Fall is nearly upon us. And for founders, that means venture capital investors are returning from vacations and (thankfully, it looks like finally) the Burning Man festival. But even with VCs back at work, some investors believe founders should buckle up for a rather arduous fall fundraising season.
Raising capital in prior years has been “very much a sprint,” Sarah Kunst, managing director at early-stage firm Cleo Capital, which focuses on pre-seed and seed companies, told me. By contrast, “Right now, we are 1,000% in marathon territory.” She points out that founders need to understand the bar is higher for prospective investments, and it’s a trickier time to fundraise. But, Kunst hopes founders won’t lose faith: “Don't be discouraged by that. It's just sort of where we're at right now.”
