In the fourth episode of this summer's Investor's View series, Sports Loft welcomes Anthony Bontrager, managing director of WestRiver Group.

Over the course of our conversation Anthony explains what he's looking for when founders approach WestRiver for funding, what he and the group can offer once a deal is done, and how entrepreneurs should be operating in the current economic landscape.

By its very nature, knowledge is contextual, and any one person’s or organization’s knowledge is limited to their level of involvement and interaction with other elements of their unique eco-system.

As early-stage investors (and former founders ourselves), we know first-hand how difficult it can be to launch a successful startup. Which is why we have always been keen supporters of the incubator or studio model as a means to help entrepreneurs think through some of the difficult questions that invariably get missed at the earliest, most formative stages of a company.

The last few years in the private equity markets culminated in what I call "Moral Hazard at Scale." However, as the Great Reset begins in 2023, there are some encouraging signs that reality and rationality are starting to take hold in the market. This has me very bullish and why I believe now is the time to be investing in private capital markets. Those with conviction and patience should be handsomely rewarded.

This week on Finding PROOF, hosts Jennifer Schretter and Thanasis Delistathis sit down with Anthony Bontrager, Managing Director at West River Group, a firm that invests in seed and early-stage companies in the US Pacific Northwest.

Over the past two quarters, industry participants and research analysts alike have all put forward their wisdom on what the venture capital landscape will look like in the coming months and year. Set against a backdrop of a public market correction, increasing inflation, rising interest rates and political unrest, it would be easy to sound the horns of Armageddon and “let slip the dogs of war.”

Today’s startup environment is faced with numerous challenges for entrepreneur and investor alike. My interview with Joe Wallin and Michael Schneider of The Law of Startups attempts to highlight some of the key focus areas for entrepreneurs and what investors need to be prepared to address as their portfolio companies grow.

The traits that make up what I call the “Creator Gene” are many and varied. A tendency toward natural leadership, a disregard for tradition, a willingness to fail, excessive self-motivation, competitiveness, and a deep, deep curiosity – all bound together by a little OCD.