Continuing our State of Investing in 3D printing series, Michael Petch and Adina Krausz discussed the startup investment landscape, focusing on Toledo Capital and InnoSource Ventures.
Toledo Capital, a multi-family office managing €1.8 billion in real estate, emphasizes classical portfolio management and wealth planning. InnoSource Ventures, a separate entity, specializes in value creation for startups, particularly in healthcare, deep tech, and sustainability. They work with startups from post-seed to revenue-generating companies, with ticket sizes ranging from €50,000 to €11 million in late-stage rounds. “The Family Office invests once product market fit and operational excellence are proven and the risk for the investor is somewhat mitigated,” says Adina Krausz, Founding Partner and CEO of InnoSource Ventures. Despite a challenging 2023, 2024 showed resilience with significant fundraising and M&A activity in the main active market.
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The State of Investment in the 3D Printing Industry
NATO Innovation Fund and defense tech investing
AM Ventures: how to get your 3D printing start-up funded
Ninepointfive founding partner on the new investment reality
Not a typical investor
InnoSource Ventures has emerged as a distinct model within a landscape where many family offices struggle to navigate the complexity of early-stage investments. Rather than simply backing start-ups at arm’s length, it embeds a dedicated team to assess product-market fit, evaluate founders, and refine corporate partnerships before committing any capital. This strategy is intended to avoid missteps that plagued investors who relied on inflated valuations and speculative “visions” during the market’s recent boom years.
As the Founding Partner explains, “You need to create a product-market fit, build up ARR, because that is convincing. In good times, people invest in visions, but when the market turns, those visions lose value quickly.” Such caution appears increasingly relevant after a period in which many venture-backed firms, including so-called unicorns, lost as much as 70%-90% of their worth amid market corrections.
The model evolved from conducting business development work for young firms, arranging licensing agreements, pilots, and other partnerships, into what might be described as a systematic due diligence engine. The aim is to identify sustainable ventures that do not rely on the improbable growth once promised in a frothy funding environment. “There is no free lunch,” notes the Innosource executive, recalling the words of a mentor from her days in banking. “Venture capital is a very high-risk asset class, and you can’t just burn investors’ money.”
Only after gaining a thorough understanding of a company’s operational strengths, market positioning, and sales pipeline does Toledo Capital invest. By doing so, it hopes to align the interests of the founders, the family office, and its clients while reducing the risk of expensive write-offs that plagued less rigorous investors during the recent downturn.
After establishing the investment model, InnoSource Ventures screens opportunities by first serving as a business development partner. Only later does Toledo Capital, the associated multi-family office, commit funds. “People should not see us as a typical investor,” she says. “We first want to be sure there is product-market fit and a path to revenue generation and even profitability. Only then do we consider the equity round.”
The firm says it has worked with 17 companies thus far while providing advisory and operational support to additional candidates. In one medical technology case, the start-up’s footprint grew from 14 to 60 countries over 18 months, aided by an initial €10m injection from a large corporate. Toledo Capital followed up by adding €6m from its clients and then arranged a second tranche of €5.4m through a special-purpose vehicle. For another business in logistics, the family office invested €800,000 following successful commercial milestones.
This “value creation” approach relies on a dedicated team that oversees business development, corporate partnerships, and licensing deals. It aims to avoid traditional consultancy or brokerage models and addresses founder shortcomings without dismissing their capabilities. “You cannot be a genius at product development, fundraising, and running the company all at once,” says Krausz. “It was once considered a weakness if a start-up needed outside help, but now people understand it leads to sustainable growth.”
Finding the best opportunities
InnoSource Ventures began focusing primarily on Israel’s start-up environment, where strong networks of investors and experienced founders gave the firm higher confidence in selecting prospects. Gradually, it broadened its scope to European companies, but it remains selective. Certain sectors, such as biotech, gaming, and cybersecurity, are not a fit for their approach. “We avoid biotech because the investment cycle is simply too long,” says Adina Krausz. “We want to find companies that already have a product they can sell.”
“We are not magicians. We are just hard workers with a strong network, and we expect start-ups to understand that this is a process, not a two-month sprint.”
This has created a steady pipeline of businesses that have progressed with the firm over several years. Some have advanced from post-seed revenue generation to near pre-IPO stages. By cultivating close ties to established investors, leading corporates, and family offices, InnoSource Ventures positions itself as a long-term partner rather than a facilitator of quick, high-risk capital infusions.
The market turbulence of 2023 forced a recalibration across growth-stage investment categories. While some early-stage ventures struggled to secure any capital, others saw acquisitions and strategic mergers accelerate. “People need to stop comparing everything to 2021,” says the InnoSource Ventures leader. “That was a hype year. If you look at longer-term trends, the numbers are quite encouraging.”
In the Israeli market, several transactions reached well beyond €1bn, particularly in med-tech. Meanwhile, certain sectors such as cyber showed continued strength, often outperforming expectations in an otherwise subdued climate. Early and growth-stage companies (Series A and B) appear to have found a somewhat healthier balance between valuation and investor expectation. “The best opportunities are not found by reacting to panic but by understanding the genuine potential for long-term returns,” she says.
Though macroeconomic pressures remain, some asset managers and family offices see 2024 as a time of recalibration rather than crisis. Private data from financial institutions and deal trackers suggests a moderate rebound in activity, and the presence of new investor types, for example corporates, family offices, and mission-driven funds, has introduced fresh capital sources. Many consider the reset beneficial, expecting the current conditions to push founders to demonstrate clearer product-market fit, leaner operations, and more sustainable business models.
The correction has tightened due diligence standards and forced companies to demonstrate product traction rather than promise eventual breakthroughs. Crypto’s unpredictable pattern remains fresh in investors’ minds. “People always want to invest in the winning horse,” says Krausz, “but the crystal ball does not exist.” Skepticism in speculative plays has given way to a renewed focus on core financials and sustainable growth strategies.
While 2023 was an unsettling year, 2024’s signs point to careful optimism. The expectation is that as valuations stabilize and confidence returns, risk capital will again enter the system. Investors hope that founders, tempered by the downturn, will present more realistic plans for sustainable expansion throughout 2025. The view is that both parties, those allocating funds and those seeking it, have reached a healthier balance grounded in verifiable progress rather than grand narratives.
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