Deal Abstract

The 500lb gorilla in Asian/Asian-American media organizations is raising money. What precedent does this set for Goldhouse, Nextshark, ACE, EO, and the like?

Financials (VRB)

Question	Notes
1. Fundraising Target?	$650000
2. Fundraised So Far?	$312000
3. Pre-Money Valuation?	$3000000
4. Previous Year's Annual Revenue	$190177.19
5. Previous Year's Annual Net Income (+ Profitable, - Burning Cash)	~$-87651.99

Source

The 6 Calacanis Characteristics ("Sow Passion, Not easy mediocrity", or S2 P6 N18)

Criteria	Yes/No
1. A startup that is based in SV?	False: Las Vegas, NV
2. Has at least 2 founders?	True: Two
3. Has product in the market?	True: Social network
4. 6 months of continuous user growth or 6 months of revenue?	True: Though extremely modest
5. Notable investors?	False: None available
6. Post-funding, will have 18 months of runway?	True: Low burn

Source

The 7 Thiel Questions (Every Time Man Profits, Don't Dismiss Serendipity)

Question	Score	Notes
1. Engineering?	4	Probably most well-known Asian professional organization, comparing to Goldhouse, ACE, and other affiliation organizations
2. Timing?	4	Asians are the fastest growing demographic and have garnered more national attention in recent years
3. Monopoly?	5	Honestly I don't know anyone larger than Asian Hustle Network
4. People?	3	Solid team, bootstrapped to 100k members, $100k+ in revenue, and with backgrounds in entrepreneurial orgs and media
5. Distribution?	3	Digital distribution and good job teaming up with players with brands
6. Durability?	4	It's pretty hard to compete with AHN's brand and scale at this point
7. Secret?	2	Asian entrepreneurs are an underserved market and will pay premium for services, education, and community.

What has to go right for the startup to return money on investment:

1. Build something more defensible than just an events/conference business; 2. Sharpen value proposition and also identify exactly what types of entrepreneurs are core business; 3. Drive more value to more mature entrepreneurs who have been drawn to organizations like EO

What the Risks Are

1. Not scalable; 2. Asian entrepreneurs demand for this type of good is not venture speed; 3. Media is a lead funnel but ultimately not enough of an independent business

Bonus Muhan's Notes

Very cool to see AHN raise money, but the question is whether this is a small business or a startup.

Updates

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