"One year ago, at New York's Dealbook Summit, Bezos told Andrew Ross Sorkin those early fundraising efforts were an absolute slog, with dozens of meetings with angel investors-the vast majority of which were "hard-earned no's." "I had to take 60 meetings," Bezos said, in reference to the effort required to convince angel investors to sink tens of thousands of dollars into his company. "It was the hardest thing I've ever done, basically.""
"The structure was straightforward: Bezos said he offered 20% of Amazon for a $5 million valuation. He eventually got around 20 investors to each invest around $50,000. But out of those 60 meetings he took around that time, 40 investors said no-and those 40 "no's" were particularly soul-crushing because before getting an answer, each back-and-forth required "multiple meetings" and substantial effort."
""The first question was what's the internet? Everybody wanted to know what the internet was," Bezos recalled. Few investors had heard of the World Wide Web, let alone grasped its commercial potential. That said, Bezos admitted brutal honesty with his potential investors may have played a role in getting so many rejections. "I would always tell people I thought there was a 70% chance they would lose their investment," he said."
Amazon's market value stands near $2.38 trillion and Jeff Bezos's net worth is $236.1 billion. In 1995 raising the first seed capital required 60 meetings with angel investors and generated about 40 rejections. Bezos offered 20% of Amazon for a $5 million valuation and eventually secured roughly 20 investors who each put in about $50,000. Many investors did not understand the internet or its commercial potential. Bezos candidly warned investors there was a high probability of loss. Early investor commitments were critical to the company's subsequent growth.
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