DURHAM – Hunter Young, who has joined the Council for Entrepreneurial Development’s strategic investor-entrepreneur matching service, Connections to Capital. as a Capital Manager, says the return on investments in Triangle-based companies is competitive with other areas nationally.
Young, who will work with Jay Bigelow, CED’s director of entrepreneurship, to connect regional entrepreneurs with investors, noted that a Pitchbook report on venture funding in 2017 pegs Raleigh-Durham in the top 15 areas for return on capital. “There is value in this market and it’s underserved,” he said in an interview with WRAL Techwire.
Young brings diverse finance and investment experience to the position. He was an investment banker with Barclays in New York, executing M&A and capital markets transactions for companies that included Serta, Newell Rubbermaid, and Berkshire Hathaway. In North Carolina, he was vice president and director of portfolio relations at Hargett Hunter Capital Partners in Raleigh.
Young said he “burned out,” living in an apartment the size of a bathroom in the upper West side in New York City and four years ago, transitioned back to the South, where he was once a lifeguard at the Outer Banks. After working with Hargett Hunter, which invested in early stage restaurant concepts, he became involved with the CED over the past year and “decided to move on” via the Capital Manager position.
He noted that the Triangle region’s low cost of living and quality of life factors definitely play a role for people moving here and starting companies in the area. “I’m a perfect example of someone ready to raise a family who did not want to do it in New York,” he said.
Out-of-state connections
Young said the CED’s Connections team has been invited to go to Boston, Atlanta, Florida and New York. “There is trend toward more outside funding” in the area he said. “Local investors do a great job,” he said, but there is room for the larger centers of finance to come check out companies here as well.”
The Connections team has built a lot of relationships with investors, he said. It has a data base of more than 1,000 investors and close relationships with about 250 locally and across the country. When the team visits other cities it already has relationships there, he added.
“We have committed, passionate entrepreneurs and outside capital has the opportunity to make as much return on investments without as much competition,” Young explained.
“The area is ripe for growth and we have a lot of interest from investors. I think we can really help entrepreneurs, helping them prioritize the types of investors they should be meeting. Jay and I can help them connect with the connections we’ve had for years.”
