Defining the Stages
The truth is, resources such as SBA loans, personal business loans, funding from family and friends, or credit cards, are not options for all enterprises…nor are they always the best ways to finance a growing business. In addition, just having funding doesn’t ensure success…it needs to be deployed to where it will deliver maximum return on investment.
Crescita Capital offers your company the best of both worlds; An easier way to secure capital than going through a bank, and the financial consulting services to make the funding most effective. Combined, they can help your business grow far faster and more competitively than it could through organic processes.
In basic terms, the types of funding that Crescita Capital funds include:
First Stage: Seed Funding
This is considered the first stage in true equity funding, most often provided by so-called angel investors. (“Pre-seed” funding is generally done by company insiders by whatever means they can.) As the analogy implies, this is funding that is intended to help nurture and grow the business—which is augmented by Crescita Capital’s financial consulting. Seed funding plays a critical role in getting a company from the conceptual stage into reality, and Crescita Capital can play a role in guiding your team on aspects such as market research and product research and development. Because of the particular risks of startup ventures, the investment funding is generally in exchange for an equity stake in the business.
While there’s no official definition, most capital raises in this stage will range from $10,000 to as much as $2 million.
Second Stage: Series A
Once a company has established consistent revenues and customers, and developed a solid business model, among other metrics, Series A funding and Crescita Capital’s financial consulting services may help further expand its growth into new products, different markets, or both. Of course, a great idea isn’t just good enough. Note that less than half of seed-funded enterprises go on to acquire funding at this level, which requires a strong strategy for monetization. Interestingly, securing an initial investor at the Series A level often sparks interest from other parties—a factor which Crescita Capital can help leverage to your advantage.
Like seed funding, there’s no hard-and-fast rule for Series A. Most often, we see these rounds raise between $2 million to $15 million.
