Tenderloin Ventures is a Switzerland-based Superangel investing in early stage tech companies in central Europe. In general, we are looking to invest in two categories of companies. Here’s which and why:
#1 High Margin Niche Market E-Commerce Companies in Switzerland
Why? We believe that it will take Amazon at least another few years to penetrate the Swiss market. The total market size, the fragmented, multi-lingual users, the fact that Switzerland is not part of the EU and thus customs – all of these are reasons why Switzerland is not a low-hanging fruit. With Amazon not in the market, there’s potential for high margin niche sites.
Portfolio companies:
Some of our investments include farmy.ch (Online Food), amorana.ch (Sextoys), koffer.ch (luggage), schlafen.ch (everything that helps you sleep better) and parfum.ch (perfumes and related products). We see that the AOV is much higher than in the surrounding companies and that provides a lot of value.
#2 “Digital Models”
What we mean by that is companies that scale really well because they automate many of their processes. Ideally, these companies can service another 1’000-10’000 customers without adding any staff.
Why? We believe that companies that scale frictionlessly can provide exceptional value. Once the company understands its users and how it generates value for them and with them, it can scale rapidly and controllably.
Portfolio companies:
Zenjob is the 21st-century version of a temp agency. All processes are automated and distributing work and finding talent are frictionless processes. Frontify is a B2B SaaS tool that allows companies to manage all the assets associated with their style guide in a simple yet powerful interface. Clark is a mobile insurance broker that has automated most of the processes that are needed onboard a client, assess their insurance coverage, make recommendations and close the sale. Jodel is a social network that allows its users to communicate with the users around them – anonymously.
