Venture Capital: VC firm targets the early, risky stages

A NEW Seattle venture capital firm, led by real estate and board game entrepreneur Craig Kinzer, is looking to place 20 to 30 early-stage bets in a diverse crop of startup businesses.

The firm -- which has raised about a quarter of its $35 million target -- is currently dubbed Highside Capital.

Kinzer also is attempting to fill a gap that exists in the Seattle venture capital industry, funding companies with investments of $100,000 to $3.5 million. That's usually too much money for angel investors and not enough to justify the involvement of a venture capital firm.

That's also the strategy Kinzer employed in his previous two venture funds, which he said performed much better than industry averages. Among the more than 50 investments of Kinzer Capital and Capital Partners were companies such as HouseValues, Verdiem, Targeted Growth and Sunstream.

Kinzer, who describes most venture capitalists as "snotty," wants to bring a new spirit to early-stage investing. By engaging the firm's well-connected advisers and tapping a diverse group of entrepreneurs, Kinzer said, the goal is to "make early-stage investing fun."