Strategy
Small investments for strategic growth
The Winnow Fund’s strategy involves making numerous small investments in early-stage companies, rather than a few large investments in later-stage companies. Investing early allows us to obtain an equity stake that mitigates some of the risks involved with investing at this stage. We seek to generate a large enough individual return for the Fund to balance the portfolio’s anticipated losses and provide our investors with the national average rate of return.
Investment Criteria
- Wisconsin-based company
- Raising a first round
- Capable of being positioned for exit in 3-5 years
- Estimated need of $3-5 million total paid-in capital (across fundraising rounds)
- Team with the skills, motivation, and commitment to execute the business plan and raise future rounds
Note: We also evaluate pre-seed investments, companies valued at about $500,000 or less, looking for about $100,000 for proof-of-concept/prototype development. If a company enters our portfolio at this stage, it can later pitch us for a seed investment if it still meets our criteria.