Middle Market Deals and how to buy, sell and raise capital from $5 to $500 million

The Know More Media team (note that this is a Know More Media blog) provided me with a video of the team discussing their business, its challenges and successes to date.  The KMM founders are Hal Halladay (who authors LeaderNotes), Tim Stay and Rich Christiansen.

I love these videos of entrepreneurs.  Great entrepreneurs tend to want to share their thoughts and ideas, their vision for the future and their plans.  Other people are attracted naturally to their entrepreneurial spirit.

Take a look at this video and let me know what you think!

Tim Stay posted today at LeaderNotes (usually authored by Know More Media CEO Hal Halladay) on his recent interaction with David Neeleman, founder of JetBlue.  I hate to share the punch line, but Tim felt compelled to give millionaire CEO David Neeleman a five spot.

Please read the post to find out why.  What I love about Tim's story is that in Tim's classic, modest way he demonstrates a personal characteristic that makes me admire him as much as--or more--than his counterpart in the story.

To be clear, what I admire about Neeleman is his integrity.  What I admire about Tim, includes his integrity, but also includes his generosity of spirit that makes it so easy for him to praise others.  Tim would much rather find something you're doing right than wrong!  Who wouldn't want to work for him! 

Hal, and Rich Christiansen, too, exemplify the same values.

The other day, when I heard the news, I mentioned to a friend that a former client of our firm had filed.  My friend, a private equity investor and former securities lawyer, asked if it was a good filing, i.e., for an IPO, or a bad filing--neither of us wanted to say the word.

In fact, LoveSac, a client for whom we helped raise almost $12 million of private equity, venture capital and angel financing in 2005, filed for bankruptcy protection under chapter 11 earlier this week.  I count founder Shawn Nelson as a friend--as I do the investors.  I can only imagine how hard this is for him, knowing how his friends, family and "angel investors" are being impacted.

I have told the shareholders with whom I have communicated and that we had encouraged to invest in the deal, that no one was more disappointed than I by this outcome.  I've also expressed my hope that the company can use bankruptcy to successfully restructure and preserve value for shareholders.

I am not privy to any inside information, have not had communication with the company and don't intend to comment after tonight on this topic.