Presentation given by Carl Power, Head of Investment at NDRC

1. What is
NDRC Catalyser?
An investment programme for very early stage companies with deep
know-how and technology that address a global unmet market need
6 month acceleration programme at NDRC
Up to €100k investment

2. What are we
looking for?
 Deep know-how and technology, beyond proof of concept that address
a significant unmet market need or problem
 Globally scalable product and/or services led propositions
 Propositions with strong a commercial and technical team
 Potential to be investor ready or revenue sustaining within 6-9
months

3. Why NDRC?
 We have guided more companies to investor ready stage than
any other Irish accelerator. Over 180 with approximately 60% in
continued operation employing well in excess of 500 people
 A strong network and track record with follow on investors. Our
investee companies have secured in excess of €110M in follow
on investment
 Recognised as one of the top 5 accelerators in Europe, our
programmes and supports have been refined over the years to
provide exactly what a young company needs to bring a great
technology to market.

4. Why NDRC
Catalyser
 Up to €100k investment
 6 month intensive, deeply experiential commercially focused
programme
 Mentoring and access to our networks
 “Hands on sleeves rolled up approach” from some of the best mentors
in the ecosystem
 Access to multiple areas of expertise
 Location & culture – collocated with over 50 start-up companies
 Peer to Peer learning

5. Investment
Mechanism
 Investment is made through a convertible loan
 The loan converts to equity at later stage investment round at a
discount of 20% to reflect that our investment was made at an earlier
stage i.e. higher risk and typically lower valuation
 Why use a convertible loan note?
 Difficult to create realistic valuations for early stage start-ups
 Provides a means of raising finance without the need to establish a
valuation therefore reducing the time and effort this entails.
 Valuation is effectively postponed until a more realistic basis for
valuation is possible

6. Key Investment
Terms
 Investment is made via a convertible loan agreement
 Investment is in two tranches - an initial €30k investment and a second
investment of €70k conditional on reaching agreed milestones
 Milestones are developed jointly and agreed prior to the programme
 The loan converts to equity at the next round at a 20% discount to the
round price
 Solely for the purposes of converting the loan, a cap of €1.5M and a floor
of €500k is applied

7. Key Dates
March 31 Open Night
April 1- 6 1:1 Sessions available at NDRC
April 6 Application Deadline
April 8 Pitch Invitations Issued
Week of April 11 Investment Pitches
April 11 – 20 Additional Information Requests by NDRC
April 26 First Round Offers subject to milestones
May 13 Agreed Milestones
June 7 Programme starts

8. Application
Process
• Online form via http://www.ndrc.ie/catalyser/
• Just 10 questions
• Once your application is submitted, a Venture Investment Leader will
contact you
• Closing date is April 6 at 5pm
• Don’t wait until the deadline!!

9. The Pitch
• Tell us your story…
• 40 minutes (20 Pitch/20 Q+A)
• One idea per slide
• Be creative
• Content + timings
• Practice, practice, practice

10. The Pitch
• Anchor your Value Proposition
The value to the customer; the unique selling proposition; the
innovation
My company [Company Name]
is developing [defined offering]
to help [target audience]
solve [x problem]
with [y secret sauce]
Unlike the competition, we [differentiation]

11. The Pitch
• Define your problem
The problem of [pain point x]
is experienced by [target customer segment; including customer
archetype]
and we know this because [results of customer discovery]
• Describe your solution
 Focus on BENEFITS to your customers rather than FEATURES

12. The Pitch
• Market Opportunity
• We hope to see scalability in large global markets
• Outline who the customers and users are (they could be different)
• Can you quantify the niche target segment?

13. The Pitch
• Competitors
• Everyone has them… who are yours?
• Opportunity to demonstrate you know the market you’re entering
• Position your differentiated offering

14. The Pitch
• Business Model
• How are you going to make money?
 License fees; one off product purchase; rental; additional services…
• How will you reach customers?
 Direct sales force, digital marketing & sales

15. The Pitch
• Team
• Who is the team?
 Track record & skill sets
 What makes each team member uniquely qualified to make the
proposition successful
• What’s expertise is missing?

16. The Pitch
• Roadmap
• Major milestones for next 12 months
• Customer validation
• MVP launch
• Product launch
• Rollout plan
• Insight into new markets/products/features…

17. Selection Criteria
#1 The Grab
Is the idea compelling? Do they have BHAGs?
#2 The Problem
Did they make it clear that there is a big, important problem that they’re
going to solve?
#3 The Solution
Were they specific about what they’re offering and to whom?
#4 The Opportunity
Did they provide basic market segmentation, size, growth and dynamics?
#5 The Competitive Advantage
Did they detail why they’re different to the competition?
#6 The Model
Did they detail how they are going to generate revenues and from whom?
#7 The Team
Did they detail why their team is uniquely qualified to win?
#8 The Reality Check
Can they achieve a meaningful milestone in 6-9 months? What are the key
risks they face?

18. Further
Information
Contact: ventureleaders@ndrc.ie