MBA60 has picked up a R$1.2 million (R$500,000) investment. Inova Ventures Participações participated in the round, as did the Brazilian chapter of the Harvard Business School Alumni Angels Association – an interesting choice considering that MBA60 claims to pack into 60-second videos what Harvard Business School alumni have spent thousands of dollars to learn.
The announcement comes as the company celebrates the completion of its second year of operations.
Based in São Paulo, MBA60 is dedicated to corporate education. Its platform features a wide variety of content, most of which is video-based, in areas like finance, client relations, management, human resources and marketing. One of its strongest selling-points: efficiency. MBA60 has earned its name by offering videos that last 60 seconds or less.
This marks the first investment made by the HBS Alumni Angels in Brazil, which has been present in the country for two years. Magnus Arantes, who leads the local group, explained that MB60 is the first startup the association has found that meets all of its requirements:
That was a critical factor for us to complete our first investment in the country. We’re continuing to seek out concrete partnerships with good entrepreneurs who have a well-defined strategy and business model as well as a high potential for long-term growth.
MBA60 is the fourth company to join the Inova Venture Participações (IVP) portfolio. Like the HBS Alumni Angels, the organization is composed of successful executives with a top-notch education. Its focus is placed on accelerating small businesses.
Not only will IVP support MBA60 financially, but it will also designate a mentor to the company to contribute to its day-to-day activities. “It’s what we call smart money,” explained IVP’s Juliano Graff, “which includes knowledge, money and networking.”
The funds from the round will be put towards expanding the MBA60 team and increasing marketing efforts. The startup also has a number of new products lined up, including Team Builder (a corporate university for SMEs), a new line of 60-minute videos, and vertical training channels. It will launch a new franchising channel in October.
Mauro Peres, Partner at MBA60, discussed what’s next:
We have innovative products in the area of corporate training that we want to bring to the market over the next 12 months. To accelerate that growth and achieve our objectives, we need a greater number of collaborators to add even more value to our businesses and grow in a way that is faster and more agile.
MBA60 has certainly set its sights high. The company hopes to reach R$18 million (about US$7.5 million) by 2016 and expects to bring in R$3 million (US$1.25 million) this year.
