Bartosz Lipnicki: How to find the next unicorn
In the latest edition of our videocast, we had the chance to sit down and talk with Bartosz Lipnicki, co-founder and managing partner of the VC investment fund Alfabeat. Our chat covered everything from investing in tech startups, what to consider as a founder and an investor, the importance of networking, and much more.
Some background on our guest
Bartosz Lipnicki studied to be an industrial engineer, worked in sales and business development, as well as a business consultant. His varied background played a huge role in his involvement with venture capital, which he’s been heavily involved in the past couple of years.
Talking of Alfabeat, Bartosz mentioned that it’s a specialized venture capital that invests in early stage software companies coming from Central East Europe, with a track record of investing in unicorns. Alfabeat is essentially focused on enterprise SaaS business models at the seed stage. Some of the most notable companies in their portfolio are Coinfirm, Andiamo, PromoRepublic and Wolt.
How does Alfabeat differ from other investment funds?
Specializing in early-stage enterprise software companies based in Central and Eastern Europe is what makes Alfabeat stand out from the rest of VCs, according to Bartosz. When asked about how they come into contact with these companies, how they generate talks, Bartosz was quick to point out that VC is still a boutique business sector where most of the work happens with word of mouth, recommendations, and networking. It’s a process of building relationships with founders and earning trust.
What are you looking for when talking to these companies?
First of all, they need to fit the business model we’ve already mentioned being an enterprise SaaS company. Then you look at the industry this company is operating in, the growth potential, and last but not least, the people that are involved in it.
Are the founders experienced? Do they have a global mindset or are they trapped in their local market? What’s also important for Bartosz and the team at Alfabeat is timing. Why now? Why is now the time for this company to get investment, to give it a try? Is there momentum? Investment is not always the best way to grow your business and Alfabeat are fully aware of that.
How can companies judge when it’s the right time for investment?
“You don’t need investment to build a successful business,” stressed Bartosz which is a very interesting take considering his background. He alluded to the fact that success comes with a mixture of factors such as a great team, a fantastic product, market gap and opportunity. The startup market is often led by many misconceptions of what makes a great business. It’s not just about a great idea, or a product or the amount of investment secured.
What most companies fail to realize is the right balance, the mix of factors and components necessary for VC and overall success.
What’s your relationship to blockchain and how do you see its potential?
Bartosz mentioned that his initiation to the blockchain world came with Alfabeat’s investment in Coinfirm, a company leading compliance for cryptocurrency, using powerful analytics across the most comprehensive blockchain database.
Even though fresh in the market, he is very bullish on the idea of a decentralized economy, less bureaucracy, less regulation and a faster moving business world. The diverse application of the blockchain is what intrigues and excites him seeing it already being used across different verticals.
How did you come across Tatum?
The recommendation came through a personal connection and we’ve been following Tatum ever since, mentioned Bartosz, highlighting Tatum’s value to blockchain development and adoption.
Tatum is not the only blockchain-related company on Alfabeat’s radar as the company is looking into decentralized energy companies. As far as other verticals are concerned, Bartosz pointed to cloud communications, conversational AI, and proximity service.
