Mark Hasebroock, Founding Partner Dundee Venture Capital #smartmoneysv

I interviewed Mark Hasebroock, Founding Partner Dundee Venture Capital from Omaha, Nebraska @Techcrunch DISRUPT.  He spoke about founding his firm in Dundee 2 years ago.  The Omaha ecosystem is very small & Mark had founded 2 startups.  They focus on Boulder to Omaha & the deal flow is amazing so that they filled their first fund very quickly.  They are 2/3 way through their 2nd fund $15m & have invested in about 20 companies overall. His domain focus is ecommerce & web service companies which is where his operating experience comes from.  The cost to start a business has decreased significantly & the time to start a business has been crunched down. You can start a business anywhere & the cost of living & work ethic is a little bit different in the MidWest – they are insulated somewhat.  Dundee can get these companies going & get traction & then show to higher level funds.  He spoke about the changes in the venture capital industry.  He thinks crowdfunding is great & he wishes he could have accessed it when he had startups.  In the MidWest there is generally a heads down, we’re creating businesses that generate revenue that hopefully very quickly will be cash flow positive. There are a few angels in the area who now have a vehicle for getting businesses off the ground, bringing capital together instead of having it in silos.

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