Michael Weaver, chief executive of Beer and Partners, says his organisation’s main problem is finding good businesses to back.
He argues that if a company has a good proposition, a credible management team and is well-presented then it will usually find funding.
Weaver told GB: “The hardest part of this business is getting good quality propositions to find investment for.
“If there’s a good idea and management has a sensible plan and a realistic valuation then the company is very likely to gain backing.”
“The rest is a bit of sex appeal, investors are human beings and an interesting idea does play a part.”
However, Weaver does concede that some businesses which require between £2.5-5m might find it harder to gain investment as they are above the usual investment levels for business angels, but below the threshold for venture capitalist involvement.
“The real equity gap is between £2.5-5m.
“The first £100,000 should be friends and family, we can find £100,000 to £2.5m and over £5m and you are looking at institutions.”
Beer and Partners helps about 60 growing businesses find funding each year by preparing them for investment and by introducing them to members of its angel network which includes around 1100 high-net worth individuals.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2007