Would you like to pitch at our next Dorset Business Angels (DBA), Investors’ Dinner?

Here is what you need to do

Our next event is 10^th February, and the deadline to apply to pitch is the 3^rd of January. What we need if you are interested in pitching is the following:

1. Ideally a One Page Summary– see our Entrepreneur Resources website page for a template.
2. Your Business Plan– again see the Entrepreneur Resources website page – which normally includes financials i.e. cashflows, P&L and Balance Sheet.
3. And include item 3 which is as per the key points covered in the Pitching Checklist

These are essential points that investors want to know about any investment they may consider. Your accountant, lawyer, Finance Director or other professional advisers may help you to produce this information. If you have a PowerPoint Presentation or a similar presentation, then so much the better.

All this will enable our screening team to understand immediately if there is or is not potential. Peter Eales one of our founder directors and General Manager forwards this information to Frank Guinn our Vice Chairman to review. Frank will contact you to say if we would like to short-list your pitch for the Investors Dinner Event, or if we have more questions.

Your Pitching Checklist for Presenting to Angel Investors

Here is your pitching checklist for presenting to Angel Investors. There are 8 key items that should be included in any pitch. At Dorset Business Angels we list these on our website Entrepreneur Resources page for all companies who approach us interested in presenting to us. Here is the list:

1. Explain what your product or service is and what problem or opportunity it addresses
   and / or solves?
2. Itemise any IP associated with the product/service and confirm that the Company is the owner?
3. Who is your target customer?
4. Who are your competitors and what is it that makes your product, or service, unique, or different to theirs?
5. What stage is your business at, are you pre-revenue, already trading, or if not, when will you be so?
6. How many of the current Shareholders / Directors have actually invested their own money into the business and how much is that and what shareholding do they own?
7. What is your “Pre–money” valuation of the business and how did you arrive at this figure?
8. Explain exactly what the offer is to the potential Angel Investor, what % of the business do they get for their cash and also, what is the proposed Exit value and therefore the multiple of their investment that they could achieve?

Invitation to Pitch

To receive an invitation to pitch to our members means you will have had your Business Plan and the detailed financial forecasts approved by our Screening Committee. Your forecasts will have satisfactorily explained how any funding raised by DBA will be used to scale up the business and in addition, you will have supplied us with an indication of the funding required, the pre-money valuation of your Company and the equity you are prepared to offer our members in return for their investment.

Should you accept our invitation to pitch, you will then have  approximately 4 weeks to prepare your presentation slides and send them to us, so that we can incorporate them onto our system prior to your arrival.  At your allotted time, you will have 10 minutes to describe your product or service, after which there will be a 10 minute Q&A session.

You will then be asked to leave the room whilst the members discuss your proposal. Members who are keen to learn more will then express an interest and become involved in the due-diligence process. A ‘lead’ investor appointed from the group will contact you a few days later to arrange the first meeting, which usually takes place at the Company’s premises.

First Steps

The deadline for plans is the 3^rd January (we like to get them about 5-6 weeks before events) in this case the event is 10^th February. The DBA Directors will then choose 5 businesses to pitch on February 10^th and tell the successful candidates 9^th January. Good luck if you have already submitted a plan and please let us have yours if you have not.

Our contact details:
E-mail: contact@dorsetbusinessangels.co.uk

Phone: 01305 247202
If you have any questions, speak to Peter Eales, Director, via the above contact links