A venture capital firm based in Atlanta that's on its fifth fund is looking for its next deal, and that could mean a Triangle startup.
Fulcrum Equity Partners just closed its Fulcrum Fund V at $372 million. Philip Lewis, partner, said the Triangle is on its radar, adding that he visits the area at least twice a year.
Fulcrum focuses its dollars on two areas, high-growth B2B software — “Those need to have enterprise software companies that have really nice retention rates and growth metrics,” Lewis said — and health services.
Fulcrum’s initial check size is typically between $5 million and $25 million. With the latest fund, it has the ability to invest up to $35 million in any given company, Lewis said.
Lewis and his team see a lot of pitches, so Triangle Inno asked what his pitch deck pet peeve is. He said it’s when entrepreneurs make bold statements but can’t back them up with strategy.
“It’s, if I just get 1 percent of this market, I’ll be a $100 million company,” he said. “It’s like, okay, how are you going to go get 1 percent of that market? … What’s the growth strategy to displace the people already serving that 1 percent.”
Instead of just bravado, Lewis looks for a collaborative attitude in founders.
“I think the best founders are the people who don’t think they know all the answers … but know how to get great people to surround them,” he said.
Fulcrum has one Triangle company, Kevel, in its portfolio. The Durham outfit recently announced it had raised more than $20 million in a Series C fund.
Lewis said Fulcrum is on the hunt for more local startups and will have representatives at the Venture Connect conference in Raleigh March 20-21.