VC4A is now accepting applications from high-growth African startups for its 2018 Venture Showcase – Series A. The deadline for submission of application is August 20, 2018.
We’re looking for 8 innovative, high-growth scale-ups to showcase at Africa Early Stage Investor Summit on Nov 11-12 in Cape Town. Are you operating in Africa, generating revenue and looking to raise your Series A round in the range of $250K and $5M? This is the opportunity you’ve been looking for!
In 2017, we showcased 20 scale-ups from the XL Africa program as part of the Africa Early Stage Investor Summit, resulting in a number of Series A deals totalling over $12M. Building on this success, the ‘VC4A Venture Showcase – Series A’ is now integrated as a central component of our annual Summit. This is an exclusive opportunity to introduce your company at once to everyone who’s anyone in Africa’s early-stage investment space.
Eligibility Criteria:
- Your company is for-profit and registered as an independent legal entity;
- You have a product or service available on the market and generate revenue;
- Your product or service is clearly innovative and/or your business model is new, disruptive and designed for scale;
- You have a very strong management team of at least 3 people;
- Your team is based in one or more countries on the African continent;
- You are seeking Series A investment in the range of $250K – $5M;
- While there will be exceptions, most likely your startup has already received external investment, structured as either debt or equity, or received grants from donor organizations.
Benefits:
- All expenses paid trip to Cape Town on Nov 9-16, 2018
- 3 min pitch on the main stage of the Africa Early Stage Investor Summit
- 20 min deep-dive session with investors in a private room
- Two days of networking with investors, including Speaker Cocktail and Industry Leaders dinner
- Mentorship and pitch training by partner VC investors
- Opportunity to attend and pitch at partner events AfricaCom and AfricArena
Selection Criteria:
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Innovativeness and Scalability (25%)
Your company addresses a real problem in the market in a clearly innovative way. Your product or service is different to others in the industry. Your business model is new, disruptive and designed for scale.
Strategy for Growth (25%)
There is potential to expand into new markets or expand at home. You have a clear strategy how to grow your company and we can see demonstrable progress in terms of customer acquisition plans, new contracts, and key partnerships.
Management team (25%)
The team has the qualifications needed to make the business successful.
Market Traction & Financials (25%)
We will evaluate your market traction and look at the potential market size. We’ll also look at your business model, revenue streams and unit economics, and if any outside funding has been raised before.
TIMELINE:
- Jun 11 – Aug 20 Application period
- Aug 20 – Sep 29 Selection process / investor review / interviews
- Oct 1 Showcase participants announced
- Oct 1 – Nov 9 Working on presentations with mentors (VC investors)
- Nov 10 Pitch practice with investor feedback
- Nov 12 VC4A Venture Showcase – Series A at Africa Early Stage Investor Summit
- Nov 13-15 AfricaCom and AHUB participation
- Nov 14 Innovation tour
- Nov 14-16 AfricArena participation
WHAT WE EXPECT FROM YOU
If you are selected for the Showcase, you are expected to:
- Engage with assigned mentors (partner VC investors) and VC4A team to prepare your 3-minute and 20-minute presentations, as well as 2-pagers with investor data as part of the deal book;
- Be prepared to travel to Cape Town in the period of November 9-16, 2018 to attend the Africa Early Stage Investor Summit and be part of the VC4A Venture Showcase.
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