“I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse.”

Hi,

Welcome to Bankrolling Tomorrow - your no‑BS guide to raise capital.

Hope everything is great on your end, and hope you all have also had a week as productive as I have had. And I'm in a great mood because as I’m writing this newsletter I am sitting at the airport, on my way to a skiing trip. One great thing about January. 

There's definitely something about being 8,000 feet up that puts business or as a matter of fact life problems into perspective. Plus, my phone barely works up there, which is both terrifying and liberating.

As for capital raise stuff, this week I broke down the capital raise of Nobu, the iconic hospitality empire.

You know, the chef who survived two catastrophic business failures - one in Peru that nearly landed him in legal trouble, and another in Alaska where his restaurant literally burned down, leaving him almost bankrupt.

Then along came Robert De Niro, who became obsessed with Nobu's food and spent four years trying to convince him to expand to New York.

Nobu kept refusing. 

But eventually…

Turned out De Niro made Nobu an offer he literally could refuse.

Anyway, as promised, here are 5 things that you can learn from Nobu's capital raise, and apply them to your business (sooner rather than later).

1/ "No" usually means they're worried about something specific, not rejecting you
When investors pass, they're not saying you can’t do the job. They're saying something spooked them - maybe your margins look thin, or your operations seem shaky, or you look like you haven't slept in weeks. Use their rejection as free intel. Figure out what scared them and fix that before your next meeting.

2/ Look for partners who bring more than just money
Anyone can write a check. The investors worth chasing bring connections you can't make, expertise you don't have, and doors you can't open. One solid introduction often beats another round of funding.

3/ Trust gets built through small things, consistently
Investors watch how you handle the boring stuff. Do you show up on time? Follow through on what you say? Handle problems without turning everything into a crisis? These little patterns tell them whether you'll be reliable when things get messy.

4/ Find partners who fill your gaps, not copy your strengths
If you're great at building products but terrible at sales, find someone who's crushed go-to-market before. If you know your industry inside out but can't scale operations, get someone who's done it. Two of the same things don't help anyone.

5/ Growth happens through doing the basics well, repeatedly
Everyone wants the viral moment or the game-changing partnership. Meanwhile, the businesses that actually scale just keep hitting their numbers, maintaining quality, and solving problems without drama. Boring wins.

Simple.

Thanks for allowing me into your inbox every week.

If you have any questions, or want to discuss any of my rants on these topics in depth, reply to this email, and I will get back to you ASAP.

Talk soon,

James