New Zealand, a country of 5 million people in the South Pacific, has witnessed a shifting tech startup landscape over the last couple of years. New Zealand has not had access to much venture capital in the past.
The New Zealand startup world has usually relied on funding from a community of high net worth individuals and family offices who made their millions through real estate or farming.
The New Zealand government launched a $300 million fund of funds program in March last year to fill the early-stage capital gap in the startup community. Foreign investors have been attracted to the small country that has a reputation for producing great companies. The increase in funding from multiple sources is a signal that technology might become the country's next big industry.
If the momentum that has led to more early-stage capital continues.
We spoke to the two founders of Rocket Lab and Cecilia Robinson of Au Pair Link, as well as the two investors, to find out what the top tips are for New. Here is what we learned.
Think big and back yourself.
Beck said that New Zealanders tend to have an introspective view and fail to think big and globally from the beginning. This is due to the fact that people who have achieved any measure of success are derided, cut down or sabotaged in a culture that suffers from tall poppy syndrome. Not many people want to be tall.
The card is the Kiwi. New Zealand is viewed favorably by the international community. The CEO of Icehouse is Robert Paul.
It takes a lot of work to build a company, according to Beck. Why do you waste your time building a company? Let's build a company. Go after the big problems.
Don't be too humble in order to tackle those big problems. Paul said that New Zealand punches above its weight and produces world-class entrepreneurs.
Paul said to back yourself and know you can win. There are many advantages to starting on a rock at the bottom of the world.
Don't get carried away with a big check.
Beck said that the least valuable thing an investor ever gives you is their money. Make sure you use investors to help you get to where you want to go in your business. People get so excited by the check that they don't really think about whether or not the person is strategic to them.
When Beck was building Rocket Lab, he was very specific about who he brought in, saying that the difference between investors was not their capital but who they could call. Beck said that by the time Rocket Lab got around to its Series D, Bessemer had already invested in a Series B. The real big checks come from the sovere wealth funds and they were in the company's E round.
Beck said that if you don't have the phone number and credibility to the funds, you won't be able to attract capital. It is all about setting up the company so that when you want to do a bigger round, you can go and tap that venture capitalist'sLPs and then you can end up in a fund that can write $100 There is a smooth path there, but when there is no path at all, and there are some better quality venture capital firms in New Zealand, the challenge is even more difficult.
