Analysis of Bolt Marketing Strategy
Bolt: Seed Venture Capital Firm
Each group will watch the 8 videos contained in the “Bolt: Seed Venture Capital Firm” Multimedia Case found in the HBP Coursepack. Your assignment is to complete the questions listed below and summarize them in short 2-3 slide video that will be recorded and enabled for the rest of the class to view.
A grade will be assigned for each group. This grade will make up 6% of your final grade.
Each member of the class must watch the presentations of the other 6 groups and comment on at least 2 of them in the discussion board entitled “BOLT: Seed Venture Capital Firm Comment Board” located in the Unit 3 Folder. Your participation in these discussions will account for 2% of your final grade.
Questions:
In the fall of 2014, the team at BOLT is planning to simultaneously open a new facility in San
Francisco modeled on their Boston facility, and raised $25 million venture fund. Among the issues you might consider are the following:
- Evaluate BOLT using the People, Context, and Opportunity framework. Do you believe BOLT has identified an attractive opportunity? What have they proven? What remains to be proven?
- Are the deal terms BOLT offers to entrepreneurs fair?Has BOLT delivered on the value-added promise made to entrepreneurs?
- Assuming that 50% of new venturesfail, what do the remaining 50% investments made by BOLT I have to doto generate attractive returns to investors?
- Should they open a facility in San Francisco? What are the risks and rewards?
- Should they raise a $25 million fund? From whom? On what terms?
- Would you invest in BOLT II? To help your assessment, assume that 50% new ventures fail, 20% generate 2x return, 20% generate 5x return and 10% generate 20x return.
- People: BOLT has a strong team with experience in venture capital and entrepreneurship. They have also built a network of entrepreneurs and industry experts who can provide guidance to their portfolio companies.
- Context: BOLT operates in a competitive and dynamic market, with many other venture capital firms vying for the best deals. However, they have identified a niche in the pre-seed stage, where there is a gap in the market for early-stage funding.
- Opportunity: BOLT has identified an attractive opportunity in the pre-seed stage, where there is a need for funding and support for early-stage startups. They have proven their ability to identify promising startups and provide them with the resources they need to succeed.
However, there are still some questions that remain to be answered. For example, it is not yet clear whether BOLT’s deal terms are fair to entrepreneurs, and whether they have delivered on their promise to provide value-added support to their portfolio companies.
Assuming that 50% of new ventures fail, the remaining 50% investments made by BOLT I have to perform exceptionally well to generate attractive returns to investors. BOLT needs to focus on identifying and supporting the most promising startups in their portfolio, and providing them with the resources they need to succeed. They also need to be proactive in managing their portfolio companies and helping them navigate challenges and pivot when necessary. If they can do this successfully, they have the potential to generate attractive returns for their investors.
