To strengthen entrepreneurship and commercialization among startups in the seafood industry, the NCE Seafood Innovation Cluster has developed and launched the program “Are you ready to raise capital?” for a selection of startups. This three-month capital raising program focuses on different stages of capital raising for a startup. It is held in collaboration with Engage // Innovate and EY.

 

In the final gathering of the program the startups were to present their investor presentations in front of a panel of experienced and professional investors.

”After today we will see what you need to focus on going forward.
-Christian Rangen, Engage // Innovate

The day started with a short session setting the stage, where the startups were prepared for questions that could arise from the investors. After each presentation the startups had to answer questions from the investors regarding their current customer base, owner structure, road to market, uniqueness, etc.

The startups found it challenging knowing how many capital rounds they should have, and some were surprised by the investors’ willingness to lose money in the beginning, to facilitate scaling of the company.

Photo: Edvard Bjerk, Consultant @ EY Global Aquaculture
Text: Andreas Solibakke, Senior Consultant @ EY Global Aquaculture