Presented by the Rutgers Food Innovation Center, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and Middlesex County, the event drew interested parties across the food and beverage industry. Entrepreneurs, investors, academics and others gathered for a full day of speakers, networking and even samples.
The agenda's final panel discussion offered Investor Insights and Outlook for Food and Ag Tech Industry. In closing, the experts offered a bit of advice:
"The environment's tough. That's the first thing to realize. You'll hear 'no' a lot, which is tough, but perseverance will be key. And finding the right investors is important. Someone who's partnering with you, can open doors for you in the right spaces, is the key to your success as well as finding series A funding that you're going to series B funding, especially in the pre-seed/seed stage. Finding the right fit and being very detailed on what makes your company differentiated from the best of the market. We see thousands of deals a year and a lot of them start to blur together. ... Every time I see a plant-based deal, my eyes kind of glaze over, which is probably not the best. But if we have something that pops says we're differentiated because X, Y and Z, then I'll start to pay attention ...
"So really just making a case of why you're different, why you should be funded, why we're the right investor for you? And I think we can have a good conversation ... but being transparent, it could still be a no but at least gets us into the conversation of doing diligence and progressing that conversation."
Alex Davisson , senior ventures associate, Plug and Play Tech Center
"I would recommend [that you] know the problem you want to solve, understand who you're as a group, what makes you different. Put a great team together. We have invested in multiple plant-based companies and multiple cultivating companies because of a team. We see one team with one approach, OK, that's interesting, we're going to go invest in it, bring them into our accelerator program. And then six months later we see another company in a similar space. But this team, you're like, this team is better. Let's go invest in that. And that's the benefit of investing small checks across a segment.
"But definitely understand, be pragmatic about your approach. Don't show me don't come to me with the hundred thousand dollars hotline in hundred million valuation. Yes, I've seen those. They looked with straight face and this company is worth millions. No, it's not. And here's all the reasons why. They're like, you just don't understand. ... So be pragmatic. Know who you are together. Bring a great team together."
Thomas Mastrobuoni , chief investment officer, Big Idea Ventures
Produced by the Rutgers Food Innovation Center - and distributed at the New Jersey FoodTech 2024 Conference - Rutgers F.I.R.E Sauce is made with Garden State ingredients. The name honors the institute's original moniker, Food Innovation Research and Extension, or FIRE, Center. - PHOTO: JESSICA PERRY/NJBIZ
"I think from our perspective because we're more of a mission-based investor we're not necessarily looking for that high-value exit; where what we are looking for is sustainable business. We encourage founders, especially in this environment to say, look, I can take a little bit of money and create a business that's profitable. And it's hard to do in the food business because of the margins, but it's not impossible. But you have to prioritize profit. And I would say I need $10 million so I can create a $5 million-a-year business; that's not going to work."
Shaleen Shah , president, Ahimsa Foundation
"So one, be clear about the benefit that you deliver to your consumer, to the customer, whether that is individual consumers or other businesses that they just can't get anywhere else. ... Differentiation. What can you do that is truly different, that is truly differentiated and that you can provide that nobody else can? So that's one.
"I think two, always especially in this environment be efficient. Be very, very aggressively efficient and thoughtful with how you deploy capital. I have seen a lot of startups whose focus is spending capital instead of building a business and with very kind of noble ends in mind, they have an aspiration that they want to achieve along the way. They're not building a business. And in the end that unfortunately puts those founders in a very bad position. And so very efficient, very focused, very disciplined about delivering that unique opportunity that only that you can provide. And then once you're able to do that, all kinds of other things, open up ..."
Wesley Wilson , managing partner, Valorum Ventures
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