now is to have more women investors because that will have a trickle-down effect. There are a lot of smart businesswomen out there."

According to the Center of Women's Business Research, as of 2006, there were an estimated 7.7 million majority women-owned companies, accounting for 29.7% of all businesses in the U.S. Those companies generate $1.1 trillion in annual sales and employ 7.2 million people nationwide. Yet a separate study conducted by venture capital industry tracker VentureSource showed that only 4.3% of venture-backed companies are led by women, down from 7.5% in 2002.

Women-led angel groups are trying to improve that statistic. There are now nine such groups in the U.S. - including a group that started last month in Kansas City called Women's Capital Connection - and about 15 with significant female membership, according to the Angel Capital Association. These groups are spreading considerable amounts of capital throughout a diverse range of sectors - from consumer goods to life sciences - and women entrepreneurs are finding a new place to turn when raising funding.

The Seeds To Success
In Kallman's case, New Century needed to raise funding in order to hire workers for the brewery and a sales team to help ramp up distribution. While she struggled to find investors that were willing to take a chance on a beer business, Kallman found what she was looking for with Golden Seeds. She received funding and valuable business advice and was able to start shipping two brews - Edison, which claims to have reinvented light beer, and Moonshot, a premium beer that contains 69 milligrams of natural caffeine. The beers can now be found on tap at Hillstone Restaurant Group Inc.'s restaurant chain Houston's and in Whole Foods Market Inc. stores.

"There are advantages [to working with women angels]," Kallman said. "The sisterhood thing is give or take. I'm perfectly good without that. The thing about women, particularly those who would be involved in a group like Golden Seeds, is they are mavens, they are trendsetters. They are dedicated to helping women entrepreneurs succeed."

Golden Seeds, founded in 2004, has so far invested in 17 companies, from consumer-focused ventures like gDiapers, maker of the world's first flushable baby diaper, to more technology-heavy start-ups like eJamming Inc., a software platform for musicians to collaborate online.

While Golden Seeds only invests in women-led companies, it's open to including men on the investment team - but it caps the percentage of men on the team at 15%. "That's because only 15% of the managing directors at investment banks are women," Hanbury-Brown said. "We figured we would increase our numbers when they increase theirs."

Golden Seeds now has about 80 members and chapters in New York, Philadelphia and Boston. The group has experienced one exit, but Hanbury-Brown declined to provide further details. "It was a good outcome," she said. "I thought we wouldn't have an exit for five years, so this is good."

According to Marianne Hudson, executive director of the Angel Capital Association, relatively few women have taken a high-growth start-up through the exit process and then become "cashed-out" entrepreneurs. Those are the people most inclined to be active and consistent angel investors.

The Female Surge
Women-led angel groups started popping up in the late 1990s when the dot-com era was at its peak. Today, some of the most active groups include Golden Seeds, Phenomenelle Angels, Texas Women Venture Fund, Sophia Angel Fund, Women's Investment Network and Women Angels LLC.

According to a 2007 survey by the Angel Capital Association, these groups typically average seven deals a year worth about $1.8 million. Dollars invested per round average about $240,000, or about $31,000 per angel. According to the survey, 72% have co-invested with a venture capital firm.

The survey also showed that investment by women-led groups is up 23% since 2005.

Besides the angel groups, there are other organizations working to connect women entrepreneurs with capital, such as Astia. Its programs are designed to accelerate funding and growth of early-stage, women-led companies. The organization connects companies with an advisory network made up of venture capitalists and executives that helps them prepare for challenges experienced by start-ups of all stages.

MixerCast Inc. and Scout Labs Inc. are two promising women-led start-ups that presented at Astia's 6th Annual Venture Conference in October. MixerCast, a start-up led by Chief Executive Jennifer Cooper that distributes widgets for marketers and publishers, has raised $6 million in Series B funding from Intel Capital, Onset Ventures and Velocity Interactive Group. Scout Labs, led by CEO Jennifer Zeszut, raised an undisclosed round of funding for software that monitors what is being said about a company across the Web.

The start-ups join the more than 57 women-led companies that have presented at the conference and raised capital or been acquired since 2003. Over the past four years, Astia's venture conference companies have raised $263 million and the conference has had a greater than 50% success rate of companies receiving funding.

Several Astia clients have seen exits, including AgentArts Inc., a provider of personalization and recommendation technology that was acquired last July by Fast Search & Transfer ASA, a Norwegian provider of search technologies, for an undisclosed amount, and drug maker Abmaxis Inc., which was acquired in 2006 for $80 million.

The success of groups like Astia illustrates that women have found ways around the boys-club environment of private equity investing. It's still too early, though, to know what type of success these groups, and angel investment firms like Golden Seeds, will achieve or if the groundwork they have laid for other women will inspire more activity.

But Vosmek said a new generation of businesswomen may finally create a strong ecosystem of female investors and entrepreneurs. "The young generation is choosing entrepreneurship right out of school," Vosmek said. "We're seeing a great number of women as part of founding teams."

Don't forget - May Forum is on the 15th

2008-04-24T12:56:00.000-07:00

The May Forum will be held on 15th because several members include our New York Forum Leaders will be attending the Angel Capital Association Annual Summit in San Diego May 7th - 9th.

Pre-Forum training session on May 15th

2008-04-24T12:54:00.000-07:00

The training session at 10am on May 15th will be on investing in the consumer goods space, and will be led by Andrew Whitman of 2X Consumer Products, the VC fund with whom we invested in gDiapers.

Exit Party

2008-04-08T13:04:00.001-07:00

For members only - to celebrate our successful first exit

5pm Tuesday May 13th at
South Sea Treasures
45 Rockefeller Center
630 Fifth Avenue Suite 1902
New York, NY

by invitation only

pre-Forum training session on April 10th

2008-03-16T14:24:00.000-07:00

The training session for April 10th has been changed to:
A deep dive into D&O and other insurance for early stage companies
Our speaker is Lou Ann Layton of Marsh & McLennan.

New York Angel Investor Forum

2008-02-01T12:09:00.000-08:00

Golden Seeds holds an Angel Investor Forum every month in New York at the offices of Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge. These meetings are invitation only. If you are interested in attending, please send an email to info@goldenseeds.com