I STARTED MY FUNDING JOURNEY WOEFULLY UNDER-QUALIFIED
BONAFIDES
I was the co-founder of a company called iseekplant in 2012. iseekplant a SaaS marketplace which is now part of a group of companies called Constructiv Technologies Group. Three years into founding that company with my brother and a friend, I was thrust into the CEOs job with little preparation or qualifications.
Iseekplant, and in fact all marketplaces, are really complex business models that have historically required a lot of capital to build to the point of market dominance. So capital raising became a necessary evil. And evil it was - I found it very terrifying for years, convinced that every time we took capital I was agreeing to contracts and terms that would be impossible to unwind. I had no background in finance, I came from technology marketing and I barely passed the accounting, legal and statistics subjects at university. I was more of a creative mind than a strategic one.
YOU NAME IT, I'VE TRIED IT.
Throughout my decade as the CEO of iseekplant, I raised $17million dollars of capital in 6 rounds. I led a family and friends round, then a seed round using stock brokers, then a Series A, then a Series A bridging round, then a Series B, then I attempted a Series C round and abandoned it in the middle of the 2022 tech wreck, then a Series B round in SAFE Notes. There were also a number of other funding rounds and ideas abandoned during this time, including convertible notes, research into IPOs and M&A ideas. During my tenure I’ve executed call options, share buy-backs and share transfers.
I raised capital from big name billion-dollar investors, namely Seven Group, Macquarie Bank, the Queensland Investment Corporation and Aptella. I pounded the pavement in Martin Place, in Melbourne and Silicone Valley,
I’ve done multi-year affiliate & data partnerships with Eclipx Group, Graysonline, Finlease, Valiant Group and Macquarie. I’ve also successfully applied for over $5 mil in government grants for our business.
I’ve dabbled in venture debt, shareholder debt, subscription factoring, fee funding, invoice funding and many more innovative types of funding.
So now you’re probably wondering… why The Funding Guide?
WHY AM I DOING THIS ?
10 years as the CEO of a technology company is pretty exhausting. Especially if you’re in business with family, and you have two small children in the middle of it all. I resigned as CEO of iseekplant in February of 2024, and now I’m a non-executive director of that company, and a consultant to a number of companies.
I’m not interested in going back to the hustle of deals and capital raising, I spent enough time away from my kids in their early childhood. So I set up The Funding Guide as a way of helping others with the skills I’ve learnt whilst continuing to deepen my knowledge of the field. This helps me avoid full-time work, spend more time with my family and travel the world.
DISCLAIMERS
Disclaimer: What I don’t know, I’ve researched or consulted others on.
I haven’t done every type of deal under the sun, and I’m not the number #1 capital raiser in the country. I’ve not raised hundreds of millions, like some of the luminaries in the tech space in Australia. I have specific knowledge in this field in the small business setting.
But before publishing anything where I don't have the strongest background, I have consulted extensively with others with extensive M&A experience (including ex-partners of big 4 accounting firms, other entrepreneurs, other deal makers, lawyers and accountants). I’ve also researched some of the topics or verified them with internet resources.
Disclaimer: This information is introductory only.
There are as many deal structures and funding options available as there are moments in time. The information I provide on The Funding Guide is intended as introductory only and designed to help demystify the space for small business and start-up founders who are just starting out on the process. It is not intended to be relied on as concrete financial advice and I strongly encourage you to consult with your own financial advisors and lawyers about what is right for your unique situation.
I do not hold an AFSL.
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I'd be happy to chat about your unique funding challenge and provide specific advice where I can.
