NACO World Angel Investment Summit

September 26, 2018

By: Dennis Ensing

The NACO World Angel Investment Summit officially got started this morning with a keynote address from Peter Cowley who wrote: “Becoming an Invested Investor” – four decades of elation and heartache.

Peter has made over 60 investments, many of which are still active and growing. He shared stories and the lessons he’s learned through his decades of experience as an entrepreneur, an active Angel, and a member of the most active Angel group in the UK.

He shared several tips so that we might benefit from his experiences. We have summarized some of his key takeaways:

Here are several qualities to watch for:

• Back teams, not technology or markets.
• Entrepreneurs teams must include 2 or 3 individuals
• Be truthful and listen to the Angels advising them
• Be prepared to walk through walls or find a hidden door when faced with a road block

General Angel Tips:

• Invest early and add value beyond your financing
• Be prepared to allocate 2 to 3 times your initial investment over time
• It’s a numbers game – it may take 5, 25, 45, 90+ investments before you are able to generate high returns from your portfolio
• 75% of failed investments are the result of equity drying up before the break-even or exit event
• Choose your co-investors with care
• Form an investment strategy, refine it and stick to it.
• Enjoy the many journeys you join.

After a day of NACO Academy workshops, we joined an excellent welcome reception at Casa Loma.

If you’re in the city, Elevate Tech Fest is also being held nearby. Elevate, which has over 10,000 registered attendees, is a citywide tech and innovation festival centered in North America’s fastest growing tech ecosystem! Check it out, if you can or stay tuned for updates from our attending members.