Speaking of Startups

Lee Farabaugh and Joe Maxwell join me on the Charlotte Angel Connection today to discuss Core10. Lee Farabaugh is the Co-Founder and President of Core10.  She is a technology design, operations and innovation expert with over a decade of experience in fintech and health care IT – and she’s been fortunate to call Charlotte home before! Joe Maxwell is the Managing Partner with FINTOP Capital.  FINTOP Capital, is a venture capital firm managed by a team of seasoned operators, based in Nashville, TN. In addition, to being an investor in Core10 FINTOP capital was an earlier investor in DealCloud – a Charlotte startup that was sold several years ago (here founders Rob Cummings and Ben Harrison talk about their exit on Episode 78). Core10, founded in 2016 and backed by FINTOP Capital, is a leading US-based provider of API Integration and SaaS implementation services to the fintech and financial services industry. Their 100% US-based development team is located in smaller US Hereshore® communities, including Huntington, West Virginia, and Martin, Tennessee, where they offer clients expert resources at a competitive rate. These Hereshore® communities are selected because they produce highly educated developers in places with a significantly lower cost of living than the major US hubs and large cities. During the podcast we discuss their business value of providing high quality software in US from costing a fortune.  Listen to why Lee decided to start their business in West Virginia and Tennessee and learn about the success they have had in building relationships in the community, working with Universities, and becoming a community leader. We discuss the business model now and future, partnerships with other states, and the need for building an ecosystem. They share their success stories of making the deals happen, and what business has been like for Core10 for the past four months during the early stages of the Covid19 pandemic. You don’t want to miss this podcast and listen to their excitement and desire for everyone to win.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

We are really pleased to have Jordan Schindler, CEO and Founder at Nufabrx (previously known as Textile-Based Delivery, Inc) on the podcast today (watch our podcast on Youtube). Much like our last podcast with Chris Wright from Whystle (click here), Jordan had to deal with a big change to his business model during March.  While he was in the midst of launching into Walmart and had just finished a capital raise, the need for more masks in the US was/is directly in their line of work.  As such, we explore this pivot and the impact with Jordan in detail. Before diving straight into the meat of the pivot, we learn Jordan grew up in Arizona and at an early age knew he had a passion for entrepreneurship.  He attended the University of Washington in Seattle.  Fighting an acne problem in college he sought out a dermatologist who essentially recommended Jordan to change his pillowcase more often.  It sounded like a crazy concept – wash your sheets to solve the acne problem.  As such, Jordan took to solve the problem in a different way – creating fabric that heals. Jordan shares his story of how he got involved with a group of people from MIT and how their relationship evolved.  He moved to the Conover, NC in 2016 to have access to the Manufacturing Solutions Center.  This was a pivotal moment in the business as it really opened lots of doors for Jordan and the business and provided him access to tools it would have been impossible (or highly expensive) to purchase on his own. Nufabrx is innovating smart materials which integrate state-of-art controlled release of active ingredients within garments, offering topical and transdermal benefit with high compliance, safety, aesthetics, and convenience.  Their patented platform technology enables the safe and controlled delivery of active ingredients to target locations on the body. Listen to his success story from a pillowcase to socks with built in pain relief to masks for today’s pandemic. **Special note, for every order they receive, they donate masks to healthcare first responders.**  You can order there mask and glove products here (www.theramasks.com).   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

Chris Wright, founder of Whystle, joins us today on the podcast. Chris is an entrepreneur obsessed with learning and relentless personal improvement. Chris is from Indiana, grew up in upstate New York and attended University of South Carolina.  After college he had a job with Deloitte and was fortunate to have a few months prior to his official start date.  During his time off, Chris started two businesses which was where he knew he wanted to come back to.  One of the businesses, which he still co-owns, sells private label men’s accessories thru an Amazon FBA (fulfillment by Amazon).  You’ll hear a few of the lessons he learned through this business as we dive through his journey. Chris spent two years as a consultant with Deloitte before he finally nailed down his next company - Whystle. Whystle is an on-demand cleaning service you schedule via an app.  Whystle’s goal is to provide simple to book, transparent cleaning services so people know what they were getting, how much they are paying and can get their time back! In our discussion today, Chris discusses his consulting assignments at Deloitte and what made him decide to leave Deloitte. With the demands of being a consultant, working long hours and traveling demands he had no time to maintain a “home”.  He first got the idea to start Whystle in the fall of 2018.  He thought it would be a great concept for professionals who – like him - lead busy lives so they could take back some of their free time. Chris built his website, got operational, and started Whystle full time in March 2019.  They had a successful first year, lots of ups and downs but successful. One year later COVID-19 happens and by end of March 2020 75% of their overall business had to pause services.  He discusses the challenges they experienced during this time. Listen to how they overcame the business challenges resulting from COVID-19 pivoted to a new service for commercial property owners, Whystle Disinfection Services.  Chris’ goal for Disinfection Services is to help businesses reopen safely and to help create a place where employees and customers are not fearful.  He discusses their back to business opening plan and discusses guidelines they have made available on their website for others to use.  Chris has made his back to business plan available online including a free 15 minute consultation.  Please follow this link for additional tips and details - https://www.whystle.co/back-to-business-action-plan. It’s a great podcast, you don’t want to miss it.  Chris is a great leader, a team player and truly has the desire to help and educate people on how to reopen and do it safe.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

We are exploring the world of video podcasting so please feel free to watch today's podcast here - https://youtu.be/Fn4NpldmZhQ Scott Pope and Eric Kirsch join the podcast today to discuss Mito Station and the health care startup space in Charlotte.  Mito Station is a co-working space built specifically to meet the needs of innovative healthcare start-up companies.  In addition to getting this unique concept off the ground both Eric and Scott hold down other jobs in the health care space in Charlotte.  They’ve been dedicated to building a network in the medical community over the last several years to help cultivate the growing need for more innovative medical startups in Charlotte. As such, the concept of Mito Station came out of necessity and something Eric and Scott have seen become important as the healthcare startup community has grown up.  Eric has been leading the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs (SOPE) and their Charlotte Chapter since we last did a podcast with him and Scott has continued to grow the NC Health Innovators Group he launched in 2018.  Together they have seen more healthcare-based startups in the area – and even greater demand for more. We discuss the challenges and strategies in developing workspace in the healthcare industry and the three main needs for innovating healthcare in Charlotte.  They discuss their relationship in working with other healthcare stakeholders in the Charlotte area and the direction they are going and what the healthcare ecosystem will look like in the next 3-5 years.  They also discuss their opinion of why Charlotte is having success in the healthcare start-up scene. Mito Station will offer flexible lease terms and spatial arrangements that allows tenants to become submerged into the healthcare ecosystem.  Mito Station tenants will have unlimited access to the healthcare innovation center which will offer access to useful resources, events, and healthcare professionals. SOPE is a community comprised of all types of healthcare professionals, entrepreneurs, organizations, and investors. They have regular networking meetings and an annual state conference. NC Health Innovators is an organization looking to bridge the gap between health-care providers and technology entrepreneurs in the Charlotte region and across North Carolina. It is a great podcast, listen to learn about Charlotte’s healthcare ecosystem.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

Today, we welcome Hall T. Martin to the podcast.  Hall is the Founder and CEO of TEN Capital Networks, formerly known as the Texas Entrepreneurial Network.  He has been involved in the Texas angel investors community since at least 2006 when he became the director of the Central Texas Angel Network.  Since then, Hall has gone on to start or run the Wilco Angel Network, the Austin Entrepreneur Network, the Baylor Angel Network and several others. Hall was kind enough to have me on his podcast to talk about what's happening in the Charlotte startup/angel community a few weeks ago. In those discussions, I learned some things about Hall and his approach to angel investing I thought would be valuable to share with our listeners. One of the more interesting things we dive into his view of a 3X in 3 years approach to the companies they invest in. It's a essentially a redemption right which protects the investor from having the startup turn into more of a lifestyle business than a fast growing startup to be acquired in a number of years. As we continue our discussions, Hall has some really good advice on ways for entrepreneurs to build relationships with local angel investors.  We also dive into meeting structure and what Hall's learned over the years for having angel network meetings.  Hall also highlights ways the process has been partially moving online - even before Covid-19 - and something we can all attest to after fully utilizing Zoom and other online conferencing sites. Hopefully you enjoy today's podcast with Hall! Our next podcast is with Scott Pope and Eric Kirsch as they talk about the local healthcare startup scene and their continued efforts to nurture a growing part of Charlotte's startup scene.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

Today Don Rainey, Partner with Grotech Ventures, joins us on the Charlotte Angel Connection.  Don is an experienced venture capitalist with a track record of successful enterprises. He has been involved with internet-based companies building large audiences and businesses for over 20 years. Over that time, he has made investments in ecommerce, fintech, networking technology and social media-related startups. Don moved to the Lake Norman area in 2013.  He is part of a growing number of Lake Norman area residents who have experience in the venture/startup space. They are increasingly utilizing Davidson’s Hurt Hub as a place to meet, network and share opportunities. In our podcast today, Don speaks about the role of a venture capitalist.   We talked some about Don’s decision to move into the VC space “way back” in 2000 – including the story of his first pitch.  Given Don’s experience, we had some fun talking about the his most and least successful investments.  He goes into nice detail talking about what created success for the successful one and what lead to the demise of the unsuccessful. During the podcast we also discuss what Charlotte is lacking in the early stage capital scene and the need for valuation creation.  He also shares his thoughts about the Charlotte ecosystem in the next 3-5 years. We also dive into the Don’s desire to build a “community” which is the reason for he started a course at the Hurt Hub called “Angels and Devils: The Details of Private Investing”.  It started as a 4-week course in coordination with LaunchLKN, Erica Madden, and Julie Goff before the social distancing measures went into effect.  I’d highly encourage any Lake Norman area listeners to reach out to Don to find out more. One of the goals of the course is to equip someone to be a confident angel investor – and given the growing interest in this Don is a great resource.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

Today, Tana Greene shares her story as a successful entrepreneur and mentor. At the age of 17, she wrote a goal on a piece of paper: “own my own business by the age 30.”  It was a far cry from where she was but you’ll hear why it wasn’t a long shot at all. With each passing year, her purpose beat louder and grew stronger.  Along the way, the business became clear – she wanted to help others by finding them employment. Owning her own business became a reality in 1988, when she co-founded a national staffing company that grew to operate in more than 20 states. In 2017, she guided the company’s transformation into MyWorkChoice. With over 30 years of experience in the industry she saw first-hand the changing needs of the contingent workforce and understood the vital role flexibility and technology must play moving forward. MyWorkChoice is the first workforce solution for warehousing, logistics, call center, and light industrial companies that allows employees to make decisions about how often and when they work. Through an easy to use mobile app, MyWorkChoice embraces flexibility by empowering workers to design their own schedule and creates a culture of performance and accountability evidenced by fill rates averaging above 95%. MyWorkChoice is the dependable, all-in-one workforce solution that scales alongside business needs. Tana’s purpose is to “ignite joy”.  As a teenage mother and a survivor of domestic violence, she shares her journey with us.  She’s also shared it countless other times and has become a vital part of Safe Alliance. Tana discusses how important goal setting and core values are for business – as well as the importance of mentor relationships with other entrepreneurs (she’s been a mentor to many Charlotte area entrepreneurs including Betsy Hauser Idilbi who was on the podcast a few years ago). She shares stories about the beginnings of their staffing business, the challenges of franchising, and what she learned along the way through some of their failures.  We discuss the future of the staffing business and technology’s role -which she admits has been a learning process. Don’t miss this podcast and hear Tana’s passion to “ignite joy” by sharing her story to help other people. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate our 100th episode of the Charlotte Angel Connection Podcast.  Tana embodies all that an entrepreneur, investor, mentor and ecosystem member should have.  Be bold, make decisions, learn by them and help others along the way.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

Dalton Shaull is the Founder and CEO of OmniLife.  He is originally from Iowa and was born in an intense football family.  He played football for the University of Iowa, but his football career ended due to a motorcycle accident. After the accident he lost feeling in his arm and ended up having to have a nerve transplant to regain feeling in his arm.  Throughout his recovery, Dalton tried several ventures and ultimately decided he really liked to create things (artistic prospective).  As a result of his injury, he knew he wanted to get involved in the Medtech business.  It was during a pitch he made at an Entrepreneurial class he met Eric Pahl, his Co-Founder at OmniLife. “OmniLife was founded in 2016 based on the need to make the organ procurement process more efficient.”  They launched their first product, known as TXP Chat™, as a secure mobile messaging system for transplant teams.  TXP Chat™ facilitates seamless and comprehensive care delivery for organ failure patients by optimizing clinical communication among payors, providers, and patients. In today’s podcast, Dalton shares his story of how and why he became interested with the organ transplant program. He explains what they needed to initially “focus” on and the due diligence process of dissecting the company’s potential.  He tells the story of their “first” pitch and its success—which was the beginning of the momentum.  He shares his heartwarming story of the start of the business, first raising round and more. He also discusses the structure of the business now, their first success of their first study, and why they left Iowa to move the business to Lexington, KY.   Dalton currently resides in Charlotte and discusses doing business in the South. There is a lot of momentum in Health IT.  Don’t miss the podcast to hear how about it and how it improves the quality of healthcare delivery. A few notes worth mentioning along the lines of this podcast. Dalton is in Charlotte for two reason: (1) his wife is in residency here and his uncle is a heart transplant surgeon in Charlotte as well. Scott Pope and Eric Kirsch are launching a new co-working space devoted to medical companies much like OmniLife, called Mito Station.  It's a really unique concept and will help continue incubating new startups in the health care space here in Charlotte.  As such, we expect to have even more health care startups in Charlotte as they finish out their space later this year and I look forward to interviewing them on the podcast in the not too distant future.  Both Eric and Scott have been on the podcast but we will have them back on this spring talking about their project as well as the growing number of health care startups in town.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

On today’s podcast, we have Haley Bohon, Founder and CEO of SkillPop.  I’ve known about SkillPop since nearly its inception but have never had the opportunity to sit down with Haley and talk about the business.  For those of you who don’t know, SkillPop is a company facilitating ‘pop-up classes in your community’.  They advertise that it’s for ‘creators, dreamers and lifelong learners’. I think you can make the case it’s for anyone who wants to continue to grow. And speaking of growth, SkillPop has grown tremendously since its first class.  They now offer classes in Atlanta, Charlotte, Greenville, Lake Norman, Nashville and Raleigh. Today, we wanted to learn more about this great company, hear Haley’s story and the potential paths forward straight from Haley.  The best thing about doing these podcasts with entrepreneurs – at least from my perspective – is you get a good sense of the quality of the entrepreneur in Charlotte.  Haley is one of many entrepreneurs who makes you feel proud to be part of the ecosystem.  She knows her business very well and while I don’t want to say she held back – we dove into lots of good topics – you know she’s got more to show us in the coming years. So that is where we tried to stay in this podcast.  How has Haley and the business grown over the years?  What were some of the key milestones and what have bee some of the important moments in the business?  In exploring these topics we also get to ask Haley to give us glimpses into what it has taken to build this business. We also have a little fun with her.  It’s always great interviewing a fellow NC State Alum and asking them about the best university in the state.  Or talking with her about her Techstars experience in Austin only to quickly dive into a discussion on the best BBQ. Haley and SkillPop are doing great things.  Hopefully you listen to this podcast and realize what an asset she is to our community.  Then you go sign up for a class, learn a new skill and meet some other great folks in Charlotte. You'll notice a new intro/exit song and format going forward.  As a lifelong Grateful Dead fan, I thought it was beyond time to incorporate some personality into the podcast.  The verse is from Althea and the words fit the podcast.   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

Today we welcome Dan Ariely to the Charlotte Angel Connection.  Dan is the Principal for Advanced Hindsight and Founder of Startup Lab at Duke University.  He is also Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke University (Fuqua School of Business, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Economics, School of Medicine).  Dan is also a Co-Founder, advisor and investor in numerous startups over the last decade.  Many of you have probably seen one of Dan’s TED Talks which are based on Predictably Irrational and some of his more recent books. I read Predictably Irrational in 2010 and became an instant fan of Dan’s works and continued to follow him over the year.  Having him on the podcast to talk about how his work is helping startups come through Startup Labs was a fantastic experience. As you’ll learn today, Dan studies how people act in the marketplace, as opposed to how they should or would if they were rational beings. The Center for Advanced Hindsight’s work is aimed at using behavioral insights to tackle challenging problems at home and abroad. Dan explains why they focus on financial and health care companies and their approach to teach behavior economics and behavior change.  He discusses how environmental methods impact technology. Listen to podcast and hear the examples on how they give people better tools. We discuss the information age and his explanation of less information is better. He explains how companies can get involved in the Startup Lab and how they select companies.  He speaks about investing in startups and the irrationality of founders and investors of startups.  We dive into the irrationality of both investing in and being a founder of a startup and he gives great example of how investing in early stage companies has to be about more than just the financial return. Dan believes that startups need to test their assumptions and he gives some examples of studies they have done at the Center for Advanced Hindsight. We discuss the life cycle of startups and established brands and the importance of innovation.  Stick around to the end of the podcast and listen to why Dan loves experiments AND why he encourages using the library. It’s a very enlightening podcast that you don’t want to miss!   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.