By Kayla Harvey
We connected with Jeanne Sullivan, Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Arcview Ventures – a vertically integrated company servicing the cannabis and hemp industry, built with social justice and responsibility at its core.
Jeanne is passionate about delivering ideas, information, and inspiration to entrepreneurs. She is also a fierce advocate for cannabis reform and understands how common mistakes in the initial pitch cycle can lead cannabis entrepreneurs to lose the opportunity.
Jeanne Sullivan, Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Arcview Ventures
To start, can you provide a brief overview of what an investment pitch deck in the cannabis industry should look like?
A serious investor in any sector appreciates a well-written pitch deck (10–12 pages at most) that tells the story about the product or service. It should look clean, have no typos, and be precise.
A basic outline would include:
- The vision and a simple description of the product or service.
- The problem being solved and a compelling description of the solution provided.
- A simple chart with 3-year projections and a graph showing conservative revenue growth, operating expenses, and net income works well for early-stage companies.
- How will this business attract customers? If partners or resellers are in the sector, list them as potential partners for this business.
- Who else is playing in your sector?
- The team slide with short bios of the business’ core team. I like to see the pedigree of experience of those involved. An organization chart is also good to include if the team is established.
- A timeline, where it is essential to show the beginning of the business and what you are creating.
- The ask: How much are you raising, and what type of financing vehicle? Entrepreneurs should NOT put the valuation of the business on this slide but be prepared to talk about “aspirational valuation” if asked.
- Do you have a “social equity” focus? Are you planning to contribute a percentage of revenue or income to a significant cause in the cannabis sector? Who do you support in the sector as your mission?
Any CEO raising financing should create these tools: The Executive Summary, The Pitch Deck, and The Deal Room or VDR – virtual data room). An executive summary provides enough information that the potential investor will want to dig in and hear the business plan’s specifics.
I recommend using the executive summary to get a meeting, then using the pitch deck during the in-person or online meeting. A deal room is a secure online repository for document storage and distribution. You can send the potential investor (if they signal strong interest after the initial pitch) to the deal room for more company data and to review key documents.
For those putting together a pitch deck for investment or partnership within the cannabis industry, what are some big mistakes you have seen businesses make in their presentation?
The #1 mistake I see is entrepreneurs who don’t understand how to articulate their competitive advantage with their product or service. “Competitive advantage” refers to factors that allow a company to produce goods or services better or sometimes cheaper than its market rivals.
Is there a way to approach cannabis investment without a traditional pitch deck? Are there deals being made that skip that step? What would be an example of a scenario where this could work?
Sure, there is a way if you are a seasoned entrepreneur with an incredible track record. However, a pitch deck helps keep the conversation organized and helps deliver a complete story. I would always recommend a Pitch Deck–even if you don’t use it and talk with the investor–but it provides an outstanding record of what you are building.
