Kesha Cash

I spoke with Christien Louviere of BDE Capital about his journey from a $330mm exit to becoming an independent sponsor. Christien shared excellent insights for folks looking to partner with business owners, rather than buy sellers out completely. Below are a few of the topics we covered: - Why he moved from “zero-to-one” startups to a buy-then-build strategy - How Christien's background shaped a focus on growth vs. cost-cutting - Why 20–40% rolled equity is central to his deal structures—and how it builds trust with sellers - Using scenario analysis with AI tools to evaluate management teams and uncover hidden key-person risks - How to identify when a $3–5M EBITDA company truly has a middle management layer—or is still founder-reliant For anyone investing in or buying small businesses, Christien’s approach provides a fresh lens on growth, alignment, and deal structuring. 🎥 Watch the full interview here → https://lnkd.in/ekfkaiej 🎧 Listen on Spotify: https://lnkd.in/e86Agx6V

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According to Crunchbase, women-only founding teams received less than 2% of global venture funding. Yet across sectors, women-led companies continue to outperform on ROI. At DFX, we meet hundreds of founders each month. Innovation scales faster when capital reaches diverse hands. Always tracking investors actually funding women-led innovation. I found a list from Ivelina Dineva, funds actively writing checks for female founders across AI, Fintech, Climate, Health, and beyond. Here are funds worth keeping on your radar: 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Operator Collective 🔆 ◾Mallun Yen- Founder & MP ◾Dana Marohn & Haley Brannan - Partner ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: B2B / Enterprise (operator-LP model) ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: SF, California 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Amplifyher Ventures ◾Tricia Black - Founder & GP ◾Meghan Cross - Partner ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Commerce, Care, Connectivity ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: NY 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: FreshTracks Capital ◾Lee Bouyea & George Whalen III- GP & Managing Director ◾Cairn Cross - Co-founder & Managing Director ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Tech, Consumer Products, Clean Energy, Advanced Manufacturing, Health/Wellness ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Shelburne, Vermont 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: 1843 Capital ◾Tracy Chadwell - Founding Partner ◾Gwen Weiss - Partner & CFO ◾Sharon Rodriguez - VP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: AgeTech/Longevity (Health), plus selective tech/fin sectors ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Greenwich, Connecticut 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: CapitalT ◾Janneke Niessen & Eva De Mol Ph.D - Founding Partner ◾Corinne Vigreux - Cornerstone Investor ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Climate Tech, Future of Work ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Amsterdam 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Precursor Ventures ◾Charles Hudson - MP ◾Ashtan Jordan & Marina Girgis- Principal ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀:  Life Sciences, Healthcare ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: SF, California 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Epic Angels ◾Maaike Doyer - Founder ◾Hester Spiegel-vdSteenhoven - Partner ◾Andrea Davidson - Investment Comittee ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀:  All Sectors ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Singapore 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Capita3 ◾Pamela York & Sara Russick - Co-founder & MP ◾Kathy Tune - MP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech, Deeptech, B2C, B2B ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: MPLS 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Conscious Venture Partners ◾Jeff Cherry - CEO Managing GP ◾Joseph W. & John Key - GP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech, Sustainability, Impact Investing ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Maryland(Baltimore) 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: G9 Ventures ◾Amy Griffin - Founder & MP ◾Anna Doherty - Partner ◾Elena Rodriguez-Villa - Chief of Staff ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: NY The future doesn’t just need more female founders, it needs investors who bet on them early. Hosting an invite-only B2B AI & Fintech Pitch Session this month. Upload your deal or join the conversation at joindfx.com. Use code ELLA for one month free. If you’re a woman founder, don’t miss our Female Founder Circle (check comments). #PrivateCapital #VC #PE #Founders #Community #Startups

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💡Emerging GP Fundraising Insight #8: Rolling Closes Keep You Moving Small funds can't always afford to sit still until the target is hit. Rolling closes let you start deploying earlier, build a track record, and show momentum to prospective LPs. One GP told me that for Fund I ($5M target), he took capital as it came, signed, wired, and got to work. It wasn't perfect, but it kept the lights on and the deals moving. Sometimes the "sign and wire as it comes" approach is the only way to get moving. Takeaway: Momentum is a fundraising asset and rolling closes can help you keep it. Has anyone here used rolling closes as a strategic advantage?

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Had a great time at DC Startup & Tech Week (Formerly DC Startup Week) moderating a panel with Scott Christensen (Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund (CBSCF) , Faith Davis (Exelon) and Bill McNulty (NextEra Energy Investments), convened by the great C'pher Gresham. Here's a quick recap: 1) The panelists were phenomenal - a mixture of corporate, state and foundation-backed VC's all focusing on climate. They're actively funding companies across a range of sectors - e.g. nature-based solutions, energy + AI, water, etc. Point being, we were lucky to have experts with such broad purviews. 2) The current climate could be pushing at least some climate VC's to focus on software and move away from hardware, at least temporarily. This type of capital may indeed just be better suited for software companies at this juncture. It also reflects the fact that certain segments of the climate-tech market are just more mature than others - e.g. software performs best once the hardware and the business case around it are solid, then it becomes and optimization and efficiency game. 3) Founders need to target "must-solve" climate problems from the investor lens. In other words, yes there's a sea of climate challenges where startups can be additive. However, in this environment, few of these areas are attracting meaningful capital. There's nothing wrong with tackling problem areas that are under-invested, we need this in spades. However, for those trying to get capital in the door, realize the constraints that come with targeting problems that investors just aren't prioritizing. 4) Look to funders overseas. The EU, where so much climate finance, policy and general expertise has come from, could be playing a much more important role. I'd also argue that Gulf countries like KSA and UAE are going to be critical here too, not to mention China, of course. 5) We need mentoring and coaching to be at an all-time high. With so much uncertainty, networks/communities where both founders and investors can learn from/lean on each other have never been more important. The panel/audience was a nice microcosm of the types of support networks we need to be actively building. Big thanks again to C'pher, Faith, Scott and Bill, as well as the whole DC Startup + Tech Week team. Til next year!

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