My Age of Investment

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“Relying on the US$30,000 income from selling cereals, our team supported us until the end of 2008, and then we began to face financial problems.

Fortunately, on the recommendation of our mentor, we successfully got an opportunity to meet with Paul Graham, the founder of a well-known entrepreneurial incubator in Silicon Valley. "

Xia Jingxing asked calmly: "Has YC Incubator invested in you?"

Brian shook his head first, then nodded.

“Our interview process didn’t go well, and Mr. Graham, like previous investors, was not optimistic about Airbnb’s development prospects and said our idea was terrible.

Therefore, we had to leave with regret!

But before leaving, we gave Mr. Graham a box of cereals designed and made by us as a souvenir. "

The puppy asked with a smile: "Then what? Graham fell in love with your cereal? Decided to support you in opening a cereal company?"

Brian chuckled and shook his head, "That's not true! When Mr. Graham learned that we had designed, processed and produced this box of cereal ourselves, we had successfully sold thousands of boxes and earned US$30,000. Then, he decided to make an exception and provide us with US$20,000 in entrepreneurial capital and invited us to join the YC training camp.”

The puppy asked in confusion: "Why?"

Brian smiled, "The reason Mr. Graham gave is that the founding team has undying beliefs and is very imaginative.

In other words, the Airbnb project did not actually impress Mr. Graham. What really impressed him was our entire team. "

Xia Jingxing smiled and said nothing, these old capitalists understand the essence of investment very well!

Early investment is actually about casting a wide net and catching more fish.

But it’s not just a random vote!

Before early-stage projects shine, investment institutions will naturally focus more on founders and teams.

Learning to capture the strengths and characteristics of the founding team is almost a required course for excellent early-stage investment institutions.

“We have been in the YC incubator since January this year, and it has been almost three months now.

Under the careful guidance of YC training camp instructors, Airbnb's development is finally on the right track, and its income has increased from US$200 per week when it first entered the incubator to US$4,500 per week now. "

Brian changed the topic, "However, we recently found that the transaction situation on the website is not very optimistic, and the business growth rate has declined.

So we visited dozens of properties and finally found that the crux of the problem lay with the landlord.

Their poor photography skills and poor copywriting concealed the advantages of the house itself, resulting in a stagnant transaction volume.

In response to this situation, we spent a lot of money to rent a high-end camera and prepared to go door-to-door to take photos of their rooms for free.

We can’t afford to hire many people right now, so the three founders can only do these tasks ourselves. "

Nathan, the guy who was knocked down by Pete and also the CTO of Airbnb, said: “The two of them were responsible for taking photos, communicating with the hosts, and collecting feedback, while I was responsible for handing out flyers.

We have now begun to enter the apartment market, and may also enter the villa market and the luxury home market in the future.

Right, Brian? "

Brian smiled and said, "Yes, Airbnb will not set limits for itself. Our ultimate goal is to collect a variety of listings to meet the diverse needs of different users."

Xia Jingxing nodded slightly. He thought he could come out on top, but he didn't expect that the first blood had already been taken by YC.

But it doesn’t matter, even if you miss the seed round, you can still invest in the angel round and A round.

"I ask you a question and you answer me truthfully. If your answer satisfies me, I can provide you with nearly 300 units. In the future, this number will become 3,000 or 30,000 units."

Xia Jingxing's words made the three founders of Airbnb feel short of breath, and they all looked directly at Xia Jingxing.

They knew whether to go back to selling cereals to make extra money or ride on the wind, it all depends on the other party's question.

I hope I and others can answer it!

Xia Jingxing had no intention of teasing the three of them, and did not have the time to spare. He asked straightforwardly: "How did you get the homeowner to allow strangers to stay in their house? In other words, how was the trust problem solved?"

Brian's heart suddenly thumped, and he secretly screamed that something was wrong!

This is the biggest Achilles heel of their business model. Investors have raised similar soul-tortures before, but without exception, they all failed and were unable to give investors satisfactory answers.

“We have communicated with many homeowners offline and it’s been a pleasure getting along with them.

Sometimes the homeowners even take the initiative to invite us to their homes for drinks to thank us for helping them earn an income.

Every one of them strongly agrees with Airbnb’s business philosophy and trusts our website.

Everyone gets along very well, like a family.

Most people who are willing to rent out their vacant rooms on a short-term basis are very open-minded and easy to get along with. "

As soon as Brian heard Nathan's answer, he knew something was wrong.

as expected!

Xia Jingxing shook his head and said, "If we only rely on favors to maintain the relationship between the website and the homeowner, the cost will be high.

If Airbnb operates in this way, it will not be able to grow at all, and it will be able to operate dozens or hundreds of houses.

What I need is a solution that can be replicated and scaled quickly. "

Gibia said with a solemn expression: "Actually, we have thought about establishing a security deposit system for landlords. If the landlord's house is damaged by a tenant, we can provide compensation up to US$5,000.

At the same time, we also plan to establish a security deposit system for tenants in the future. If a tenant suffers personal injury or property damage in the room, we will also provide corresponding compensation. "

Xia Jingxing pursed his lips and did not answer, as if he was deep in thought. This made the three of them feel anxious for a moment.

Airbnb, Uber, and WeWork are known as the Three Musketeers of the Sharing Economy.

In fact, based on its establishment time, Airbnb is the true originator of the sharing economy.

Since it is a sharing economy, some houses are in a state where landlords and tenants live together, and it is important to maximize the use of resources.

In this way, while allocating resources reasonably, it also brings many security risks.

As far as Xia Jingxing knew, in the past life of Airbnb, tenants often damaged the house.

It would be fine if it were just property damage, but what is really troubling is the endless candid filming, sexual assault of female tenants, and various other vicious injuries.

But he just invested in Airbnb, and these problems were not his turn to worry about.

"The guarantee of US$5,000 is a bit too low. This will be a major obstacle to your expansion."

Xia Jingxing looked at the three founders and said: "If I were a homeowner, I would feel that the security deposit did not fully cover the risks of renting out my house, so I decided not to rent out the house."

Brian sighed, “For the time being, we can only afford this amount of insurance money.

If you want to achieve what you call complete coverage of the risks of renting a house, the security deposit will be an astronomical figure. "

Xia Jingxing smiled, "The solution is actually very simple, bring in capital!

We will use the power of capital to help you expand, and at the same time improve the security deposit system to solve the worries of landlords and tenants, and assist the company in completing its expansion from the side. "

Brian was very happy and said: "Darren, are you willing to invest in us?"

"Of course! From you, I see the shadow of my entrepreneurial days, so I think you are worthy of my investment!"

If these pretentious words were spoken through someone else's mouth, Brian would probably sneer at them.

But what Darren Xia said is definitely a compliment and affirmation of their Airbnb founding team.

Xia Jingxing asked Liu Xiaoduo to bring him a business card, and then he handed it to Brian.

"Tomorrow you go to see ED Ricky Milner, executive director of Vision Capital's Silicon Valley office, and he will be responsible for discussing specific investment details with you.

After the investment is completed, you can join the Facebook open platform and sign a cooperation agreement with the house rental company Vision Homes to obtain nearly 300 apartments.

In addition, Ricky should also draw you into the Entrepreneur Club of Vision Capital, which includes entrepreneurs such as Reid Hoffman, Mark Pincus, and Jeremy Stoppelman.

They are all startup CEOs who have received investment from Vision Capital, and they are very friendly and united.

If Airbnb needs promotion and various resources, you can contact them and they will be happy to help. "

Brian and the other three were dumbfounded. Is this the power of the big boss?

If you don't agree, give money and resources.

Facebook traffic, much-needed housing, and opportunities to cooperate with many star startups such as LinkedIn, Xingjia, and Yelp...

The three of them really felt as if they were stunned by the happiness that fell from heaven!

"That's all for today. I hope that when we meet next time, Airbnb has already left San Francisco and the United States. Your website is very interesting and worth promoting to the world!"

After saying that, Xia Jingxing stood up, shook hands with the three of them one by one, and then left with a group of people without looking back.

After watching Xia Jingxing and his group walk away, the three of them slowly came back to their senses.

They all felt that what they experienced today was so amazing that they didn't even dare to write about it.

A few loser youths set up a small company that was very busy. When they went to the building to hand out flyers, they unexpectedly met a well-known billionaire. After a few words, he said that he wanted to invest in them. .

Gibbia murmured: "Maybe it was our experience of selling cereals that resonated with Darren. After all, he also walked through it step by step and understands the hardships of young entrepreneurs."

Brian looked down at the business card in his hand, smiled and said, "Maybe, it feels like a dream, it feels unreal."

Nathan suddenly slapped his thigh, "Oh no! Have you two forgotten? Mr. Graham said that he will introduce us to Sequoia Capital soon!"

Hearing this, Brian and Gibbia looked at each other, and both saw the confusion in the other's eyes.

On one side is Sequoia Capital, the king of VC, and on the other side is VC supernova Vision Capital.

How to choose?

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