Calgary Startups Invited to Get Investor-Ready at AcceleratorYYC’s Upcoming Bootcamp

April 7, 2014

So you’re an entrepreneur. You started off with a business idea—you found a niche and figured out a way to fill it and started up your company. You may have put your own money into the business, and along the way were aided by family, friends as well as loans.

At this point your business may have some possibilities for growth, past the point of what your current financial means will allow, and you’re looking at your options, which can sometimes be daunting, as startups often do not have an established credit history or collateral to pursue debt financing, according to Industry Canada.

What’s the next step for bringing investors in? Angel investors are becoming more active in Canada. According to NACO, angels made 139 investments in Canada in 2012, up 50% from the previous year. But where do you start?

One such resource is BaseCamp, an exclusive investment boot camp for early stage startups, offered by VA Angels CEO R Stewart (Randy) Thompson. Randy, himself an angel investor and entrepreneur, leads founders through putting together a great pitch for investors.

Over the course of a few days at BaseCamp, founders can:

Hone their business plans and talk directly with investors about what they are looking for;

Craft their pitch according to key investor pitch criteria identified at BaseCamp;

Create an effective deal structure and set themselves apart from other businesses in the eyes of potential investors;

Connect with other entrepreneurs in different stages in their startups and learn from each other;

Practice their pitch at the BaseCamp reception, where they will present their investor pitch deck to a panel of judges, as well as other VA Angels and investor mentors in the startup community;