Today we welcome back Jude Colangelo, Founder and President of Eat the Bear, to the podcast.  As we learned last week from Jude, Eat the Bear has grown from a desire to fill his own protein needs to a company now shipped across the country.  Last week we heard a lot of the story around Eat the Bear and how it’s grown.

This week I wanted to explore what Jude learned about being a startup raising money in Charlotte.

  • How did Jude make the decision to leave his day job and jump full force into growing Eat the Bear?
  • What’s is like being a startup raising ‘risk capital’ in Charlotte?
  • What was the response from “Eat the Bear” when they pitched high net worth investors in Charlotte?
  • How long did it take Jude to raise his $1 million in funding last year and how long did it take him to realize Charlotte wasn’t going to be where he raised his capital?
  • When will Jude have to raise money again and does he think any of the investors he spoke with last year will come on board for his Series B?
  • What does Jude think it will take to increase the amount of ‘risk capital’ available for Charlotte entrepreneurs from within Charlotte?
  • Does Jude expect to sell this in 2 years or does he expect to take it public and run it for years?

Good perspective from Jude.  I thought it would be great to dive into his thoughts about raising money and really let him voice the entrepreneur side of raising money in Charlotte.  We will circle back around soon and get some feedback from investors about their side of turning down the investment opportunity for some of the local startups.

In the meantime, next week we will open the first of two podcasts with the founder of two companies from Class 8 from the QC Fintech Accelerator Program, Credpal and Invoira.

William Bissett is an Investment Advisor Representative with Secrest Blakey & Associates, a Registered Investment Adviser.  Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Secrest Blakey & Associates. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener. 
Secrest Blakey & Associates does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance. 
Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under the Securities Act, and a Qualified Purchaser as defined in Section 2(a)(51)(A) under the Company Act or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests.  Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

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