Rod Ford-backed Investment Group Hopes To Help Early Stage Mid-South Startups

For startup enterprises, there are typically three critical financing junctures as they launch, grow and accelerate: formation capital, seed funding, and growth investment.

XCelerate Capital – founded and managed by nGage Labs Rod Ford – has formed a new private seed stage venture fund focused on what many say is the toughest level for a new company to jumpstart financing.

“In our experience launching startups, Seed capital is the hardest money for aspiring startup entrepreneurs to get. It’s the very first cash from an outside investor bold enough to take a chance at the pre-profit stage to get onboard with you to get the brand-new business rolling,” XCelerate says on its web site.

XCelerate said the new private seed stage venture fund is focused specifically on investing and assisting founders of early stage technology companies. The firm will center its investments on Mid-South startups that “have transcended the idea stage and have already developed innovative first-generation products or services with a potential for rapid growth.”

Typically, an XCelerate investment will be around $250,000 into companies with 4 to 10 employees and revenues less than $500,0000, the group said.

“XCelerate’s niche is to provide the much needed early stage funding, coupled with experienced and active entrepreneurial mentorship for the founder team. We have identified and are bridging the chasm between the ‘friends and family’ funding of the ideation phase of a startup and the traditional private equity growth capital available upon positive cash flow,” said Ford, who is not only a founder but is Managing Partner of XCelerate Capital. “Candidly, my own experience as a serial entrepreneur in founding multiple companies in the Mid-South has made me acutely aware of this gap in our region, and especially in Arkansas.”

XCelerate says it will be working with a variety of Entrepreneurial and Innovation Centers, Hubs, and Accelerators across the region to identify companies that meet the fund’s investment profile.

Ford contends that investment is not enough. He said XCelerate plans to be active mentors to companies in which it chooses to invest.

“Arkansas ranks in the lowest 5 percentile of states for access to early stage funding. However, as much as a startup needs capital, it’s not enough. Founders equally need active mentorship where experienced entrepreneurs are engaged with them daily, providing experience, coaching, and resources,” Ford said.

“Skepticism is growing for the old model of ‘passive investment’ where investors are updated quarterly or called only in a crisis. The XCelerate approach is designed to create a new and successful model for active mentorship of early stage investments and it is our hope that the success of XCelerate’s model will attract more early stage investors into our state,” he added.

Dustin Williams has joined the XCelerate team as a partner, Ford said. Williams has worked with startup successes Acumen Brands and Bourbon & Boots.

“There are certain best-in-class practices that all early stage startups need, like effective viral customer acquisition and engagement solutions,” said Williams. “The XCelerate Capital principals are experts in the customer engagement ecosystem and are building a world class platform shared by our investment companies that will ensure large conversion of digital audiences to loyal brand buyers. This is just one example of the advantage of active investors, as opposed to the existing investment model.”

Charles Morgan, former CEO of Little Rock-based Acxiom Corp. is an advisor to XCelerate Capital, according to the company web site.