Is the “era of the small exit” upon us?

I haven’t looked at any data to determine if smaller exits are becoming more common – I would venture to guess that they’re becoming more public by virtue of the publicity surrounding Web-based startups. But regardless of the past, opportunities are growing for smaller exits, and trends will likely point in that direction.

Y Combinator and its subsequent “incubator” programs like TechStars and others, popularized the small exit by providing small amounts of capital, laser-focusing entrepreneurs on launching products, and turning a number of those companies into quick exits.

I think there are quite a few people – in the startup and venture worlds – that look down upon, or largely ignore small exits, but the reality is that they can be bigger wins for people (particularly the founders) than exits from venture-backed startups.

But don’t assume that a small exit is any easier.

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