Weekly Roundup: Fruit Loop Finance 🥣

Happy Friday, DVC! Kellogg’s CEO Gary Pilnick sparked outrage this week when he suggested struggling consumers eat cereal for dinner to fight the rising cost of groceries.

Considering Pilnick received $5M+ in compensation last year, I agree the remarks were in poor taste. But, in fairness, I’d rather have Fruit Loops for dinner than follow Procter & Gamble’s advice to fight inflation by eating Tide Pods.

Startup Discussion & Weekly Poll:

For those new to Doriot, here in our Venture Club community we scour the RegCF platforms (Wefunder, Republic, StartEngine, and more) for promising startups and release a new Deal Review every 2 weeks.

After 76 deals, we’ve seen the good, the bad, and everything in between - all while learning to spot the positive signals and red flags that might not be obvious at first glance.

At the core of DVC, we’re trying to collectively answer one question: “Is this deal credible?”

What makes a deal “credible” is a longer topic for another day. But, in light of the news on Mileberry (see below), we wanted to highlight some of the deals we’ve looked at and where they are now.

Let’s start with the bad…

NowRx (Deal #1 - April 2022): “On-demand pharmacy with free, same-day delivery”

• Status: Failed in Dec. 2022, 2023 dissolution process still unclear

• The Takeaway: Lots of learnings that we’ve discussed in Discord, but simply, the company misrepresented its financial position. You must ask the tough questions about cash balance, burn rates, and runway.

Mileberry (Deal #24 - Oct. 2022): “Last mile delivery with full automation”

• Status: Failed this week (Feb. 2024), details & confirmation pending

• Early Takeaway: There were questionable signals on this one... Example: The team claimed it had 40+ patents “backing up” its last mile delivery product, but the patents were all for mining and oil extraction. If something doesn’t make any sense, don’t be afraid to say no…

Now for the good (so far):

Oncolyze (Deal #55 - June 2023): “Treating Cancer by Exploding Cancer Cells”

• Status: Our first “exit”. 3 weeks ago, Oncolyze agreed to a merger that will buy out all investors for the value of their investments plus 10% interest. See details. 

Happypillar (Deal #4 - May 2022): “Providing evidence-based mental health support to families everywhere!”

• Status: A true “pre-seed” deal that was little more than an idea. Now, Happypillar has validated its product and over 2X’d its valuation from $6M to $14M.

StayFi (Deal #23 - Sept. 2022): “The short-term rental marketing & engagement stack”

• Status: In our opinion, StayFi has been quietly crushing it - consistently growing revenue, customers, and team size since 2022. Valuation increased from $8M at investment to $18M+ today.

And, the “to be determined”…

For the sake of your inbox we won’t list the other 70+ active companies. But, here’s a rapid fire list of a few we’re cautiously optimistic on (Note: Not financial advice):

• Help Texts (Deal #66): Emma Payne is an incredible founder with a brilliant approach to treating grief. See founder interview.

• Overplay (Deal #67): Caroline Strzalka and the team have a truly novel platform blending gaming with social media content. See founder interview.

• RAD AI (Deal #9): RAD has nailed the RegCF funding playbook, raising $5M+ from the crowd. From 2022 to 2023, valuation increased from $18M to $50M.

• Farm to Flame Energy (Deal #36): Raised in 2023 at a $10.5M valuation. Within months, signed a B2B contract worth over $20M.

  • Note: Woah 🤯 Literally as I’m typing this I’m seeing they’re about to raise a new round at a $50M valuation. I.e. a 4.76X increase in valuation from 2023.

Last Week's Results:

Last week we asked you to share your biggest motivation for investing in startups… and we’re locked in a tie! 37.5% of you said “I want to make money” and the other 37.5% said “I want to make an impact”.

The remaining 25% on Team “Other” just want some diversification (with a little fun along the way) ✅ 

Vote for New Deals:

Help select DVC's future deals! Please view the options, upvote your favorites, and suggest your own!

New companies suggested this week:

• Farm to Flame Energy, Sonic Power 

Deal Review #76 Update:

In case you missed it, this week we’re looking at Humanity - a startup building an app to help users live healthier for longer!

We’ve reached out to the team to request a live discussion with the founder, so stay tuned for updates. In the meantime, read the Deal Review or submit your questions below:

Thank you for reading & participating! Have a great weekend and see you for more DVC action next week!

Sincerely,

Team DVC