DQventures

Updates

How does DQventures work?

DQventures helps experienced professionals to launch a startup while remaining employed full-time. Our team cofounds your business alongside you, helping you avoid many of the pitfalls that await first-time entrepreneurs.

Start a Company

A good reason NOT to launch a startup.

Building a startup is about running TOWARDS something, not away from it. Hating your job is not a good reason to launch a startup, but here are some others that might be...

Early-Stage Capital

Which VC funds should you (not) raise from?

Before you approach a large VC fund, take some time to do the math. What kind of return would you need to give them to make an investment worthwhile? Here's how it works...

Early-Stage Capital

Advice to a first-time angel investor.

Just because you've sold a business doesn't necessarily mean you know how to invest in them. Before you part with your hard-earned cash, try to get an external perspective, like this one...

Build a Product

Beware of user interviews and metrics.

When you're drawing insights from your metrics and user interviews, keep in mind that the data you're collecting is heavily influenced by the manner in which it is connected. Users (and metrics) are notoriously bad at explaining the true nature of things.

Start a Company

Wanted: idea-stage founders.

Do you know a senior professional who's forever talking about launching their own company but never gets around to it? We'd love to meet them.

Updates

Interview with James Green, DQventures co-founder.

Here's James looking suitably chilly near his home in Stockholm. In this video James talks with fellow entrepreneurs and investors, Richard Lucas and Kimon Fountoukidis, about launching a startup later in life.

Start a Company

The paradox of entrepreneurship.

The younger you are, the less risk you're probably taking... but also the lower your chances of success. Here's why we need more founders with miles on the clock.

Early-Stage Capital

Who are the best investors for an early-stage startup?

Don't believe everything you hear in the startup world, especially when it comes to raising capital. There are a lot of consultants making noise to get noticed and sell their services, and not everything they say is accurate.

Early-Stage Capital

Startup and VC jargon founders should understand.

Do you speak investor? If you're a startup founder who may one day raise capital to fund accelerated growth, it's worth reading and re-reading these terms, and making them part of your vernacular.

Start a Company

How to attract the best employees to your startup.

TLDR: if you're a startup founder, try optimising your hiring process for the less-obvious factors that drive career decisions, rather than tweaking the obvious bits like salary and options.

Start a Company

Find your torture: how to succeed in startups.

YC founder Paul Graham believes the path to success lies in doing what you enjoy that others dislike. If what is torturous to other people is rewarding to you, Graham writes, "that's something you're well suited for."

Build a Product

10 traits early-stage investors seek in founders.

Are there any common traits shared by successful founders and, if so, what are they? After almost 100 early-stage investments, here's what I've noticed about the best founders.

Early-Stage Capital

What is angel investing REALLY like?

There's a lot of hype around startup investing, but is there a realistic chance of a big pay day? I've been angel investing since 2012 and I'm about $100K down. Believe it or not, it's going well!

Start a Company

Are older founders more innovative?

Harland Sanders was 62 when he started KFC. McDonald's founder Ray Kroc jumped into the burger business aged 52. Bernie Marcus was 50 when he opened the first Home Depot store. So how common are successful older entrepreneurs?

Early-Stage Capital

SaaS funding benchmarks.

Check out Christoph Janz's SaaS Napkin for a VC-level view on SaaS funding metrics in 2023.

Start a Company

How to come up with a winning startup idea.

Don't solve random problems. Instead, work out where the overlap is between what you're good at, what you know better than almost anyone else, and what you're passionate about. If there is no obvious overlap, take a breath and work out how to create one.

Start a Company

Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em.

If any founders out there are thinking about quitting, please don't automatically assume it's the worst possible option for you. Only you can decide when this chapter ends, so don't forget to look after number one.

Start a Company

Solo founder or cofounder - what's better?

If you're thinking about launching a company, you may be debating whether to go it alone or try to find a cofounder. So what's the best option?

Early-Stage Capital

This guy raised $400K for his first startup, aged 41.

Richard Hannaford believed he had a good idea, but he had no clue how to start his own software company, let alone how to raise startup funding. Little did he know how well suited he was to becoming a founder...

Build a Product

Everything you need to know about launching a B2C app.

23 tips on launching fast-growing B2C apps from the guy who spent 10 years perfecting his skills at Meta, before selling Gas to Discord for $7m after just 6 months.

Start a Company

How to avoid a startup train-wreck.

There are many different ways to launch a startup, and, unfortunately, most of them lead to failure. In this article we've tried to distill the process our founders go through into 15 steps.

Early-Stage Capital

8 ways to guarantee you raise a Series A.

Peng Ong is co-founder and managing partner at Monk’s Hill Ventures in Singapore. Previously he co-founded companies including Electric Classifieds (today known as Match.com), which today generate over USD$1 billion in annual revenues. These tips are his.

Early-Stage Capital

Do you REALLY want VC funding?

Attracting funding from a VC seems like the first major milestone many startup aim to achieve, but this is rarely the best approach. Non-dilutive capital, like grants and revenue, are better for the business, the founder, and are generally easier to come by.

Start a Company

9 tips for struggling CEOs by Eric Partaker.

From creating predictable sales growth to fundraising, here are nine of the most frequently discussed business challenges, described by leading CEO coach, Eric Partaker.