Investor Insights from Lead Investor-Kristi Saare
A Funderbeam exclusive interview with Kristi Saare. An entrepreneur, author, radio co-host, NGO founder and Lead Investor for the Chaga Health campaign on the Funderbeam platform.
Funderbeam sat (virtually) down with renowned investor, radio personality and advocate for helping more people become investors, Kristi Saare, to gain a little more insight on how she chooses investments, her experiences and the future of the ecosystem.
As an early-stage investor, what questions do you always ask when looking at a business and its management team?
I like starting from the big picture — a good question to ask the team is where they plan to be in ten years. Of course, with early-stage businesses, the actual endpoint may be completely different than what they’re imagining right now, but it provides for an interesting insight into the team’s thinking. Competitive edge is another topic you can’t ignore — good ideas are a dime a dozen, actual working solutions to issues that can be reasonably well implemented and scaled are a whole other thing.
What is the biggest lesson you have learned in investing in early-stage companies?
Really only invest money you’re willing to lose! On a lighter note, trust the team. As an investor, you can do a whole lot to analyse and vet the business plan but fundamentally you have to believe that the team loves their idea and is willing to go the extra mile to make it happen.
Are you sector agnostic when it comes to making investments as long as they meet your criteria?
While I will look at any deal that crosses my desk, I’m a bit more of a fan of physical products. Yes, I know, getting 1000x growth from production based businesses is clearly much less likely, but my background is mostly mentoring small businesses and I feel more knowledgable in the field.
Can you tell us about some of your favourite companies in your portfolio?
If I look at my Funderbeam portfolio, then I’ve mostly added several food production businesses to my portfolio, Tanker, Nudist, La Muu etc. I think food production, local and niche ideas will be more and more important in the future.
What areas do you think will present the most opportunity for early-stage investors over the next 18–24 months?
I think current batch of start-up ideas will be very heavily influenced by the ongoing crisis. Health, long-distance communication, logistics. I’m sure some exciting ideas will appear from some otherwise pretty static fields.
Where are you seeing the most exciting early-stage opportunities? What are the ‘ones to watch’/ most currently underrated?
I think in that sense Estonia is a great place to live in, #estonianmafia and EBAN help highlight many great startups.
How did you discover Funderbeam?
I’ve been a long time P2P and crowdfunding investment fan. If I remember correctly then I was invited to and attended the Funderbeam launch event even.
One of Funderbeam’s key strengths is our ability to put together investors from all over the world in one syndicate. What are your favourite cities and why?
Ah, such a frustrating topic at the moment when travelling is banned! My favourite city is hands down, London. I know some people hate that it’s super busy but every time I visit it just feels like a my kind of place!
What book/podcast do you most frequently recommend to friends and family and why?
Well, as a podcaster myself I suggest people start with listening to Investeerimisraadio :) Over the course of almost 5 years we’ve put together an incredible amount of knowledge through our episodes for anyone who wants to get into the world of investing, many Funderbeam listed companies have also visited us throughout the years to offer insights into their ideas!
Tell us something people are surprised to learn about you?
Well, since I blog about my investments I don’t have too many interesting secrets to share. I once wrote a young adult novel for the fun of it, and to see if I could! It was absolutely terrible though, so I think I’d better stick with writing about investing.
Investing in early-stage and growth companies puts your capital at risk. Please read our Risk Disclosure Statement.
The information appearing in this blog post is approved as a financial promotion by Funderbeam Markets Limited (authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under FRN 794918). Complete and comprehensive information about an investment opportunity is only available to the investors who have been approved by a Funderbeam group entity. Funderbeam does not provide investment advice or any recommendation to invest. The investment opportunity should not be considered as an offer to the public and is not directed at or offered to anyone located in a jurisdiction where it is unlawful to do so.
#investing #investingtips #funderbeam
