1 Million Cups: XCelerate’s Rod Ford

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.

Ford will be the featured speaker at Wednesday’s 1 Million Cups in Little Rock, where he’ll talk about his experiences in venture capital and what he’s up to with XCelerate.

The programming starts at 9 a.m. at the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce. It’s easy to participate: just show up, drink coffee, ask questions and network for an hour.

Talk Business & Politics caught up with Ford for an advance of his 1 Million Cups talk.

Talk Business & Politics: Where is XCelerate’s place in the entrepreneurial ecosystem that’s evolving in Arkansas?

Rod Ford: We make it easy. Private equity financing is confusing to the startup entrepreneur because the landscape has varied definitions. At a macro-level the capital requirements of a startup look like this:

• Formation Round: Company Insiders Provide Startup Capital
• Seed Round: First Outside Investor Buys Common Stock
• Growth Rounds: Institutional Growth Investor Steps In

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.

TB&P: You are trying to fill a particular niche. Is this where you feel you have the best expertise or do you think this is where there is the greatest need right now?

Ford: We are more than just money. Entrepreneurs – not VC’s – build great companies. But founders need more than just funding. They require mentorship to learn from the experiences of successful entrepreneurs in order to accelerate their company’s growth. At XCelerate, we’ve built an ecosystem where founders work beside successful entrepreneurs for holistic advice while having access to tools and services needed to expedite success from the very beginning.

TB&P: Why should someone come to see your presentation tomorrow? Besides being rocket-ass smart, what are you going to say that they shouldn’t miss?

Ford: We will graduate you into your next funding. After two years of mentorship and access to larger clients and markets, your business will be in a position that it needs additional capital for the next wave of profitable growth. Our strategic relationship with Silicon Valley Bank and multiple growth-focused private equity investors will allow us to guide you into the funding relationship best suited to ensure plenty of growth capital for the company.