Looking for some cash? Inc.com spotlights 16 angel investors, groups, and firms, sharing information on who they are, what companies they've invested in, and what they're looking for in their next investment.
California
Band of Angels
Menlo Park
www.bandangels.com
Founded 1994
Members: 110
Total amount invested: $110 million
Number of companies funded: 151
Who got money: Vapore
The oldest of the Silicon Valley groups is comprised of founders and former senior officers of high tech firms--the group is almost exclusively interested in tech firms in the Bay area. A recent investment is Vapore, which has a new means of vaporizing liquids that could be used in air purification, drug delivery, and fuel cells. Band of Angels members and the Band of Angels Venture Fund, run by managing director Ian Sobieski, led a $2 million seed round in March of last year, together contributing $500,000. While the Band does accept unsolicited submissions via its Web site, it prefers that entrepreneurs have some connection to a member. The staff sees about 50 qualified plans a month, which get whittled down to six firms that present to a pre-screening committee. The committee selects three of those to do 20-minute presentations at monthly meetings; generally one of those will get funding.
The Angels' Forum
Palo Alto
www.angelsforum.com
(Read the full profile in the July 2005 issue of Inc. magazine.)
Tech Coast Angels
Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Santa Barbara/Westlake
www.techcoastangels.com
Founded 1997
Members: 250
Total amount invested: $55 million
Number of companies funded: 85
Who got money: CaseStack
The four networks of this group all operate in the same way: A small group of members looks at all applications, which are submitted via an online template. The best three or four are selected to present at screening meetings, which happen every three weeks, and individual members schedule meetings with firms from then on to complete deals. Last year Tech Coast Angels added the Seraphim Fund, which puts additional money into any deals that have at least $350,000 from 10 members or more, and where a member has a board seat. CaseStack, which received $457,000 from 20 members in December 2002, combines transportation, warehousing and software to consolidate shipments from small suppliers to major retailers such as Wal-Mart. The following July the firm received a VC-led B round of $3.6 million. The group encourages those it has turned down to try again once they've corrected the issues raised.
New England
CommonAngels
Lexington, Massachusetts
www.commonangels.com
(Read the full profile in the July 2005 issue of Inc. magazine)
Angel Healthcare Investors
Newton, Massachusetts
www.hcangels.com
Founded 1999
Members: 45
Total amount invested: $13 million
Number of companies funded: 29
Who got money: TyRx Pharma
This group's ability to leverage its deals is impressive: Companies it has invested in have received a total of $500 million, mostly from VCs in later rounds. Some deals have involved biotechs who need lots of money, but director Geoff Maletta says medical device firms are attractive, because they often just need a few million, which can lead to a pretty swift exit with a modest but probable return of two or three times the investment. In 2002 and 2004, 23 members invested about $500,000 in TyRx Pharma, which is developing and commercializing a technology for coating medical devices such as stents with biodegradable polymers that can slowly and safely secrete drugs into patients' systems. TyRx plans to sell devices with the coating in place -- these types of "combination" products are hot in the medical device industry now. No exit yet, but TyRx has received more than $2 million from other sources and has a partnership with Boston Scientific.
New York
New York Angels
www.newyorkangels.com
(Read the full profile in the July 2005 issue of Inc. magazine)
Silicon Alley Venture Partners
www.savp.com
(Read the full profile in the July 2005 issue of Inc. magazine)
Mid-Atlantic
Robin Hood Ventures
Wayne, Pennsylvania
www.robinhoodventures.com
Founded 1999
Members: 27
Total amount invested: Over $8 million
Number of companies funded: 14
Who got money: Intellifit
Rob Weber and George Marks co-founded this group. It was George's idea to name it after Rob, real name Robin, who hated the name at first. Any type of business in the Philadelphia area is fair game. Applicants are asked to review all of the members' biographies on the Web site, and identify which member's experience best matches their business. Those that make the executive director's initial cut will try to get that member to sponsor their company. If the member is interested, he'll conduct the initial due diligence, and pitch the company to the entire group. Should a deal get done, the sponsoring member typically will get a seat on the board. The group has put about a million dollars in several rounds into Intellifit, which has developed a 3-D means of taking accurate measurements of people while fully clothed; the system can then suggest specific brands, styles, and sizes that will best compliment the clothes shopper.
