Yep. They're locking in their upside to offset for the risk they see in putting in $5 million. 3x preferred is either a weak founder with a good company or more likely an ok founder desperate for funding and therefore pretty high risk for the investor.
tbf, on the TdF by nature you're often staying in small and medium-sized towns with a huge mixed bag of accommodation choices. Air conditioning was often not even a given.
I think the answer is mostly there in the fact they start the season at 88%. However, I'm sure there are cumulative effects on athletes who play for multiple seasons
It's an unfortunate mix of both, according to The Information. A co-founder, early investors, and employees aren't receiving stock because their contracts were dependent on future fund raises (which never emerged).
What if during the interviewing process they're very clear that they are a startup that isn't a normal job and the trade off is equity and a great cheque in 2-5 years?
Yes! And one way (not the only way) to increase your chances of survival is by working harder than normal to get to a product/revenue point where you can make it. Again, all I'm asking is if the startup is very clear about expectations going into the role is that ok? We have very low unemployment right now so it's not like skilled technology workers don't have a lot of choices. Is there any way to ethically create a startup in today's age and expect people will work more than government mandated hours?
Some countries have laws for that tho, which were implemented precisely so that all business are not allowed to think themselves as so "special" that they can set any rules whatsoever, they've done it in the past and it was ugly. If I make a mining startup can I say it's not a normal job, this you go back home once a week, work 14hrs day and can bring your child as a mini-employee?
Yes, that's where I'd focus my efforts. Stay focused on the positives here vs bitterness and negatives. Continue doing what you're doing, which is to utilize the current situation for as much awareness building as possible for your niche application. Have you seen an uptick in interest since this all began? Good luck to you.
I think that's fair. I also think you represent the initial use case and one that's still very relevant today. WeWork has made it clear though that real growth for them now needs to come from mid and large companies willing to use their services at scale and have had some success doing that. I would pivot a little away from OP's "human sentimental" angle and more towards "this obvious ethical lapse, and a board that can't or won't control it" will make those larger organizations pause before becoming too dependent upon WeWork.
In Durham NC, we went from zero to 3 new dockless bike share programs on the streets in the same week! I personally think it's great, but it was strange to go from zero to 3. To me, the interesting part is how expensive is it to keep those bikes in good working order? It's still very new here so time will tell.
