Our Process

Working with Alloy typically begins with a promising idea. That idea is initially evaluated by one of our partners through an executive summary, slide presentation or informal in-person meeting. After we have understood the underlying idea of the business and determined that it is potentially a good fit for our fund, we will invite you in to present your idea with other partners, and ask you to go into some depth about the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats related to your business. We will ask you to bring in the founders and key employees, so that they can answer questions about their areas of expertise. We may ask one of our entrepreneurs-in-residence or an outside expert from our network to sit in. These meetings are a very important part of the evaluation process. Your team's ability to clearly articulate and summarize the important issues in your plan reflect their true understanding of the business and how well they will be able to sell your ideas to future employees, investors and customers.

Although we often work with an entrepreneur before anything has been committed to paper, at some point we will want to see a detailed business plan or presentation. A good business plan is more than a money-raising tool. It is also a working document that captures the essence of your company and accurately models the requirements for executing your strategy over time. When building the plan, it is crucial that you talk with your customers, evaluate your competitors, and do your financial homework.

Your business plan should describe:

The problem you are solving or need you are filling, and the opportunity it creates for your company
The solution you intend to provide
The market, the competitive landscape, and key trends
Sales and distribution strategies
Intellectual property assets
Government regulation issues
A liquidity plan
Key team members and skill requirements
A five-year financial plan, including income statements, balance sheets, cash flows and a capitalization table