In the mind of an American VC

After a first experience in entrepreneurship while creating an education company in the early nineties, Bill Reichert founded Garage Technology Ventures with several partners, a seed-stage and early-stage venture capital fund in Silicon Valley. It was in 1998, when people were in the very early stages of referring to these new companies as "startups". Almost 20 years later, Bill Reichert also joined Pegasus Tech Ventures as a partner. The venture capital firm is not only one of the investors in the global unicorns AirBnB or Bird, but also the organiser of the international Startup World Cup pitching competition. Bill Reichert travelled to the Grand Duchy in February for the regional semi-final. Interviewed in the offices of EY Luxembourg in Kirchberg, he talked about investing, start-ups, CEOs and how European entrepreneurs are viewed on the other side of the Atlantic.

Bill, what does it take for a startup to stir your interest?

Once you find this compelling value proposition, what are you looking at before taking the decision to invest?

Once you decide to invest in a startup, what are your first considerations to help the company grow?

How much should a VC get involved in the startup he just invested in?

What are the qualities a CEO must have to grow a startup?

Is there a difference between the US and European entrepreneurs’ mindset? Do they pitch differently or do they have different ways to sell their business?