Raymond Luk

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• Have been reading a lot about how important is to build relationships with investors prior to pitching them but no one is really talking about HOW to build those relationships. Do you have any advice on this?

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    1. Engage investors on their blogs, Twitter
    2. Go to events in your city
    3. Organize your own event where investors will be present
    4. Network with CEOs in their portfolio

    In short, you have to take time away from your business to do these things. It’s not easy and it takes time and patience.

• How do I know when I have "traction"? Are their standard numbers to compare to? I run a SAAS financial tracking company.

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    Good question. I would break it down into 1) user growth (ie how many people are at the top of your funnel?), 2) engagement (are people doing the core activity that proves you create value for them?) and 3) retention (are they staying? you can add virality here too).

    2 is the most important for a new product company because you have to prove that your product works. But all numbers have to eventually trend upwards too.

• Beyond start-up costs, do you really need tons of capital in order to be a success?

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    No

• Is there a Year One Labs in Toronto?

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    Nope

• I'm looking to create the next Groupon kind of site. What do I need to do?

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    See one of the questions above. It’s a crowded space that’s somewhat in decline. Are you sure?

• Hi Raymond, Do you feel that the Group Buying space in Canada is hot, cold or neutral and which way is that trending? Also, as a VC, what are your general views towards investing in a new startup of this type?

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    Since you asked this question the space has gotten a LOT cooler with news that even Groupon is losing lots of money. I think it’s jumped the shark.

• does anyone know of any unique startups in the san diego area?

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    Localmind is from San Diego…

• I'm a co-founder in a startup that just raised close to $200K from a ten slide deck and need to hire/attract a technical co-founder. We're hanging out on hackernews, stackoverflow, and craiglist but are certain we don't have the technical chops to hire. We're in a a remote market and have exhausted useful help from local advisors.

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    How remote are you talking about? It’s very difficult to find great technical co-founders. You might consider hiring someone in a place that’s more of a tech hub, then considering relocating your whole team there. It’s worth it. Or try to recruit a local who’s moved away and is willing to relocate back. Keep trying.

• I have an idea for a product. I'm building the prototype by hand. I believe I need to patent it, but cannot raise the money for a patent. How do I go about raising funds without someone stealing the idea?

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    No one will steal your idea. Remember that most people you talk to won’t think it’s a good idea…that’s your best protection initially. Just build it and execute on it quickly.

• how many members does a start up need to gain VC attention and get them itching to get in on the deal?

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    We only invest in teams of 2 people or more, not individual founders. It’s not the number of founders that matters but the composition of the team. We also don’t invest in a team of purely non-technical founders.