François Gilbert
Anges Québec is always looking for innovative projects and looking for entrepreneurs to realize them. It is with great enthusiasm that its founder and CEO François Gilbert gives an overview of his actions to website devenirentrepreneur.com on 27 mai 2016.
Founded in 2008, the network Anges Québec brings together private investors who are interested in new, ambitious and audacious enterprises. “Our work focuses on startup innovation, explains François Gilbert. About 90% of cases that we fund have not found money elsewhere. ”
The financial angel has to work to make the entrepreneur and the company more efficient.” The primary objective of the contractor is not to make money but to realize and achieve. That is why we want a fair and equitable agreement for both parties,” says Gilbert.
For François Gilbert, the angel investor shares many similarities with the entrepreneur: “The angel investor is a builder at heart. He should possess excellent analytical skills and the ability to project into the future. As the entrepreneur, the investor wants to change the world. ”
The angels are, at first, interested to contribute to the company’s growth by adding value to business projects in which they invested. To allow contractors carry out their business, angel investors do not hesitate to contribute their business expertise, network and time. “As financial angel, our role is to assess the viability of a concept and pushing the contractor to improve while always trying to adapt. A good idea never comes ready to use. It needs to germinate, to develop, to confront the realities of the market. ”
To submit a project to investors Anges Québec, the contractor must submit its business plan on the network’s website and it will receive an initial response within two weeks. If the project is selected, François Gilbert and its members convene the contractor to a first presentation in Sherbrooke, Montreal or Québec. This initial meeting includes a presentation of eight minutes and questions for eight minutes also. When the project attracted the attention of members of Anges Québec, a second presentation is organized a week later. This typically takes an hour and a half.
Our work focuses on startup innovation – François Gilbert
When this last presentation generated favorable reactions, the company then engages the negotiation phase; i.e. the terms and conditions of the agreement, which legally bind the entrepreneur and the investors. According to Mr. Gilbert, “the whole process should ideally take three months, but sometimes it’s faster. On average, our procedures take four months. ”
If the trend is startups, whose business is mainly in the fields of high technologies, Anges Québec investors are also interested in activities related to sustainable development, biotechnology, e-commerce and software industry.
Anges Québec has invested in many Quebec companies, including BonLook and Frank & Oak (e-commerce), Hexoskin (Dress technology) or Marmott Energy and SCL Elements (clean technologies). “In Quebec, the excellence of the training, including technology, makes them very comfortable entrepreneurs with product development. They are a little less on marketing and sales. It is in these areas that we work most often, “says François Gilbert.
