Chapter 4 Start-Up Financing Raising capital at any stage of a company's growth is challenging and requires creativity and tenacity, but these hurdles are especially difficult to conquer at the earliest stages of an enterprise's development, when the business model is still under consturction and the track record for success is minimal or non- existent. In this chapter, we'll take a look at where and how to raise capital at the seed level--when you're first organizing your business, or when it is in its earliest stages of growth. In the chapters that follow, we'll look at funding strategies that are common- ly used after a business has gotten past the start-up phase and has established a steady flow of customers and a reliable revenue stream, even if the company 67 American Management Association www.amanet.org