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For reference, I am a first-time entrepreneur. Meanwhile this startup is led by a successful serial entrepreneur and is in an well-known incubator program. I suspect many of the top-tier investors have heard about this startup and are waiting until they launch and/or seek investment to evaluate the opportunity. Then if they like the space, they will back this serial entrepreneur. Actually I know this to be exactly the case as one prominent investor has told me so. |
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So far you haven't explained how you're different from the competitor. If there's nothing, then you have a problem anyway. If you do have a nice competitive advantage, your argument is that the market is certainly large enough for many players, and their existence will only increase the awareness of the root problem and that there are tools to solve it. Typical advantages are:
If you can't find an advantage, you might consider proceeding without funding. If you have even mild traction you might have a better story, or you might be able to get "bought" by that other company (read: great job with signing bonus and stock options that have a chance at being worth something). |
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Well, competition is a fact of life. In this case, its actually better - since there is already a funded validation of your target market. Doesn't sound like its too steathy or secret since you seem to know about their plans. what is your company status? do you have customer traction? have you figured out your min viable product? how many iterations have you done? What pricing models have you explored? In short - what lessons have you learned that can show prospective investors that you understand your segment and have the revenue numbers to prove it? A functioning organization with a working business model can easily trump a stealth organization. |
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