Laurence Hayward Managing DirectorMichael C Gruber ChairmanAchint Prabhat General Manager
Cornerstone Angels - Ideal Startup Investment
Cornerstone is focused on seed and Series A investments in high growth ventures which are capital efficient. We are located in Chicago area and are focused on investments in the greater Midwest; however, we will invest nationally for the right opportunities. We are willing to invest alongside of other angels, angel groups, and VCs in syndicates.
Key General Criteria include: * Use of funds focused on sales and marketing execution, not R&D * Product or service needs to be developed, with preference for customer validation either through usage or sales * Strong management team in place, with good mix of domain expertise and early venture experience * Funding round generally larger than $500K and less than $3 million * Pre-money valuation generally less than $5 million
Investment Process:
* Application: A company first must apply through submission of the online application on Gust. Please note that there is a $50 fee for the application. The Application Fee is a non-refundable processing fee and is retained by Cornerstone Angels whether or not a company is selected to present at future screening or investment meetings. We are sensitive to any fees to entrepreneurs as the core of our activities is focused on finding high quality investments. The application fee is a low-cost way for entrepreneurs and our group to interact and help control the quality of submissions. As always, we encourage entrepreneurs to network into our members and other trusted partners to help in getting your business into our review process.
* Pre-Screening: Upon favorable response, a company may be asked to provide additional details. At this point, the company should have provided an executive summary, business plan or investor powerpoint presentation, and summary financials.
* Deal Screening: An in-person screening event will take place with the Company providing a 10 minute presentation and having 10 minutes in Q&A in front of a panel of screeners composed of investors and industry veterans.
* Diligence: A select group of companies will be selected for further review and investigation
* Investment Meeting: 2-3 companies will be invited to present to the Investment Meeting in front of investors. These meetings will typically be held every two months. Each company will make a 15 minute presentation, with up to 20 minutes reserved for Q&A. We also ask the company based on the value received during its involvement with the group, and any funding success that may be achieved, to consider providing the Cornerstone Angels group with an appropriate level of compensation, in cash or equity at the Company's discretion.
Cornerstone Angels Invests In These Industries
• Business Products and Services
• Industrial/Energy
• Clean Technology
• Internet / Web Services
• Consumer Products and Services
• IT Services
• Financial Services
• Media and Entertainment
• Food / Drink
• Mobile
• Gaming
• Software
Cornerstone Angels Invests In Companies That Have Reached The Following Milestones
Prototype Ready - $3M in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue
Concept OnlyProduct In DevelopmentPrototype ReadyFull Product Ready$500K in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue$1M in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue$3M in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue$5M in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue$10M in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue$20M in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue$50M in Trailing 12 Mo. RevenueMore than $50M in Trailing 12 Mo. RevenueMore than $50M in Trailing 12 Mo. Revenue ►◄ Concept Only
Cornerstone Angels Invests In Companies With These Funding Needs
Pre-money Valuation: USD0 - USD5,000,000
Capital Seeking: USD500,000 - USD3,000,000
Previously Raised: USD100,000 - USD1,500,000
Cornerstone Angels Expects Their Investments To Generate
Expected Revenue By Year 5: USD20,000,000 - USD150,000,000