John Dimmer

John Dimmer was one of my favorite, if not my favorite guest speaker we've had all quarter. First off, he's an angel investor which is probably the coolest job title I’ve ever heard so he get's automatic cool points. For noobs, John Dimmer is the managing member in a Tacoma-based private investment company, FIRS Management LLC.

He’s part of a large group of angel investors who take their money and invest it in startups and different companies which in turn they receive a return value.

During his presentation he talked to the class about how to get funding for your business. He mentioned several ways of receiving aid to ensure your business flourishes. The concept was mostly what we talked about in class, which includes the founding idea of a business, and how it’s carried out. There are different levels of funding; they include: self funding, friends and family, angel investors, first round, capital round, second round, mezzanine, and a public offer. We also discussed the different legal structures of a company. Some common legal structures include “C” Corporation and LLC’s.

The most important part of his lecture in my eyes was the discussion regarding equity. There are ways to sell ownership in your company by selling shares. In a sense equity has a larger magnitude because it’s a stake in your company that can be sold. Typically investors will expect a 10-time return over a 5-year period for any money they invest in your company. We also discusses the steps of equity investments:

·      Concept or idea à founders money

·      Proof of concept à friends and family money

·      Product design à angel money

·      Expansion à venture capital.

One the questions I asked in class was what the difference between an angel investor and a venture capitalist. Jokingly, Mr. dimmer mentioned venture capitalist file their teeth with a metal stick. The main difference is angels invest their own money, which sometimes isn’t the largest amount, where as VC’s invest millions in a company and expect an outrageous return value.