Michele Romanow on revenue-based financing
From Entrepreneurship Journey | Clearco · · TechTO
“I'll give you the hundred thousand dollars you're looking for and instead of taking five percent of your business that alone forever I just want five percent of your revenue and so you pay me back my capital plus six percent and I said oh that sounds like a loan and I was like no no this isn't a loan there's no personal guarantee there's no fixed payment timeline there's no compounding interest and honestly if this is in debt because if you don't pay back a loan they bankrupt the company if you don't pay me back I'm not going to do anything.”
On , Michele Romanow, CEO & Co-Founder at Clearco, spoke about revenue-based financing during Entrepreneurship Journey | Clearco on TechTO.
About Michele Romanow
Michele Romanow appeared on the podcast *Between Two Brunettes* on May 24, 2026, after a full day of filming *Dragons' Den*. She discussed Clearco's mission to make entrepreneurship accessible by automating access to capital using data from digital platforms, noting that the company has grown to face global competitors. Romanow also commented on the venture capital market, stating that fewer exits have occurred because companies stay private longer, and predicted that many software companies will fail. During the interview, Romanow offered several opinions on entrepreneurship. She argued that the common advice "do not quit" is "terrible advice" and that founders need to know when to move on to their next iteration. She described Canada as having "100% tall poppy syndrome," where successful people are torn down rather than celebrated. Romanow also emphasized that a business's repeat customer rate is the most reliable metric, and cautioned that raising more capital can reduce a founder's control over their company's destiny.