Bowery Capital

The Founding Five series continues, spotlighting the early hiring experiences of Valentina Ratner, Co-Founder & CEO of AllSpice. "When we raised capital in early 2022, the hiring plan was developed during a period of 'grow, grow, grow.' However, as market conditions shifted, we significantly adjusted our strategy to focus on extending runway." Valentina highlights the need to adapt hiring strategies in response to changing macroeconomic conditions. Her approach showcases adaptability and a willingness to learn new skills—key traits for navigating the challenges of building a startup. Read more here!

As founders finalize plans for 2025, they’re keeping a close eye on what’s changing — and what’s not — in the generative AI era. High Alpha’s 2024 SaaS Benchmarks report captures insights from 800+ SaaS companies, revealing which companies are growing fastest and why. Download the report and build a data-driven strategy for 2025: https://lnkd.in/e6k8MKHh

One of the top reasons startups struggle to raise their Series A is failing to meet revenue milestones. At Bowery Capital, the focus is clear: early success comes down to driving revenue and customer growth. To support this, their Acceleration Team offers a suite of tools and resources tailored to help startups scale effectively. Ellen LoBiondo, Director of Growth at Bowery Capital, works hands-on with founders to sharpen their strategies and achieve sustainable growth. Here are her 4 essential tips for early-stage founders aiming to hit their revenue goals: 𝟏. 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚 𝐆𝐨-𝐭𝐨-𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 Document your processes early—define your ideal customer, outline your sales steps, and iterate. This becomes invaluable when scaling your team. 𝟐. 𝐅𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝟏𝟎 𝐂𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬 Be selective about your early customers. They shape your story and set the tone for future growth. Focus on meaningful connections, not volume. 𝟑. 𝐔𝐬𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 Invest in a CRM and research tools like Clay or Ocean to streamline your efforts. Avoid overloading with tools that impersonate your voice—authenticity matters. 𝟒. 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 Build a diverse advisory network that complements your team and helps generate leads. Structured agreements can lead to focused outcomes. 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲: Slow down to speed up. Thoughtful planning today sets the stage for faster, smarter scaling tomorrow. Share your revenue growth tips in the comments.

As a prior SDR and SDR Manager, I've been thinking a lot about the future of the role and wrote some of my thoughts out. Would love to hear from other folks on how they are thinking through AI and the future of the SDR role. One idea i've been mulling over is specializing the role, think "Special Agent" research SDRs paired with a "Relationship Rep" outbound SDR. You can read more about it below but would love to hear what other folks are talking about!

Next week, Lynx Collective is hosting a dinner for B2B founders actively fundraising! Join us for an evening of insight and connection with Patrick McGovern of Bowery Capital and investment team members from Forum Ventures and Next Wave NYC. We only have 15 spots available, don’t miss the chance to connect with top investors and like-minded founders to accelerate your fundraising journey. Request your invite now! https://lnkd.in/eZX3WiAZ Thanks to Justin Wolz, Drew Parten and the team at Rho for supporting this event!

The beginnings are always fun! Congrats Aykut G. InfraStack AI

We are talking a lot about the future of the SDR role and where we go from here now that AI is in play. Gautam Rishi and the team at OneShot.ai have a clear vision on how they are building to enhance the role vs. replace. "Many AI solutions in the market promise to handle everything from outreach to scheduling, often creating unrealistic expectations. These platforms can give the impression that users can sit back while meetings automatically fill their calendars. However, we recognize that sales development, particularly SDR (Sales Development Representative) work, is a challenging process that requires more than just automation." Check out the next installment of Toolbox Trends with Oneshot.ai https://lnkd.in/dS2bXQNP

AI has turned the acronym SaaS on its head and is giving rise to a new wave of ‘Services as Software’ businesses. Startups are increasingly offering AI-native, vertical software that focuses on selling discrete outputs rather than simply offering better workflows. Recent examples include companies focused on responding to RFPs, fulfilling prior authorization requests, estimating construction costs, composing legal documents, and more. This shift presents new business model opportunities and will expand the spend software can capture as it bleeds into budgets earmarked for FTEs and consultants. We are excited to meet founders setting out on the AI services path - if you fit that description, don't hesitate to reach out.

NEW INVESTMENT: Taking the cover off Singulate. Check out our post announcing the investment. Kudos to Dave Schools John O'Gara & Nicolas Klein! https://lnkd.in/eAJywTvu

Who are the first five critical hires for a pre/seed-stage startup? We're exploring founder insights and foundational hiring strategies in our new blog series, The Founding Five. "Our biggest lesson early on was realizing that founders need to be the ones selling first—not a professional sales team. Hiring sales pros too early would’ve been costly. Instead, focusing on a strong founder-led sales process saved us both time and money." Check out our first installment with David Lynch, CEO of Klir