Stout Street Capital

What is Stout Street Capital?

Stout Street Capital is an early stage venture capital fund founded in 2016, based in Denver, Colorado. They invest in early to growth-stage companies, focusing on industries such as software, IT, FinTech, hardware, A.I., material science, and robotics.

Stout Street Capital targets companies operating in the technology, robotics, artificial intelligence, data analytics, medical technology sectors, and more. The fund typically invests between $100,000 to $1,000,000, with the sweet spot being around $500,000.

They specialize in Early, Pre-Seed, Seed, and Series A rounds. As a VC fund, they lead deals or participate in syndicates and are open to working with other investors to reduce the due diligence burden on founders.

With a large co-investor network and leadership roles in the UNMET Conference, they strive to expedite fundraising efforts for startups and let founders concentrate on building their businesses.

They place great value in founders, insisting on domain-level expertise and grit. Stout Street's investments are generally in post-product, post-revenue tech startups, preferentially with $20,000-$30,000 or greater monthly revenue. They're a generalist fund with a leaning towards the B2B SaaS business model, and they focus on pre-seed and seed-stage companies aiming to raise over $1M in institutional venture capital.

The fund predominantly invests in the US and Canada, excluding San Francisco, New York, and Boston.

Rounds they engage in should raise at least $1M, providing 12-24 months of runway. Their due diligence process typically spans 2-3 weeks.

They have a commitment to transparency, reviewing every investment opportunity and communicating openly when a deal is not a fit for their portfolio. The key personnel include Clay Gordon, who co-founded the firm with John Francis, and focuses on sectors like HR, cleantech, edtech, insurtech, and fintech, and Cindy Ho, a Jr Partner with expertise in financial analysis, data analysis, and investment strategy.