Halter CEO Craig Piggott’s tips on how to raise millions of dollars to grow a business

The most difficult part of raising hundreds of millions of dollars from investors comes well before they hand over the cash, the leader of one of New Zealand’s most highly valued start-ups says.

“The main advice I’d have to any founder if they were going through these phases is, all the work happens prior to the round,” Halter co-founder and chief executive Craig Piggott told Markets with Madison.

“If you just put all 90% or 99% of your effort into that, being as prepared as you can by building a great business, then the round itself is actually quite a fun process.

“It’s only when you’ve left things to chance, or you’ve kind of introduced risk to the round because you haven’t solved that [problem] up front, where it starts to get tricky.”

His smart cow collar company just raised US$100 million ($165m) on a US$1 billion ($1.65b) valuation, from domestic and international venture capital firms, including one that historically backed Airbnb and Meta (owner of Facebook).

The Series D round was oversubscribed – meaning it closed on more money than Halter initially sought.

In total, Halter had raised about $250m since it started in 2016.

“Whenever we go out to raise capital or think about whether we would raise additional investment, the main thing is like, ‘Okay, well, who from? Who do we want to work with?’”

Its existing and new investors spoke to customers as part of their due diligence this time, including calling and visiting customers using Halter on their cattle.

“That was amazing, seeing how excited Bond [Capital] and all the investors got getting off the phone with customers and hearing the stories about what they’ve done with their farm.

“For the investors to start thinking about, ‘holy s***, what about if we can multiply that across thousands of farmers.’”

Watch this interview with Craig Piggott about the intricacies of raising capital, and his advice to other entrepreneurs, in today’s bonus episode of Markets with Madison above.

See its cow collars up close on a customer ranch in Colorado, USA, and hear how it reached a US$1b valuation in the extended episode about Halter’s business below.

Madison Malone travelled to the United States with support from the NZUS Council Media Fellowship programme. The council is committed to advancing New Zealand’s shared interests with the United States. Find out more about the NZUS council here.

Get investment insights from executives and experts on Markets with Madison every Friday here on the NZ Herald, on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.

Sponsored by CMC Markets.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this programme is of a general nature, and is not intended to be personalised financial advice. We encourage you to seek appropriate advice from a qualified professional to suit your individual circumstances.

Madison Malone (nee Reidy) is host and executive producer of the investment show Markets with Madison. She joined the Herald in 2022 after working in investment, and has covered business and economics for television and radio broadcasters.