Venture Capital Flowing -- But Harder to Get

At the recent Texas Equity Capital Conference in Austin, the consensus was that the funding is still available, but that the VCs want to see more progress before doing a deal. I love this quote from former Microsoft exec Mike Maples:

"The definition of entrepreneur changed in the early '90s. They used to be heavy risk takers who lived on credit cards or a shoestring and made great sacrifices. In the late '90s, an entrepreneur made $150,000 a year, drove a company car and had a pretty office with marble and glass and a fancy desk. I'm not interested in taking money out of my pocket and letting you drive a BMW. I'm interested in new technology."

There was also sentiment that the VCs are in disarray. Maples also said that fifty percent of VCs who are here today won't be here in three years. Angel investors are sitting it out, too.

The message for entrepreneurs? Solve a problem that no one else has solved, tighten your belts, and deliver a product to customers before going out for funding. VCs are funding growth for proven concepts, not speculating on undeveloped ideas.

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