I am starting a local internet cafe here. I need an investor. I have great ideas for residual income and know this business would thrive because we do not have an internet cafe within 300 miles of us. Anyone know where to find an investor?
You can attend some local business seminars.. sure can find some big guys there. Alternative is to take loan from the bank.
Depending on how much seed capitol you are looking for, I need a tax shelter for some income this summer. I would make sure you have some paperwork for Non Disclosure/Non compete signed, if it is a truely profitable idea. Of course paperwork can't be to broad or investors shy away just from having there hands tied. Geographical area would good at narrowing the scope for brick and motor idea.
Hi there, I'm also looking for investors & am checking out this company that helps small businesses (or even large bizes) in learning how to get what you want from networking & investors. If you are interested in finding out what I found out, PM me. I'm waiting to hear back from a guy who's gone to the conference this week. It isn't cheap, but I love the whole way they do things. They think outside the box & that's the type of person I am. I'm surprised how few cafes there are in the States. Here in the Toronto area they are a dime a dozen & cheap too compared to other cities. I wish you all the best with it whatever you do Michelle
Depending on how much capital you need, your best bet may be to first approach family and friends for seed money to get you started. The terms from them will be less annoying than from a professional money manager. Also look to angel funding, which is the next step up and still not as bad, because angels tend to be lawyers and such who have extra money and want the thrill of investing in something in their community that they can point at and say "I'm part of that".
from personal experience, the worst thing you can do is get money from family and friends. please, dont ever mix business with friends and family, it has the possiblity to do unrepairable damage to your relationship
I do not have an family or friends that have substantiation money that they could lend me. I like the idea of an angel investor, but I have no idea how to find someone that would be interested in this. Thanks for all the feedback so far.
NEVER borrow money from family or friends. It usually ends up in a nasty fight even if you do well then someone is fighting over there cut and so on since they invested and if you do bad then someone is fighting about losing their money. Either way try not to mix family and friends with business. I has been successful before but is usually not and not worth it.
Yes, angel investors might be an option. However, if you are so sure that an internet cafe will succeed because there is no competition, why not try a loan from a bank. This way you will have the business to yourself and pay the loan back from the earnings.
I have no established credit, so I do not foresee any bank loaning me the money. My credit is not bad, I just have none established because I have always shyed away from credit cards, I did not want to get in debt. However, it has caused trouble in getting a loan. So I really think my best bet would be an angel investor. I wonder how long something like this could take and if anyone has ever dealt with an angel investor please share your experience.
If you don't have a good education and executive experience, banks are out (especially right now). Vist the SBA and look there. No competition doesn't mean the business will be profitable. Generating sales and making a profit are two different things. Do you have a business plan? Who will run this place? What type of experience does your executive team have? What is the 1, 5 and 10 year outlook? What's your marketing plan? You may have all of this in place, but if not, VC's and others most likely won't give you the time of day. And if all else fails, take out an ad in the paper. Never know.