From Healthcare Data to Space Tech: October's Highest-Rated Crowdfunding Deals

CHART OF THE WEEK 📈

By Teddy Lyons | Read

In today’s Chart of the Week, we look back at October to highlight the top offerings in the crowdfunding landscape. First, we highlight the top-rated deals on the Kingscrowd platform. Additionally, we look at the companies that drew in the most capital investment from retail investors.

• Healthcare data provider RegenMed led the way with a strong 4.87 rating.

• AI-powered video/audio editing software provider Resound rated a 4.86.

• Space sustainability startup Orbotics rated a 4.83.

• Finally, AMASS Botanicals and Qnetic rated 4.79 and 4.74, respectively.

• In terms of dollars raised, lithium-extraction firm EnergyX raised a whopping $17.1M, bringing it’s total raised amount to $75.5M over the duration of its RegA raise.

• Crowdfunding veteran Miso Robotics raised $10M.

• Arrived Debt Fund raised $4.56M, while Starfighters Space and Infinity Fuel Cell raised $2.97M and $2.29M, respectively.

INVESTMENT ROUNDTABLE

By Sam Fiske / Watch

This week’s Investment Roundtable tackles critical trends in startup investing, exploring the concept of zombie companies with low growth and how it affects investors. The team also introduces new Kingscrowd raise page features, giving investors a closer look at updated financial metrics. The deal we review is Trevi Systems, a forward-osmosis desalination startup led by a founder with prior billion-dollar exits, offering promising growth but at a premium valuation. Finally, Brian recaps recent meetings with the SEC and Congress, where discussions covered improved investor protections, tax credits, and greater transparency in the crowdfunding space.

WEBINARS

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PITCH REVIEW 💸

By Teddy Lyons \ Deal Report

Brief: AMASS Botanics is a quickly-growing botanical beverage and personal-care company, offering natural solutions crafted for modern life. AMASS’ products appeal particularly to health-conscious customers and are offered in 50,000 restaurant and retail locations nationwide. AMASS. Offering everything from dry gin and vodka to soap and candles, AMASS’ products are natural, non-GMO, and consistently top consumer rating lists for its alcohol products. The company is raising its third crowdfunding campaign on the back of a blockbuster 2023, where the company recorded $33.5 million in revenue and $4.9 million in net profit.

Key People: AMASS is led by 4x Founder & CEO Mark Thomas Lynn, who previously founded DSTLD and ran for nearly five years. He also founded Jet Entertainment Group, a 300 employee multi-brand restaurant, hotel, and hospitality group with 8 locations. He also founded a sports management software company called PlayCoed. 

Morgan McLachlan is Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at AMASS, where she also runs the De Soi Sparkling Aperitif, a company that AMASS incubated and grew to millions in revenue. She previously served as Head Distiller at The Spirit Guild. Before this, she spent her career in television, working for various film productions. She holds a Bachelors in Cultural Studies from Simon Fraser University and Producing/Film Development from UCLA.

Erin Green serves as COO of AMASS and previously served as COO of Winc for over 8 years. She also served as Senior Manager of Merchant Acquisition at LivingSocial.

Summary

Here's what we like: Financially, AMASS Botanics has shown impressive revenue growth, increasing from $3.1 million to $33.5 million year-over-year, a 989% growth rate. The company has also achieved profitability with a net income of $4.9 million in 2023, a remarkable feat. These financial metrics highlight the company’s ability to scale its operations and generate sustainable revenue streams. The company has done so with decent gross margins of 32% and has consistently made profitable strategic acquisitions to bolster its product portfolio (see Winc acquisition). Additionally, the company has successfully distributed its products to over 50,000 locations and high-profile establishments like Soho House Global and Michelin-starred restaurants. The company also sells in major grocer retailers like Whole Foods, where AMASS has over 20 SKUs.

Here's what we don't: AMASS Botanics faces several key factors contributing to a bearish outlook for the company. One significant market challenge is the highly competitive landscape. The botanical spirits and personal care market is saturated with established brands like Seedlip (acquired by giant Diageo), which have strong market presence, customer loyalty, and financial backing. Additionally, it is unclear what the current financial condition of AMASS is. The company reported $700K of cash on hand in July 2024 and a burn rate of $500k. While the company has access to large credit lines that will allow AMASS to continue operating, it is unclear why the company is now burning so much money after a largely profitable 2023.

LAST WEEK’S POLL RESULTS

Would you invest in Printera?

🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👍 (9)

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 👎 (15)

24 Votes

INSIDE STARTUP INVESTING

In this episode, Chris interviews Erik DeGiorgi, the CEO of NetSpeek, a company that is evolving audiovisual (A/V) management in the workplace. NetSpeek is addressing the common and frustrating interoperability issues in modern offices by making all AV devices communicate seamlessly. Erik, who has nearly two decades of experience in the Pro A/V industry, shares insights on the inception of NetSpeek and how their innovative platform uses AI to simplify A/V operations, essentially allowing devices to be controlled through natural language commands.

STAFF PICKS 🌶️

DataBiologics

DataBiologics is a software platform that enables healthcare practices to collaborate and conduct research through automated patient surveys. The platform generates valuable insights for research, education, and marketing, and currently has a network of 130 clinics, 220 providers, and 11,000 patients, with clients like SoftWave, Emory Healthcare, and Orthohealing Center.

• Valuation Cap: $10 million

• Minimum Investment: $100

GameFlip

Gameflip is a digital marketplace where gamers can securely buy and sell gaming items and assets, such as in-game items and skins. With advanced technology to ensure safe transactions, Gameflip provides a trusted platform for its community of seven million users, who have generated over $180 million in sales.

• Pre-Money Valuation: $41.2 million

• Minimum Investment: $275

RegenMed

RegenMed is a healthcare data company revolutionizing the clinical research market with patented technology that generates value from real-world evidence at a low cost. Its Circles solution converts doctor-patient interactions into valuable clinical data, aiding healthcare providers and product manufacturers in driving medical innovations.

• Pre-Money Valuation: $20 million

• Minimum Investment: $336

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