SeedBlink Blog

Catalina, a seasoned professional with over 12 years of experience in delivering IT and technology services across various industries such as logistics, telecommunications, and mining, has a fervent passion for learning and exploration. Despite her educational background in European studies and international relations, Catalina found herself immersed in IT service operations early on in her career.

Driven by an insatiable curiosity and a desire to broaden her understanding of business operations, Catalina embarked on an executive business administration program. This endeavor aimed to augment her existing knowledge and equip her with a more comprehensive perspective on the intricacies of running businesses.

While Catalina's journey into investing began several years ago, her foray into the world of tech start-ups is a more recent development, spanning just a couple of years. Eager to delve deeper into this burgeoning ecosystem, she eagerly joined the SeedBlink community upon discovering it. Catalina's diverse professional background and relentless pursuit of knowledge position her as a valuable asset in the realm of tech start-up investment.

1. What is your biggest personal satisfaction since joining our community of startup investors?

Being part of the SeedBlink community opened a new universe for me, as I could have access to like-minded and curious people to learn and contribute to the creation of future products and companies that should improve our world.

2. How would you describe our community and to what extent do you feel it generates value for you?

The knowledge available within the community, the easy access to a wide range of start-up options, and the fact that the platform offers a smooth way to start as a beginner in start-up investments made me join the community.

As a SeedBlink community member you can exponentially expand your knowledge about start-up ecosystems, learn from people with broader experience, and be able to get access to a curated list of start-ups, from where you can choose by doing your due diligence.

3. What does investing mean to you?

I think in the world of today it is important to contribute and support solutions that we need for those problems we face as individuals and society. I believe investing in start-ups is a great way to do so, even if sometimes it is just to test, try, and fail because even from those situations we can learn how we could do it better next time.

4. What motivates you to invest in startups? 

I think the main motivator is contributing and supporting those people and companies trying to improve our day-to-day ecosystem, from the communities we live in, to the country we are part of, and why not even further.

I would encourage everyone to do it. Investing in start-ups brings a lot of value through learning new technologies, and new ways of doing or improving things and services around us, therefore keeping your brain ‘young’ through continuous learning and as an individual, you remain up to date with the latest technology and business changes.

5. How would you describe your investor profile?

I like to consider myself a balanced one, I have parts of my portfolio where I am taking risks, but also parts of it, which are more contained in terms of risk-taking.

It is important to have a strong why on why I am taking a certain investment decision and what is the time horizon when looking at the outcome of the investment.

6. When did you start investing in startups and what does your portfolio look like? 

I am calling myself a ‘rookie’ investor in the start-up landscape, as until now I have made only a few investments, in areas such as process digitalization, security, and transport. I am not following a specific industry, but there are some common points when deciding to invest -- what technology is used, what is it solving, who is the team behind and what are its societal implications.

7. What are the most important aspects for you when evaluating a startup?

There are some core elements that I look at:

• why the start-up was born (is it purely profit-driven or is there some kind of other trigger behind it), why the team behind came together to build a company,
• who is the team behind (expertise, years in the industry, team dynamics/cohesion, etc.),
• what is the vision for medium to long-term
• how is the business operating (model, sustainability, scalability, etc.)

8. How much and in what ways do you choose to get involved in a startup's post-investment evolution?

Up until now, I was not involved in their evolution, apart from following their performance and results. Though coming next, I am looking to get actively involved and support the start-ups with my expertise (if of help) or any guidance they might need.

Though, here I am usually a cautious profile, as sometimes there is a need for a proper balance on how much an investor might get too involved and not allowing ‘space’ for the founder(s) and their team to move forward with the vision.

All in all, I strongly believe it is important to get involved in the evolution of a start-up, though it needs to bring value and facilitate solutions, not create additional burdens and work.

9. What has been one of the best or most impactful investments you've made so far?

The best investment made was in my personal development and professional growth and I assume this will remain the most impactful one.

10. What lessons have you learned from your early investment experiences?

I tended to jump quickly into the areas I thought I knew, looking only at the technology used, without looking too much at the industry to which is applied.

Therefore, core lessons are to learn, search, research, and expose yourself to as much as possible; meet start-up founders (face to face, if possible, as it gives extremely valuable insights into the human dynamics of the company), do your research on the start-up and the industry they activate, ask questions, build a network of people with whom you can discuss and try to connect the dots by building thinking systems (it will ease the decision making process).