The outbreak of the Corona Virus has affected the entire world and created complex conditions for the activities of various industries. This has changed the economic and commercial outlook of businesses and subsequently changed the process of investing in them. In this regard, Fast Company online magazine has examined the predictions of market participants and investors about the trends in the process of attracting capital for startups in the coming months.
Probable growth of survivors
Sequoia Capital, a partner of Sequoia Capital, a 17-year-old investment company, has a stake in major companies such as YouTube. "Since the beginning of March, we have made about 15 new investments in companies, and we seem to have been active despite the quarantine period," he said. We are looking for stable investments. For example, startups like Instacart make grocery shopping a comfortable and enjoyable experience. However, some other startups, especially some startups active in the field of entertainment, do not have a very clear and effective performance during this period. However, if we conclude that a start-up has a forward-looking and forward-looking performance, we will naturally invest in it. We try to encourage some of the lower-end companies in our portfolio to grow faster. At the moment, they have a lot of growth opportunities that we help them find. The startup ecosystem is expected to become more competitive in the coming year. Those who are able to survive this situation are likely to experience significant growth. The economic crisis does not necessarily guarantee the failure of all companies. In the 2008 economic crisis, many smartphones and cloud infrastructure were introduced, and many companies were able to grow independently of the crisis. However, some technology companies have not been able to recover from the crisis of 2000 to two or three years later.
The need to keep up with the changes
Insight Partners, the internal director of Insight Partners, which has invested in many companies in the growth phase, owns companies such as 1stdibs, Calm and Nextdoor. "During this time, we have tried to tell our subsidiaries that they are in a position to make more efficient decisions if they make the right decisions," he told Fast Company. What is being done in the context of the quarantine crisis is very similar. In some cases, these activities may be more profound in nature, but they will be almost in the same direction. I think we need to identify the market demand these days so that we can meet the needs of the people and the market trend. Last month, we invested $ 72 million in an active startup in the Imperfect Foods grocery store. We track the activities of companies and startups online, even look at their warehouses online, and then decide on the investment. However, I don't think this year will be a thriving year for the startup ecosystem. "Things have changed and we need to be able to keep up with that."
Focus on people's needs
Kristen Green, co-founder and co-founder of Forerunner Ventures, has made significant investments in various companies and startups since its inception in 2010. She is also one of the founders of All Raise, which provides counseling and guidance services to women in technology. He believes that these days the situation is very unstable and this instability often causes a sense of fear among the people. "This feeling can affect your job, your financial situation, your children, and most importantly, your health," says Green. You may also have older parents, in which case you will experience more stress.
If you look at past crises, you can see that they have all been involved in financial, health, or war crises. The current crisis, however, seems to contain all of this, and in that sense it could be historic. Such a crisis requires more calm and cooperation. As your world gets a little smaller, you will have more opportunity to focus. I think this opportunity will help people better identify their priorities and make better decisions. Although the investment process was slow at first, it has gradually accelerated.
Regardless of some businesses that are not able to operate in the current situation, most businesses have found new opportunities to operate in this critical situation. I anticipate and hope that we will move forward and, by leaving these days behind, recognize the importance of sustainable development and stability more than ever before. I think it's best to focus on the needs and demands of consumers so that more people can come along these days.
Accurate and fast decision making
Christine Tsai left Google in 2010 to be one of the founders of 500 Startups. As the company's CEO, he was able to make it one of the world's most important and influential actors in the early stages of start-up investment. "It's definitely hard to be optimistic these days, because there's a little bit of control over the situation and we have to try to make a decision faster," he said. We have invested about 2,400 companies worldwide over the past 10 years. We have tried to focus not only on technology startups, but also on innovation around the world. At the same time, we must be able to face the existing fears and make the right decisions against them in order to finally overcome this crisis. Many startups have only experienced this crisis for a week, and many others have been struggling with it for months.