Q4 statistics from Gust, which powers a majority of the organized early stage financing world, show that entrepreneurs around the world have gotten the message: “products talk; Powerpoints walk”. In an economy with ever-decreasing startup costs for new companies, 91% of ventures seeking their initial financing rounds during the past quarter have come to the table with something to show prospective investors. That means products already in development, fully operating websites, or even actual revenues…not just grand pictures on the back of a napkin.
At the same time, the increasingly pervasive use of Information Technology in all areas of business—and across all sectors—means that it’s not only the tech geeks who are making a splash in the startup world. Food & Drink ventures broke into the top ten most active early stage industries for the first time, representing 5.10% of all new startups seeking funding. Together with other traditionally non-tech industries such as Consumer Products, BusinessProducts and Media & Entertainment, they outpaced new startups in the combined Internet, Web and Software industries by 25% to 23%.