This blog post by Bill Burnham has generated a ton of buzz today, but it’s worth (briefly) chipping in about how the trend is playing out in the Seattle market. The quick summary of Bill’s point is this: “there is plenty of investment capital available for Consumer Internet companies that have demonstrated significant market traction continue…
We just announced that my friend and Founders’ Co-op business partner Andy Sack will be leading up a Seattle version of the awesome TechStars startup camp program next year. In a slight departure from the program structure in Boulder and Boston (where funding was provided primarily by angel investors), TechStars Seattle is being supported by continue…
We just closed a new investment at Founders’ Co-op, and it’s an unusual one for us in several ways. For starters, it’s the first time we’ve invested alongside much larger venture capital firms – Seattle’s Ignition Partners and Madrona Venture Group led the round. In addition, the company – Appature – is much later-stage than continue…
Andrew Chen, a Seattle native (more or less) who pulled up stakes for the Bay Area a few years ago, has a thought-provoking post up today on why he chose to move. His thesis is that Seattle is culturally focused on retail + SEO (e.g, Amazon, Expedia), while the Bay Area is more oriented to continue…
My recent conversations with several of our portfolio companies have reminded me of a Zen maxim that goes something like this… Before Enlightenment: chop wood, carry water. After Enlightenment: chop wood, carry water. At Founders Co-op we focus on ideas that come out of the gate fast – they typically ship product, engage customers and continue…
Today we’re proud to announce a new member of the Founders Co-op family: Nearlyweds! In business since 2007, Nearlyweds! provides personal wedding websites for design-conscious couples. In a market littered with generic free offerings, Nearlyweds! has built a great premium business by focusing on the user experience, partnering with top invitation designers in the industry continue…
I’m sitting in the Denver airport heading home (if the air travel gods allow it) from TechStars Boulder Demo Day 2009. I’ve been a fan of the organization since it started, not least because Brad Feld (a Judy’s Book investor and board member) is a prime mover behind the project. But this was my first continue…
A few months back a friend here in Seattle asked if I’d like to help out with a new non-profit idea he’d been cooking up. My friend – Digvijay Chauhan – had worked in the U.S. for years, first at Microsoft and later as co-founder and CTO of AskMe. But he was born and raised continue…
Just a quick update for those of you following our investment in Frugal Mechanic: Eric and Tim don’t make much noise but they’re quietly dominating the world of auto parts price comparison. That may not sound like a big market, but DIY auto parts is actually a $19B market in the U.S. alone, and none continue…
Last week Founders Co-op added a new company to our portfolio: Frugal Mechanic. This deal won’t surprise anyone who’s familiar with our investment thesis: It’s a niche offering (vertical search + price comparison in the $40B DIY auto parts market), With a smart distribution insight (white label parts search for auto enthusiast sites, of which continue…