Show Zero
Venture Declassified is here to provide you with practical insights, expert advice, and a deeper understanding of the investment landscape for first-time investors.
Hosted by a team of seasoned investors and financial experts, this podcast is tailor-made for newcomers who are eager to learn about the fundamentals of investing and want to make informed decisions. We understand that starting your investment journey can be intimidating, but our goal is to demystify the process and equip you with the knowledge and tools needed to succeed.
Welcome to the show, episode zero, where we are going to tell you a little bit about why the three of us are sitting here together talking about venture investing. We appreciate you guys listening in. We’ve got our first episode coming up soon and look forward to carrying on the conversation.
Meet the Hosts:
Jacob Schpok
Jacob Schpok, a partner at Elevate Ventures, highlights the unique aspects of their venture capital firm. Elevate Ventures has a diverse portfolio of over 500 companies and has had over 130 successful exits. They currently manage over $200 million in assets under management (AUM). Elevate Ventures is highly active in the Great Lakes region and has been recognized as the most active VC firm since 2017. They invest in companies at various stages, starting from pre-seed to early-stage, including A and B rounds. They are willing to invest up to $4 million in a single company, with no single round exceeding $2 million.
Ben Pidgeon
Ben Pidgeon, an Executive Director at Vision Tech, highlights his experience in the investment space. Founded in 2006, Vision Tech is an investment firm that is geographically agnostic, meaning they invest in deals across various locations in the United States, from Seattle to San Francisco, New York or Philadelphia, to Indiana. They have a high deal flow with approximately 400 deals per year. Vision Tech primarily targets B2B SaaS, hard tech, and life science opportunities. Roughly half are conducted within the state of Indiana, while the other half is outside the state. This emphasis on both local and broader investments allows Vision Tech to leverage opportunities from various regions and sectors.
Mike Kelly
Mike Kelly, a partner at Start Something Ventures, shares his experience in the investment space. SSV is an angel investor group that focused on pre-seed to seed stage companies focus on tech or tech-enabled services. Occassionally (but not often) they go off script and also invest in everything from whiskey to real estate. Mike's the newest investor of the three, so he's the one normally asking the questions and listening to Jacob's and Ben's answers.
Hear more interviews and stories like this one at www.VentureDeclassified.com
The information provided on the show is not intended to be investment advice and should not be relied upon as such. The investors on today’s episode are providing their opinions based on their own assessment of the businesses or topics presented. Those opinions should not be considered professional investment advice. If they start up pitched as a part of this episode, it is for informational purposes only and is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell, subscribe for or buy any securities.