Scott Austin, a blogger for the Wall Street Journal, reminded us once again that industry defining businesses often come out of the depths of economic downturns:
Hat's off to Belmont MBA alumnus Dr. Jim Stefansic and his co-founders. Their company, Pathfinder Therapeutics, made this list!
The week of Oct. 6, 2008, is often referred to as "Black Week," when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 18% in its worst-ever weekly decline.He identifies eighteen emerging firms that got financing within 30 days of "Black Week".
In the aftermath, venture capitalists tightened their purse strings to reflect the new reality. Sequoia Capital held a now-famous meeting on Oct. 7 for portfolio companies in which a PowerPoint presentation titled "RIP: Good Times" underscored the importance of cutting costs. Young start-ups struggled to attract new investors as investment levels plummeted in the coming weeks.
But some venture firms continued on fueling new companies, perhaps mindful that Cisco Systems Inc. raised money from Sequoia about two months after the 1987 stock-market crash.
Hat's off to Belmont MBA alumnus Dr. Jim Stefansic and his co-founders. Their company, Pathfinder Therapeutics, made this list!
