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Sale of LumaTherm, Inc.

Gerbsman Partners (http://gerbsmanpartners.com) has been retained by LumaTherm, Inc. (http://www.myzeno.com/about-lumatherm/ ) to solicit interest for the acquisition of all, or substantially all of, LumaTherm assets (the “LumaTherm Assets”).

IMPORTANT LEGAL NOTICE:

The information in this memorandum does not constitute the whole or any part of an offer or a contract.

The information contained in this memorandum relating to the LumaTherm’s Assets has been supplied by LumaTherm. It has not been independently investigated or verified by Gerbsman Partners or their respective agents.

Potential purchasers should not rely on any information contained in this memorandum or provided by Gerbsman Partners (or their respective staff, agents, and attorneys) in connection herewith, whether transmitted orally or in writing as a statement, opinion, or representation of fact. Interested parties should satisfy themselves through independent investigations as they or their legal and financial advisors see fit.

Gerbsman Partners, and their respective staff, agents, and attorneys, (i) disclaim any and all implied warranties concerning the truth, accuracy, and completeness of any information provided in connection herewith and (ii) do not accept liability for the information, including that contained in this memorandum, whether that liability arises by reasons of LumaTherm’s or Gerbsman Partners’ negligence or otherwise.

Any sale of the LumaTherm Assets will be made on an “as-is,” “where-is,” and “with all faults” basis, without any warranties, representations, or guarantees, either express or implied, of any kind, nature, or type whatsoever from, or on behalf of LumaTherm and Gerbsman Partners. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, LumaTherm and Gerbsman Partners and their respective staff, agents, and attorneys,  hereby expressly disclaim any and all implied warranties concerning the condition of the Satiety Assets and any portions thereof, including, but not limited to, environmental conditions, compliance with any government regulations or requirements, the implied warranties of habitability, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose.

This memorandum contains confidential information and is not to be supplied to any person without Gerbsman Partners’ prior consent. This memorandum and the information contained herein are subject to the non-disclosure agreement attached hereto as Exhibit A.

Company Profile

LumaTherm, Inc. was created as a new Delaware C corporation in December 2011 to purchase substantially all of the assets of the former Zeno Corporation, which had generated cumulative revenues of almost $90 million on more than 1 million units sold and had raised over $80 million in capital since inception in 2004. Prior investors in Zeno Corporation included Austin Ventures, Catterton Partners, Escalate Capital Partners, Santé Ventures, Viacom Corporation, Enhanced Capital Partners, CIG Capital Partners and Comerica Bank.   LumaTherm’s control investor is Santé Ventures, located in Austin Texas, and its minority investor is Enhanced Capital Partners, located in New York City.

LumaTherm is a Houston-based medical device skincare company leveraging Zeno’s patented ClearPointtm technology platform to developand market a proprietary portfolio of revolutionary handheld devices and topical lotions that are dermatologist recommended and FDA cleared to deliver fast, painless and effective over-the-counter (OTC) therapies for widespread skin maladies like acne, cold sores and fine wrinkles.  ClearPointtm technology delivers precisely controlled doses of heat to destroy microorganisms that cause many common skin lesions, with FDA-reviewed clinical trials proving that 90% of treated blemishes fade or disappear within 24 hours.  LumaTherm’s products are manufactured in Malaysia by the world’s largest third-party contract medical device manufacturer, Sanmina-SCI Corporation, and are distributed through a third-party logistics provider, Exact Packaging, of Deerfield, Illinois.

LumaTherm plays directly into one of the most exciting and disruptive trends the skincare industry—rapidly increasing consumer demand and adoption of home-use aesthetic devices—which has grown at over 25% CAGR from $225 million in 2008 to an estimated $1 billion by 2015. The company has three existing commercial product lines, which combined address large and growing markets of over $2.75 billion in the U.S.and $6 billion worldwide:

1. Acne: Zeno Hot Spot is the first and only device of its kind to receive FDA clearance for the treatment of mild to moderate acne. Hot Spot is clinically proven to be effective and, when compared to existing OTC treatments, offers users substantially better results with none of the typical side effects. The device delivers a precisely controlled dose of heat to an acne lesion over a 2.5 minute treatment interval, which causes P.acnes, the bacteria that creates most acne pimples, to self-destruct via a processcalled heat shock response.  Independent human clinical trials (n=51) showed that 90% of treated blemishes faded or disappeared within 24 hours with no damage to the surrounding tissue. The Zeno acne device began OTC sales in June 2005, initially through dermatologist offices. Today, it has national distribution through U.S. drug and mass retailers and has been the #1 and #2 ranked item in the acne care category according to Neilson data.  In a December 2010 customer satisfaction survey conducted by Ipsos (n=109), 90% of consumers would recommend Zeno Hot Spot to a friend.

LumaTherm also markets the Zeno Heat Treat, launched in August 2010, offering consumers the first device-based preventative acne regimen – a two-part system that combines a hand-held vibrating device with soothing heat and a patent-pending Blemish Prevention Treatment. Heat Treat naturally prevents future breakouts by destroying 99.9% of acne causing bacteria within 1 hour of a five-minute treatment. By tapping into a deeper pool of users, Heat Treat brings the first real innovation in years to consumers’ daily facial regimen and successfully builds on the brand message developed by Hot Spot.  Together, these two products address a $925 million U.S. market for OTC acne treatments within the $2.8 billion worldwide market.

2. Cold Sore: Zeno CS is a handheld medical device utilizing the same technology platform to clear cold sores quickly by delivering a precisely controlled dose of heat directly to a cold sore lesion, which causes Herpes Simplex 1 (HSV-1), the virus that creates cold sores, to self-destruct via the same heat shock response pathway that destroyed P.acnes bacteria in acne. In human clinical trials (n=67), Zeno CS has been shown to shorten a cold sore’s life cycle by 50% compared to placebo with three to four treatment cycles of 4 minutes each, spread over 24 hours. In 2008, the company received European CE Mark and Health Canada approval for Zeno CS.  An estimated 80% of the population is infected with HSV-1, with 38% suffering from one or more outbreaks per year (the other 42% are carriers).  The U.S. alone has over 100 million sufferers (and 30 million frequent sufferers with more than one episode per year) generating an estimated U.S. market potential of $258 million per year.

3. Anti-Aging:  Zeno Line Rewind is a two-step treatment, similar to Heat Treat, which diminishes the fine lines and wrinkles that are visible signs of aging.  The topical Line Rewind serum was designed specifically for use with the handheld device applicator and is enriched with a peptide blend that enhances cellular turnover and supports the collagen structure, as well as the super-antioxidant, Resveratrol, which is known toprovide protection against damaging environmental free radicals that can cause premature aging.   After the serum is applied to the skin, the device delivers a non-therapeutic level of heat, red wavelength light and gentle vibration to massage the serum into the skin.  Regular use of the LineRewind regimen results in radiant, luminous skin that is smoother, healthierand younger looking. Unlike the acne and cold sore products, the Line Rewindanti-aging product is not intended to treat or prevent disease or to affect the structure or function of the human body, and as such does not require FDA premarket clearance.  It does, however, leverage Zeno’s brand and device technology to create a differentiated product offering in the $1.6 billionU.S.anti-aging skincare market.

LumaTherm’s portfolio consists of unique and differentiated products with ASPs of $39-199 and gross margins of 50-65% that have proven safe and effective in both the professional channel (dermatologists, aestheticians, health and beauty spas) and the mass-market retail channel (specialty beauty shops, mass merchants, drug stores, e-commerce).  The Company’s heritage is grounded in the medical professional market, having secured consumer-valued credentialing from leading dermatologists, on-premise sales in over 2,500 physician offices, and marketed to the upscale, beauty-involved consumer.  LumaTherm’s professional market technology and intellectual property extends into its retail portfolio, enabling brand andproduct reach to mainstream consumers with distribution at North America’s leading retailers, including Ulta, Walmart, Target, CVS, and Shoppers Drug.

LumaTherm has immediate growth prospects in both channels, driven by the new professional-focused LumaTherm Pearl Premium Acne Device, ready for shipment in late 2012, and new retail-focused Zeno Hot Spot 2.0 with expanded treatmentcounts and updated, on-trend colors, ready for shipment in Q3 2012.  Longer term, the product portfolio could be expanded by gaining U.S. FDA approval for the Zeno Cold Sore device and by leveraging the core technology platform to create new product lines addressing itch relief, nail bed antifungal and dental health and whitening applications.

LumaTherm believes its assets are attractive to either the consumer or professional channels for a number of reasons:

•  The Zeno Acne device is FDA cleared and has been marketed within the U.S. professional market since 2005 and within the U.S. mass market since 2007. LumaTherm’s 510(k) (K043377) provides over-
the counter (OTC) clearance.

•  The Zeno Cold Sore device is cleared by Health Canada.

•  The acne and cold sore devices are CE-mark approved.

•  LumaTherm’s intellectual property, including 8 issued patents and 13 pending patent applications, represents abroad portfolio targeting the treatment device and method for treating skinlesions
through the application of heat.

•  The company achieved ISO 13485:2003 certification in 2006 and has successfully maintained annual certification through multiple routine FDA audits.

•  Broad distribution base and long standing business partnerships including with mass market leaders Wal-Mart and Target in the U.S. and Shoppers Drug in Canada-currently in distribution at over
12,000 retail outlets.

•  At home skin care devices expected to be the next $1B market with acne devices the fastest growing segment.

•  Top performer within retail skin device category with >1 million devices sold to date.

•  All natural, “chemical free” product that is easy to use.

•  Strong consumer advocacy – over 90% of customers would recommend Zeno to a friend.

•  Recently completed product development will lower current product costs by nearly 15% and provide a premium version able to be launched at $200 retail price point and >65% gross
margin.

•  Leading dermatologists actively support LumaTherm’s acne devices through endorsement.

•  The company has collected a significant amount of pre-clinical and clinical scientific evidence in support of the technology.

•  Only device in the world with specific controls that read the skin’s temperature 10 times per second, adapting to changes in blood flow, skin moisture content and ambient conditions via
A microprocessor similar to the iPod Nano to maintain treatment temperature within +/- 1 degree of target.

•  $5.3 million spent on intellectual property portfolio since inception.

•   9.9 million spent on product technology R&D since inception.

•  $48 million spent on brand advertising since inception.

Impact of Technology on the Market

LumaTherm offers a breakthrough proprietary technology platform in categories that demand innovative and effective products but are dominated by brand-based competition among undifferentiated productofferings.  LumaTherm’s unique acne and cold sore products offer several advantages over currently marketed products.  Zeno Hot Spot is the only acne treatment device with FDA clearance for the claim, “90% of acne blemishes fade or disappear within 24 hours.” No other FDA cleared OTC acne devices are capable of outperforming Zeno based on actual human trials.  More important, the product’s safety and user satisfaction profile is very well established, with over 1 million devices in service.  The Zeno product has received strong performance endorsements from the dermatology community, the beauty community and consumers.

Previous treatment methods for persons who suffer from mild to moderate acne generally include over-the-counter (OTC) topical cleansers, astringents and benzoyl peroxide preparations with occasional prescription of topical or systemic antibiotics provided when more severe flares occur.  These OTC preparations are minimally effective and persons that fall into this category often feel the psychological pain of few effective treatments and of chronic persistence of this disease process.  The majority of these sufferers do not qualify for more drastic treatment with agents such as cis-retinoic acid (prescription Accutane) and more stringentrequirements are being placed on physicians so this treatment regimen is being offered to fewer people. It is also becoming increasingly clear that P. acnes is developing increased resistance to antibiotic treatments making this modality less effective anddesirable.

The device incorporates a proprietary solid-state technology platform that delivers precise heat dosing for effective therapy.  The same microprocessor found in the iPod Nano is used to provide accurate analog-to-digital conversion, reading and adjusting 10 times per second to compensate for increased blood flow, differences in skin thickness and moisture content, as well as changes in ambient temperature.  This is an exceptional level of precision for an over-the-counter consumer product that sells at competitive retail rates while maintaining attractive 50%+ gross margins, and is protected by interlocking IP, regulatory approvals, and proven product design & manufacturing experience.

Intellectual Property Summary

LumaTherm has a unique intellectual property portfolio consisting of direct ownership or exclusive licenses to 12 issued patents: 4 are issued to LumaTherm for the US, 4 are licensed through Dr. Li for the US, and 4 are issued to LumaTherm for International.  LumaTherm has 13 pending applications: 2 pending for the U.S. and 11 pending for International, as described in appendix B.  The portfolio represents a broad array of strategic variables including:

·      Methods and devices for the treatment of skin lesions;
·      Treatment device and method for treating skin lesions through application of heat;
·      Heat element tip for skin heating device;
·      Skin heating device;
·      Heat treatment device;
·      Medical device for treating skin itch and rash;
·      Method and apparatus for treatment of skin itch and disease;
·      Treatment device and method for treating skin lesions through application of heat.

LumaTherm registered marks include 5 trademarks with 61 registrations across 30 countries as described in appendix B:

·      Clearly outsmarts pimples®
·      ClearPoint™
·      ZENO®
·      ZENO® MD
·      ZENO® MD (stylized E)

LumaTherm’s Assets

LumaTherm has developed a solid technology portfolio that delivers a product platform for treating bacterial, viral and fungal skin lesions, including mild to moderate acne and cold sores to address an estimated $4.5 billion global market.  These assets fallinto a variety of categories, including:

·      Patents, patent applications, and trademarks
·      510(k) clearance acne device
·      Cold sore clearance in Canada and Europe
·      CE-mark for acne and cold sore devices
·      Unique and clinically relevant patient data
·      Pre-clinical and clinical trials documents
·      Next generation product designs
·      Product cost reduction designs
·      Manufacturing and design equipment and expertise
·      Raw and finished goods inventory
·      Custom test equipment and hard tooling/plastics molds
·      Intellectual capital and expertise
·      Recognized consumer brand supported by over $100 million in spend since inception

The assets of LumaTherm will be sold in whole or in part (collectively, the “LumaTherm Assets”). The sale of these assets is being conducted with the cooperation of LumaTherm. LumaTherm and its employees will be available to assist purchasers with due diligence and a prompt, efficient transition to new ownership. Notwithstanding the foregoing, LumaTherm should not be contacted directly without the prior consent of Gerbsman Partners.

Management

Scott Almquist—departing CEO—Scott served as CEO of Zeno and then LumaTherm from May 2011 through July 2012. Prior to joining Zeno, Scott was President of North America for Evenflo Company, Inc where he was responsible for a $300 Million business, accounting for 80% corporate net sales and EBITDA. Previously, Scott spent 20 years with Proctor & Gamble, culminating in his appointment as President of The Millstone Coffee Company, a $200 Million independent division within P&G.  Scott holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Michigan.

Maria Tryan-CFO & COO- Prior to joining Zeno in 2011, Ms. Tryan was the first employee hired by Dyson USA, where she led a nine-year growth path from no established business to $500 million as its VP Finance & Operations.  She has extensive consumer packaged goods industry and public accounting experience.

Joe Mills-VP, Global Operations- Joe has over thirty years of leadership experience across regional and global supply chain management, warehousing and operations, beginning with Proctor and Gamble.  He has led Zeno/LumaTherm operations for five years, most recently driving the development of two newLumaTherm products, the upgraded, lower cost Hot Spot and the premium acne treatment device which was set for launch in the professional dermatological channel in September, 2012.

Leslie Honda-VP, Quality and Regulatory Affairs- Leslie has over thirty years of quality systems, regulatory affairs, and operations experience in the medical manufacturing industry for Class II and Class III devices.  She has led Zeno/LumaTherm efforts in the Quality and Regulatory areas since 2005.

ElaineBobbey-VP, North American Sales- Elaine is a thirty year retail, sales and marketing veteran.  She spent the first ten years of her career in retail merchandising with May Company and the Joseph Horne Company.  Elaine then moved into customer business development and marketing, spanning roles of increasing responsibility across channels at Totes Isotoner and Evenflo Company, Inc. before joining Zeno inJune of 2011.

Board of Directors

Kevin Lalande:  Managing Director- Sante Ventures-Austin, TX

The Bidding Process for Interested Buyers

Interested and qualified parties will be expected to sign a Confidential Disclosure Agreement (attached hereto as Appendix B) to have access to key members of management and intellectual capital teams and the due diligence “war room” documentation (“Due Diligence Access”). Each interested party, as a consequence of the Due Diligence Access granted to it, shall be deemed to acknowledge and represent (i) that it is bound by the bidding procedures described herein; (ii) that it has had an opportunity to inspect and examine the LumaTherm, Inc. assets and to review all pertinent documents and information with respect thereto; (iii) that it is not relying upon any written or oral statements, representations, or warranties of Gerbsman Partners, ortheir respective staff, agents, or attorneys; and (iv) all such documents and reports have been provided solely for the convenience of the interested party, and Gerbsman Partners (and their respective staff, agents, or attorneys) do not make any representations as to the accuracy or completeness of the same.

Following an initial round of due diligence, interested parties will be invited to participate with a sealed bid, for the acquisition of the LumaTherm, Inc. assets. Each sealed bid must be submitted so that it is received by Gerbsman Partners no later than Thursday, August 23, 2012 at 5:00pm Central Daylight Time (the “Bid Deadline”) at LumaTherm, Inc.’s office, located at 12600 Northborough Drive, Suite 220, Houston, TX  77067.  Please also email steve@gerbsmanpartners.com with any bid.

Bids should identify those assets being tendered for in a specific and identifiable way. In particular, please identify separately certain equipment or other fixed assets.  The attached LumaTherm, Inc. fixed asset list may not be complete and bidders interested in the LumaTherm, Inc. equipment  must submit a separate bid for such assets.

Any person or other entity making a bid must be prepared to provide independent confirmation that they possess the financial resources to complete the purchase.  All bids must be accompanied by a refundable deposit in the amount of $200,000 (payable to LumaTherm, Inc.).  The deposit should be wired to LumaTherm, Inc.’s attorneys Murray & Murray, A Professional Corporation.  The winning bidder will be notified within 3 business days of the Bid Deadline. The deposit will be held in trust by LumaTherm’s counsel.  Unsuccessful bidders will have their deposit returned to them within 3 business days of notification that they are an unsuccessful bidder.

LumaTherm, Inc. reserves the right to, in its sole discretion, accept or reject any bid, or withdraw any or all assets from sale.  Interested parties should understand that it is expected that the highest and best bid submitted will be chosen as the winning bidder andbidders may not have the opportunity to improve their bids after submission.

LumaTherm Inc. will require the successful bidder to close within a 7 day period. Any or all of the assets of LumaTherm, Inc. will be sold on an “as is, where is” basis, with no representation or warranties whatsoever.

All sales, transfer, and recording taxes, stamp taxes, or similar taxes, if any, relating to the sale of the LumaTherm, Inc. assets shall be the sole responsibility of the successful bidder and shall be paid to LumaTherm, Inc. at the closing of each transaction.

For additional information, please see below and/or contact:

Steven R. Gerbsman
Gerbsman Partners
(415) 456-0628
steve@gerbsmanpartners.com

Kenneth Hardesty
Gerbsman Partners
(408)591-7528
ken@gerbsmanpartners.com

Philip Taub
Gerbsman Partners/Foundation Ventures
(917) 650-5958
phil@gerbsmanpartners.com   ptaub@foundationventures.com

Stephen O’Neill, Esq.
Murray & Murray
(408) 907-9200
soneill@murraylaw.com

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By – McHugh & Co. and  member of Gerbsman Partners Board of Intellectual Capital

A while back I was retained to help develop a new strategic plan for the management team and the Board of Directors of an angel-backed technology company.

Soon after I started the project, the CEO told me that a significant angel investor/board member (Moneyman) called either she or the CFO every day at 4:45 for an update on the company. Every day, not kidding…

Was Moneyman, “Just checkin’ in…?”

Was he simply showing enthusiasm, expressing interest, acting curious, proffering sage advice, coaching the senior team and being ‘hands on’?

He wasn’t calling to coach or offer operating advice. Moneyman was meddling.

The constant, meddling actions of the controlling, outside investors in the day-to-day affairs of the organization have a direct, negative impact on the organization’s performance.

Meddling can cause a company to be Stuck in a Ditch.

The Board of Director’s Bell Curve

I think a ‘bell curve’ (normal distribution) can be used to understand the participation level of a Director. Here is my interpretation:

Over time, I’ll be writing blog posts about the broad topic of private company boards and governance.  I’ve been a member of nine boards (private equity backed, vc/angel backed or family owned). I’ve also been directly involved with many other company boards through my consulting work.

These blog posts are not going to cover what I would call the ‘board/governance basics’ (i.e. ideal member, term, compensation, etc.). That sort of content is plentiful.

I will examine the different Board personalities and styles of governance I’ve experienced over the last 20 years with a hope that these shared experiences and stories can make your Board more cohesive, and improve the interactions between management and individual board members.

How did Moneyman become a Meddler?

I’ve already said Moneyman is a #5.  I think this table sums it up.

Moneyman:

  • was impatient, increasingly frustrated and dissatisfied with the company’s overall performance…his performance expectations were not being met
  • had put a lot of personal money into the company – he had the courage to commit his money to a new venture
  • did not have a good understanding of market size and customer acceptance of the products; he thought the market was HUGE – it wasn’t
  • questioned the skills of the management team
  • had no meaningful experience in this company’s business or industry; his personal financial success came from a completely different business experience
  • had a very intense personality

All of these factors together produced a combustive mix and created a difficult relationship with the management team and some other Board members.  If he was not one of the ‘lead angel investors’, he should not have been on the Board.

What happened?

Management and the Board came together around a revised strategy, a new operating plan and a realistic set of expectations about customer acceptance and addressable market size.  Revenues increased, the company became cash flow positive and the financial pressures subsided. Moneyman became less fearful that the value of his investment was heading toward zero. He had renewed hope and the meddling diminished and became less intense.

Have you experienced the Meddler? Do you have suggestions on how to work with this type of Director?

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FACEBOOK FALLOUT: Y Combinator’s Paul Graham Just Emailed Portfolio Companies Warning Of ‘Bad Times’ In Silicon Valley

Nicholas Carlson     | Jun. 5, 2012, 12:01 AM | 58,513 |


Facebook has flopped on the public markets, and now we have vivid evidence of how badly Silicon Valley is reeling in the fallout.

Paul Graham, cofounder of Silicon Valley’s most important startup incubator, Y Combinator, has sent an email to portfolio companies warning them “bad times” may be ahead.

He warns: “The bad performance of the Facebook IPO will hurt the funding market for earlier stage startups.”

“No one knows yet how much. Possibly only a little. Possibly a lot, if it becomes a vicious circle.”

He says that startups which have not yet raised money should lower their expectations for how much they will be able to raise. Startups that have raised money already may have to raise “down rounds,” or at lower valuations than they previously had.

“Which is bad,” he writes, “because ‘down rounds’ not only dilute you horribly, but make you seem and perhaps even feel like damaged goods.”

He warns:

“The startups that really get hosed are going to be the ones that have easy money built into the structure of their company: the ones that raise a lot on easy terms, and are then led thereby to spend a lot, and to pay little attention to profitability. That kind of startup gets destroyed when markets tighten up. So don’t be that startup. If you’ve raised a lot, don’t spend it; not merely for the obvious reason that you’ll run out faster, but because it will turn you into the wrong sort of company to thrive in bad times.”

Graham’s email is eerily reminiscent of the infamous “RIP Good Times” presentation another Silicon Valley investor, Sequoia Capital, gave its portfolio startups in fall 2008.

Here’s a full copy:

Jessica and I had dinner recently with a prominent investor. He seemed sure the bad performance of the Facebook IPO will hurt the funding market for earlier stage startups. But no one knows yet how much. Possibly only a little. Possibly a lot, if it becomes a vicious circle.

What does this mean for you? If it means new startups raise their first money on worse terms than they would have a few months ago, that’s not the end of the world, because by historical standards valuations had been high. Airbnb and Dropbox prove you can raise money at a fraction of recent valuations and do just fine. What I do worry about is (a) it may be harder to raise money at all, regardless of price and (b) that companies that previously raised money at high valuations will now face “down rounds,” which can be damaging.

What to do?

If you haven’t raised money yet, lower your expectations for fundraising. How much should you lower them? We don’t know yet how hard it will be to raise money or what will happen to valuations for those who do. Which means it’s more important than ever to be flexible about the valuation you expect and the amount you want to raise (which, odd as it may seem, are connected). First talk to investors about whether they want to invest at all, then negotiate price.

If you raised money on a convertible note with a high cap, you may be about to get an illustration of the difference between a valuation cap on a note and an actual valuation. I.e. when you do raise an equity round, the valuation may be below the cap. I don’t think this is a problem, except for the possibility that your previous high cap will cause the round to seem to potential investors like a down one. If that’s a problem, the solution is not to emphasize that number in conversations with potential investors in an equity round.

If you raised money in an equity round at a high valuation, you may find that if you need money you can only get it at a lower one. Which is bad, because “down rounds” not only dilute you horribly, but make you seem and perhaps even feel like damaged goods.

The best solution is not to need money. The less you need investor money, (a) the more investors like you, in all markets, and (b) the less you’re harmed by bad markets.

I often tell startups after raising money that they should act as if it’s the last they’re ever going to get. In the past that has been a useful heuristic, because doing that is the best way to ensure it’s easy to raise more. But if the funding market tanks, it’s going to be more than a heuristic.

The startups that really get hosed are going to be the ones that have easy money built into the structure of their company: the ones that raise a lot on easy terms, and are then led thereby to spend a lot, and to pay little attention to profitability. That kind of startup gets destroyed when markets tighten up. So don’t be that startup. If you’ve raised a lot, don’t spend it; not merely for the obvious reason that you’ll run out faster, but because it will turn you into the wrong sort of company to thrive in bad times.

http://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-fallout-y-combinators-paul-graham-just-emailed-portfolio-companies-warning-of-bad-times-in-silicon-valley-2012-6?nr_email_referer=1&utm_source=Triggermail&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Business%20Insider%20Select&utm_campaign=Business%20Insider%20Select%202012-06-05#ixzz1wxLb6QS

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Article from TechCrunch.

Your Powerpoint pitchdeck is so boring. So. Freaking. Boring. Although tech bloggers aren’t sent startup’s actual pitchdecks as often as investors are (thankfully), we’re still walked through them on dreadful, “let me read to you from my Powerpoint” phone calls more often than should be socially acceptable. That’s why when image aggregator Piccsy, which is simultaneously a competitor to Pinterest as well as a top 20 content source for the site,  pinged us to take a look at its pitch deck, we were pleasantly surprised. A pitchdeck that’s actually fun to read? Can such a thing exist?

Piccsy.com/investors hosts the company’s public pitchdeck, and it’s a striking, visual representation of the data that would be typically found in bullet-pointed slideshows. The format leads you to wander through content and explore, much like Piccsy itself does. CEO Daniel Eckler admits that he doesn’t even know how to use Powerpoint. “I’ve only ever opened the program once or twice in my life,” he says. But it wasn’t just lack of know-how that led the company to ditch the idea of the traditional deck. As outsiders from Toronto, they wanted to stand out, Eckler says.

“We began with a problem (how to get investors to see our deck) and came up with a solution (create something unique, beautiful, informative, and easy to share), as opposed to going with the status quo,” Eckler explains. “This is conceivably the first thing investors are going to relate to when they see a company. Lots of companies that are innovative in other areas are sticking to an old model with their deck, even though they have the resources (dev/design) to do something special.”

Plus, he adds, a generic, Powerpoint-style deck wouldn’t be right for a site that’s all about discovering beautiful imagery.

For what it’s worth, the novel deck has been working. 50,000 pageviews and 15 inbound investor requests came in over the weekend, and the site got linked on Hacker News (where discussion delved into criticisms over content, however, but not the style.) Said one commenter, “it’s a beautiful presentation. I’m jealous….I’d absolutely pay to get a site like that.”

Say, Piccsy – if that whole image aggregation thing doesn’t work out…

The screenshot above is just a snippet. The full site is here.

Read more on Piccsy at www.piccsy.com.

Read the original article here.

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Article from NYTimes.

Facebook shares will be tempting to buy when they start trading on Friday. The company has hefty profit margins, a household name and a shot at becoming the primary gateway to the Internet for much of the planet.

But if history offers any lesson, average investors face steep odds if they hope to make big money in a much-hyped stock like Facebook.

Sure, Facebook could be the next Google, whose shares now trade at more than six times their offering price. But it could also suffer the fate of Zynga, Groupon, Pandora and a host of other start-ups that came out of the gate strong, then quickly fell back.

Even after Facebook supersized its offering with plans to dole out more shares to the public, most retail investors will have a hard time getting shares in the social networking company at a reasonable price in its first days of trading.

Facebook’s I.P.O. values the company at more than $104 billion. And the mania surrounding the offering means Facebook shares will almost certainly rise on the first day of trading on Friday, the so-called one-day pop that is common for Internet offerings. At either level, Facebook’s price is likely to assume a growth rate that few companies have managed to sustain.

New investors, in part, are buying their shares from current owners who are taking some of their money off the table, a sign that the easy profits may have been made. Goldman Sachs, the PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, and the venture capital firms DST Global and Accel Partners are all selling shares in the offering.

“It is a popular company, but it is still a highly speculative stock,” said Paul Brigandi, a senior vice president with the fund manager Direxion. “Outside investors should be cautious. It doesn’t fit into everyone’s risk profile.”

For the farsighted and deep-pocketed investors who got in early, Facebook is turning out to be a blockbuster. But by the time the first shares are publicly traded, new investors will be starting at a significant disadvantage.

Following the traditional Wall Street model, Facebook shares were parceled out to a select group of investors at an offering run by the company’s bankers on Thursday evening, priced at $38 a share. But public trading will begin with an auction on the Nasdaq exchange on Friday morning that is likely to push the stock far above beyond the initial offering price.

That is what happened to Groupon last fall. Shares of the daily deals site started trading at $28, above its offering price of $20. It eventually closed the day at $26.11.

The one-day pop is common phenomenon. Over the last year, newly public technology stocks, on average, have jumped 26 percent in their first day of trading, according to data collected by Jay R. Ritter, a professor of finance and an I.P.O. expert at the University of Florida.

In many of the hottest technology stocks, the rise has been more dramatic. LinkedIn, another social networking site, surged 109 percent on its first day in May 2011, and analysts say it is not hard to imagine a similar outcome with Facebook, given the enormous interest.

Unfortunately for investors, the first-day frenzy is not often sustained. In the technology bubble of the late 1990s, dozens of companies, Pets.com and Webvan among them, soared before crashing down.

At the height of the bubble in 2000, the average technology stock rose 87 percent on its first day. Three years later, those stocks were down 59 percent from their first-day closing prices and 38 percent from their offering prices, according to Professor Ritter’s data.

The more recent crop of technology start-ups has not been much more successful in maintaining the early excitement. A Morningstar analysis of the seven most prominent technology I.P.O.’s of the last year showed that after their stock prices jumped an average of 47 percent on the first day of trading, they were down 11 percent from their offering prices a month later. Groupon is now down about 40 percent from its I.P.O. price.

“It’s usually best to wait a few weeks to let the excitement wear off,” said James Krapfel, an I.P.O. analyst at Morningstar who conducted the analysis. “Buying in the first day is not generally a good strategy for making money.”

There are, of course, a number of major exceptions to this larger trend that would seem to provide hope for Facebook. Google, for instance, started rising on its first day and almost never looked back.

Even among the success stories, though, investors often have had to go through roller coaster rides on their way up. Amazon, for instance, surged when it went public in 1997 at $18 a share. But the stock soon sputtered, and it did not reach its early highs again until over a decade later. The shares now trade near $225.

More recently, LinkedIn has been trading about 140 percent above its offering price of $45, enough to provide positive returns even for investors who bought in the initial euphoria. But those investors had to sweat out months when LinkedIn stock was significantly down.

Apple is perhaps the clearest example of the patience that can be required to cash in on technology stocks. Nearly two decades after its I.P.O. in 1980, it was still occasionally trading below its first-day closing price, and it was only in the middle of the last decade — when the company began revolutionizing the music business — that it began its swift climb toward $600.

Facebook’s prospects will ultimately depend on the company’s ability to fulfill its early promise. It has a leg up on the start-ups of the late 1990s, which had no profits and dubious business models. Last year, in the seventh year since its founding, Facebook posted $3.7 billion in revenue and $1 billion in profit.

But investors buying the stock even at the offering price are assuming enormous future growth. While stock investors are generally willing to pay about $14 for every dollar of profit from the average company in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index, people buying Facebook at the estimate I.P.O. price are paying about $100 for each dollar of profit it made in the past year.

When Google went public in 2004, investors paid a bigger premium, about $120 for each dollar of earnings. But the search company at the time was growing both its sales and profits at a faster pace than Facebook is currently.

Facebook may be able to justify those valuations if it can keep expanding its profit at the pace it did last year, a feat some analysts have said is possible. But especially after the company recently revealed that its growth rate had slowed significantly in the first quarter, the number of doubters is growing.

“Facebook, by just about any measure, is a great company,” Professor Ritter said. “That doesn’t mean that Facebook will be a great investment.”

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