Victor Charlie gets a free lunch

My business buddy has set me up to meet a friend of his who is a Venture Capitalist over lunch, and I'm looking forward to meeting up with him to get a sense of the lie of the land.


I'm hoping he can answer the following questions...

• What is the process for getting funding?


• Which are the right funds to approach and how do you get to find them? How do you get a meeting with them?


• How do they decide which projects to invest behind?


• What are the key things they are looking for?


• What is the most appropriate way to value a business? Is it a Discounted Cash Flow on mythical numbers?


• What will I have to concede in terms of ownership?


• How much will I have to invest myself?


• How long does it take to secure funding?


• What is the view on taking a sabatical from work rather than being truely free?


• Can I draw a regular salary from the company or will I have to be self-sufficient?

I'm not expecting to pitch to him or to present any of my ideas, just to chat through these questsions in return for him enjoying his free lunch...