I'm a serial entrepreneur who has raised $145M+ and has had multiple exits. I'm now on a mission to support founders with their capital strategy and acquire the capital they need to grow their businesses. Thunder.vc is a tech-enabled investment bank for founders, by founders. 

When it comes to supporting the founders in our Thunder.vc community, here are some free resources that can help you with your capital-raising efforts. 
- $100M Exits newsletter & Podcast 
- Sign up at http://blog.thunder.vc 
- Free list of AI-recommended VCs specific to your business - https://web.thunder.vc/list-of-investors-vcs-for-founders  
- Free tool to source lending partners for your working capital needs - https://lp.thunder.vc/apply-for-working-capital-for-your-startup-company



Securities are offered through Finalis Securities LLC Member FINRA / SIPC. Thunder X Capital, LLC is not a registered broker-dealer, and Finalis Securities LLC and Thunder X Capital, LLC are separate, unaffiliated entities.

Jason Kirby

This is the story most founders never post on LinkedIn. Most founders only focus on the upside.
 
Very few imagine the moment they stop being CEO.

James Rose scaled his first business to millions in revenue rapidly. Everything was going up and to the right...until it wasn't anymore.

Then the market turned.
The business collapsed.

And suddenly, he had to do the unthinkable: become an employee again.
Not because he wanted to. Because he had to. Family to support, lifestyle to maintain, and unsure of what the next big idea would be. 

That transition of losing the company and the identity was harder than the failure itself.

I chose to have James on because he had some amazing insights around this transition. It took him over a decade to get back in the saddle as a founder again, but he's managed just fine. His life wasn't over. 

But he was practically unemployable outside of sales. He was "over qualified"

So he dropped his ego and aspiration for a VP role and took a mid level sales job and grinded. It was tough, but it worked for him.

In this episode of $100M Exits, James breaks down:

- The emotional toll founders don’t talk about
- Why identity gets dangerously tied to the title
- How this moment reshaped how he builds today

I felt this was an important story to share as most founder don't know what's next after a failure. James's story is a ray of hope for the hopeless founder wondering what to do next. 

See the full episode in the article.

4x Exits, $100M+ Raised. Helping founders raise/exit with clarity, control, and conviction.

Watch the full video here This is not a story we discuss often on this podcast, but I felt Jame's story of having to "get a job" after scaling a multi

Open article: From CEO to employee, the pivot no one prepares for by Jason Kirby • 2 min read

From CEO to employee, the pivot no one prepares for

Yesterday I spoke my partner Oliver Low about a founder who just lost 2/3rds of their revenue right before making an acquisition. 

It was a total death to the founder. In their mind, how could they, in good faith (and legally) acquire a company with their stock if they just had a massive hit like that. 

This roll up acquisition strategy was designed by my partner and I to help them clear their pref stack and ensure the founders had a solid paid day for their efforts.

No one expected their anchor client to change management and drop the contract 🤯 

We empathized with the founder, and they ultimately just want to throw in the towel, wind down the company and return the $0.25 on the dollar back to their investors. 

I honestly respected them for that. They've had it hard enough on their journey, to reboot after a hit like that and all their plans crumble before their eyes...could they really put in another 5+ years to turn it around and clear their pref stack...is it even worth it?

Sometimes it's just better to quit...yes...the nasty Q word. We're often don't as founders "never give up" "never quit"

But sometimes, it's economically illogical to keep going from their perspective. 

The company needs a recap to ditch their toxic cap table that's holding them back, raise more cash or sell to someone who has cash to perform the AI roll up strategy. But the founders don't the energy or the desire to put up that fight.

It's a great business otherwise, just the prefstack makes it not worth it. 

It's a reality that more and more founders are running into when they can't grow fast enough to exceed their past valuations or pref stacks. 

If you know founders facing these issues, tag them in the comments and let them know they're not alone. 

I spend my days helping founders navigate these situations. 

For this particular founder, I might acquire the business myself and put in a CEO to execute the roll up strategy. There's always a creative way to solve every problem, but the incentive has to be there to make the juice worth the squeeze...never forget that part.

If your CAC is rising, your only defense is LTV.
Brian Ree built one of the highest-LTV businesses in fashion & sold for $700M

Here’s the playbook that led to a ~$700M outcome:

- Make LTV your North Star (not revenue).
- Improve gross profit per order before scaling traffic.
- Control supply chain via private label.
- Track 52-week cohort spend religiously.
- Use AI to predict product-level expected value.
- Optimize retention before increasing paid spend.

My takeaway from Brian, especially in the world of DTC today, growth doesn’t fix broken unit economics. It magnifies them.

While competitors chased top-line revenue, DailyLook engineered durability.
The result? Stronger margins, better retention, strategic leverage in M&A.

Watch the full episode below.

Watch the full video here Brian Ree’s journey with DailyLook is a reminder that survival precedes scale. When growth stalled and capital dried up, he 

Open article: How Brian Ree Turned a DTC Crisis Into a $700M Exit to Victoria's Secret by Jason Kirby • 2 min read

How Brian Ree Turned a DTC Crisis Into a $700M Exit to Victoria's Secret

When Kris Rudeegraap raised $100M from SoftBank for Sendoso, it didn’t start with a term sheet.

It started with a coffee.

SoftBank came inbound in late 2021.

Within days, that coffee turned into partner pitches.

Two weeks later, he was told:

“Block your entire calendar. We’ll tell you the day before Masa is ready.”
No private jet to Japan, like he was told, just a Zoom grid with a dozen SoftBank partners and Masa Son at the center.

Masa wasn’t casual.

He knew the numbers.

He asked pointed questions about growth velocity.
He grilled the US partners about how big this could get.

Then: silence.

A couple weeks later, Kris got the term sheet.

But the wire? Delayed for months...MONTHS because of international transfer reviews.

But once that $100M was real, expectations changed overnight.

Not subtly. Overnight.
At the time, Sendoso was around ~$50M ARR.

They had already raised roughly $65M prior.

With $165M+ in preferred capital stacked, the thinking wasn’t defensive.
It was:

“How fast can we double again?”

So what did they do?
They hired. Aggressively.

Kris said they ramped up to roughly 30 recruiters just to fuel hiring across go-to-market.
SDRs. AEs. Marketing. Post-sales support.

Because in 2021, the math felt simple:
More heads = more revenue.

Top-down target said “double.” Bottoms-up math didn’t get them there. So they changed the inputs. Turn on the hiring flywheel.

In hindsight, that wasn’t irrational, but tt was consistent with the rest of the market raising stacks of cash.

But then 2022 hit.

And the same company, with the same strategy, suddenly had to pivot. Growth at all costs pivoted to conserve and generate profit. He hired all those people and before they could generate a dollar of revenue, he had to lay them all off 😬 

The board conversations change when capital isn’t cheap anymore.
Which leads to two uncomfortable truths:

1️⃣ Mega-rounds distort decision-making
When you have $100M in the bank, the pressure to justify it shapes behavior. You optimize for scale, not resilience.

2️⃣ Capital amplifies strategy, it doesn’t fix it. If your go-to-market motion works, capital accelerates it. If it’s fragile, capital magnifies the fragility.

I talk to founders everyday wanting to raise capital, but they often don't realize the burden that comes with it. 

But kudos to Kris, he took the medicine, built an advisory board of over 100 experts, and navigated the storm to acheive amazing results being a leader in his category. 

If you want to hear the full story, check out my latest podcast on $100M Exits.

Watch the full video here Raising $100M doesn’t solve your problems; it magnifies them. Kris shares what founders rarely talk about: the operational w

Open article: How Sendoso Raised $100M From SoftBank by Jason Kirby • 2 min read

What color box are you in? 

If you're not in the green at the very least...I don't think we can be friends. 

I'm in the redbox  🦞 

This also explains the mega valuations we're seeing in AI. Real revenue is being generated at a scale and speed never seen before, and we're barely scratching the surface.

Pitch 4 Impact Inc

Pitch 4 Impact is a program created to equip founders with the essential skills and tools to secure capital from investors:

- create a compelling pitch narrative 
- craft a pitch deck that grabs attention 
- present with confidence and impact

Drawing from my experience as both an angel investor and a presentation skills trainer, I've designed content that directly addresses the unique challenges of pitching. The goal is to make your pitch both powerful and efficient.

Having listened to thousands of pitches as an angel investor, I have identified what resonates and what falls flat, understanding precisely what investors want to hear. Additionally, I bring extensive experience in training leaders and teams worldwide to deliver impactful presentations, having with people from all over the world in various industries.

Pitch Trainer, Pitch Coach, Angel Investor

Sather Robinson Consulting 

Dana helps leaders  give pitches and presentations with impact, clarity, and authenticity. With over 20 years of experience in training and marketing, she works with her clients to tailor solutions that best suit them. 

Pitch coaching to entrepreneurs who are actively raising money: Dana helps CEOs to give pitches with impact, clarity, and authenticity, even online. Dana has a unique combination of expertise as both an investor and a trainer so that the content is tailored to the needs of the audience and the pitch is engaging.

Presentation skills training and consulting: Dana’s unique and interactive training provides leaders the skills to give powerful presentations. Dana emphasizes how to make the most of natural conversational styles - whether in a large group, small meeting and even on line – to be memorable and keep listeners engaged.

Owner, trainer, pitch coach

Element 8 Angels

Active member and committee member of E8 (formerly known as Element 8), an innovative cleantech angel investing group. Dana is frequently a pitch coach for CEOs seeking funding. E8 helps early-stage cleantech companies whose innovations will increase the sustainability and health of our planet. We meld our pursuit of profitable investments with our pursuit of a higher purpose – accelerating the transition to a cleaner future and a better world.

Member

Communications Training

Pitch coaching to entrepreneurs in money raising a stage. 
Presentation skills and selling skills training.
Communications consulting and training.

Communications Consultant and Trainer

Active Communication Ltd

Pitch training and consulting: worked with a large financial institution to develop new client pitches with customer focused content and interactive delivery.
Communication skills training: Facilitated tailored program to several teams at a European bank.
Presentation skills training: Provided specialized training in presentation skills to service companies and charities.

Sr. Consultant,

Silkstone Capital Management

Marketing and Communications Consultant

Active Communication

Presentation skills training: to business executives and management teams.
Selling skills training: Developed and facilitated selling skills program for the sales team of international publishing company.
Conducted consulting and coaching on communication issues and important presentations.

Senior Consultant

Lynx Pacific Limited

Developed and delivered cross-cultural training for executives moving to Hong Kong (while based in Sydney, Australia in 2001).
Communications consulting and presentation skills training to executives and leaders in Hong Kong. 
Marketing consulting - Assisted American, Asian and European companies in developing markets in Asia.
Key projects: 
Developed and implemented marketing plan and successful launch of French food products.
Organized Asia-wide direct mail campaign for a regional publication.
Co-ordinated regional sales for European spirits manufacturer.

Marketing Consultant

Dana helps founders to give pitches with impact, clarity, and authenticity. She works with founders raising their seed or Series A and up rounds to give great pitches to the right investors. 

Dana has a unique combination of expertise as both an investor and a professional trainer. 

A diversity of life and work experience gives Dana unique perspectives. She has lived in several different countries and worked with people and teams in companies from a broad spectrum of sectors – from large financial companies to cleantech entrepreneurs. This breadth and depth gives Dana the ability to help you craft messages that resonate and to teach you to communicate them with impact and authenticity.

Dana emphasizes how to make the most of your natural conversational style - whether in a large group, small meeting and even on line – to be memorable and keep your listeners engaged.

Dana Sather Robinson

This made my day!

Can you explain your business in 30 seconds, 2 minutes or 10 minutes? 

You need to be ready to meet investors in all kinds of situations. Sometimes you meet someone at an event and have 30 seconds for a quick intro. Or you might meet over coffee and be asked for the 5 min version before they ask questions. 

It's important to have a clear pitch story that you can adapt for any situation. 

If you don't have that, come learn how at the PItch4Impact Bootcamp next week.  Jack and I had fun brainstorming and planning his pitch story.  I make it fun!

Details in the comments.

Investors don’t invest in products—they invest in scalable businesses.

You might be passionate about your product’s features (we all are) but when you’re pitching, here’s what investors are really listening for:

 🔍 Who's the customer?
 📊 How big is the market?
 📈 Are they gaining traction?

The biggest mistake founders make?
 👉 Leading with how it works.
 The smartest move?
 🔥 Lead with why it matters and how big it can be.

Remember: You’re not just selling a solution — you’re selling a vision. A business. An opportunity. 💼💡

#pitchdeck #investorpitch #venturecapital #pitching #fundraising #pitch4impact #innovation #entrepreneurship #publicspeaking #storytelling

Stop letting a confusing pitch cost you investor meetings! 🛑

Founders raising capital, you know the frustration: your business is incredible, but investors don't seem to "get it." 

It's a communication gap, not a business problem.

Our 4-day bootcamp is designed to bridge that gap. Stop guessing what investors care about and walk away with a pitch story that lands follow-up meetings.

Intense, focused, and fast results, all for just $25.

Ready to finally get the meetings you deserve?

For details and to secure your spot, link is in the comments. 


#startup #fundraising #pitchdeck #investors #venturecapital

“I'm okay at pitching once I get going.”

That's what one founder recently told me. The problem?

That doesn’t work. 

You don't have the luxury of "getting going" with investors. You have 30-60 seconds to grab their attention before they get distracted.

Investors are busy. Long, rambling pitches lead to confusion and a quick mental checkout.

That's why the hook is a crucial part of any pitch. It's the first thing we perfect in our Pitch Bootcamp. Master the hook, and investors have clarity and stay engaged. 

Interested in working on your hook, along with a pitch story that gets you follow up meetings? 

Check out the Pitch Bootcamp. Details in comments below.

Are Investors "Stupid" or what?

Ever walked out of an investor meeting thinking: “those questions were so stupid”, "Are Investors stupid? 

The answer is no, they aren't stupid. But if they're asking "stupid questions," it means that your pitch is confusing them.

Here's why: Investor confusion leads directly to stupid questions because they don't understand what you are doing.

The "stupid questions" aren't a sign of their incompetence; they're a symptom of your pitch.

Like Tammy. She was frustrated because she could tell, by the questions they were asking, that investors simply did not understand her business.

So we worked together to change her pitch story. 
➡️  explained the clear business case, not just the tech. 
➡️  Focused on the areas investors need to hear. 
➡️  Included stories for clarity and engagement. 

The result? Tammy raised her round and told me: “I can now deliver my pitch with confidence and know that they will understand.”

If you want to get intelligent questions that move the conversation forward, you need to eliminate confusion first.

Ready to transform your pitch from confusing to compelling?

Join the Pitch 4 Impact Bootcamp and learn the exact framework we used to help Tammy and many other founders secure funding. You’ll leave with a clear pitch that prevents those "stupid questions" and gets you follow-on meetings,

It starts on March 10th so hurry. Details in the comments. 

I hope to see you there.

Will investors remember you a week later?  

Here’s what happens when investors hear your pitch: 

We listen. Ask a few questions. Then we hear more pitches the same day. 

Now imagine: a week after your pitch, we’re asked “what founders have you met that are interesting?”

Will you be one of the few founders remembered as interesting?

The fact is, only a few founders stand out. 

Investors hear a LOT of pitches. 

And most are forgettable. Harsh but true.

That's why I created the Pitch 4 Impact Framework, to help simplify your story, and make it easy for investors to remember.

Because you need to be remembered to be invited back for a follow-up meeting!

Ready to be unforgettable?
Join a small group of founders in the PITCH BOOTCAMP starting March 10. Link with details is in the comments.

#Fundraising #InvestorPitch #Venturecapital #PitchDeck

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The Battle

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Dana Sather Robinson

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