The third path between unicorn & shutdown
We acquire, turn around, and help create strategic exits for overlooked VC-backed startups.tween unicorn & shutdown
Operational work inside sixteen venture-backed companies.
Operational work inside sixteen venture-backed companies.
"Pisana Labs told us we were targeting the wrong customer segment, and held the line when I pushed back. The pivot we made on their recommendation drove the platform to 3,000+ users at 76% retention."
"Pisana Labs told us we were targeting the wrong customer segment, and held the line when I pushed back. The pivot we made on their recommendation drove the platform to 3,000+ users at 76% retention."
"Pisana Labs told us we were targeting the wrong customer segment, and held the line when I pushed back. The pivot we made on their recommendation drove the platform to 3,000+ users at 76% retention."
I.K., B2B AI PLATFORM, 2M€ RAISED
I.K., B2B AI PLATFORM, 2M€ RAISED
"Allya & team walked us away from the wrong product idea before we burned more runway. The ICP work they did rebuilt our entire operating plan, and saved us mont"hs heading in the wrong direction."
"Allya & team walked us away from the wrong product idea before we burned more runway. The ICP work they did rebuilt our entire operating plan, and saved us mont"hs heading in the wrong direction."
"Allya & team walked us away from the wrong product idea before we burned more runway. The ICP work they did rebuilt our entire operating plan, and saved us mont"hs heading in the wrong direction."
G.P., Founder, B2C AI Wellness App, 1.5€ ARR
G.P., Founder, B2C AI Wellness App, 1.5€ ARR
"The team at Pisana Labs got us to stop doing the work that wasn't moving the business. We dropped one of our oldest clients. Revenue grew 40% in six weeks once we did."
"The team at Pisana Labs got us to stop doing the work that wasn't moving the business. We dropped one of our oldest clients. Revenue grew 40% in six weeks once we did."
"The team at Pisana Labs got us to stop doing the work that wasn't moving the business. We dropped one of our oldest clients. Revenue grew 40% in six weeks once we did."
R.K., B2B Hospitality SaaS, Series A
R.K., B2B Hospitality SaaS, Series A
The numbers in the deck and the business rarely tell the same story.
What a stuck portfolio company usually looks like:
→ Metrics that fall apart when you recalculate them
→ Growth that gets explained, never measured
→ Board decks that answer the wrong questions
→ Runway that ends before the plan says it does
→ A founder who has stopped asking for help
The numbers in the deck and the business rarely tell the same story.
What a stuck portfolio company usually looks like:
→ Metrics that fall apart when you recalculate them
→ Growth that gets explained, never measured
→ Board decks that answer the wrong questions
→ Runway that ends before the plan says it does
→ A founder who has stopped asking for help
PROCESS
We go inside and come back with a verdict.
Real numbers, rebuilt from raw data. One rate-limiting problem. A verdict you can act on: fix, sell, or shut down.
Rebuild the Numbers
We rebuild the real economics from raw data: cohorts, retention, concentration, unit economics. The reported picture and the underlying business rarely tell the same story.
Name the Problem
One rate-limiting problem, in one sentence. Not a list of twelve. Everything else in the company is downstream of it.
Fix or Exit
We run the turnaround alongside the founder, or prepare the company for an acquisition. Hands-on inside the business, not advisory.
Or We Buy
Where nobody will fund the fix, we can acquire the company and carry the turnaround risk ourselves.
RECENT CASE STUDIES
Work that speaks for itself
Built by exited founders and operators, thinking like investors
Company Diagnostic
One company. Two weeks. A verdict you can act on.
True economics rebuilt from raw data: cohorts, retention, concentration, unit economics
The single rate-limiting problem, named in one sentence
The verdict - fixable, sellable, or beyond saving, with rough cost and time–90 day action plan with immediate next steps
Two weeks, fixed fee, designed to give partners enough clarity to act.
/ project
Portfolio Triage
Three or more portfolio companies assessed.
Every company assessed on health, value at stake, and intervention required
The main problem in one sentence, with a clear recommended action
Cost to act against value at stake: "€300K to fix, €3M at stake"
Partner walkthrough, with a quarterly refresh if useful
/ project
Turnaround & Buyout
We run the fix. Or we take the position.
Hands-on operating lead inside the company, with a specialist bench behind them
90-day plan with owners, sequence and budget — then we execute it
Weighted to outcome: our fee sits behind the recovery, not in front of it
Where nobody will fund the fix, we make an offer for the position instead
/ project
Kickoff Session
Read the machine. Find what's broken.
Diagnostic across market, product, channel, and commercial model
Rate-limiting step named, what's actually blocking growth
Sequenced 60–90 day action plan, delivered within 24h
Figma file delivery and preview link
/ project
Growth Sprint
Move from scattered experiments and guesswork to disciplined, compounding growth.
Full diagnostic and consolidation of your data across marketing, product, and sales
Custom Growth Operating System built (OKRs, experiment pipeline, weekly cadence)
Cleaned data stack with essential tools connected into one source of truth
Live experiment pipeline designed, tested, and handed over to your team for ownership
/ project
Growth + Raise Sprint
Combine operational strength with investor-grade metrics and storytelling.
Everything included in the Growth Sprint
Investor-ready data room and metrics dossier (cohorts, retention, payback, unit economics)
Targeted VC list with thesis alignment and warm introductions where available
Mock investor Q&A sessions and narrative refinement based on your real number
/ project
Kickoff Session
Read the machine. Find what's broken.
Diagnostic across market, product, channel, and commercial model
Rate-limiting step named, what's actually blocking growth
Sequenced 60–90 day action plan, delivered within 24h
Figma file delivery and preview link
/ project
Growth Sprint
Move from scattered experiments and guesswork to disciplined, compounding growth.
Full diagnostic and consolidation of your data across marketing, product, and sales
Custom Growth Operating System built (OKRs, experiment pipeline, weekly cadence)
Cleaned data stack with essential tools connected into one source of truth
Live experiment pipeline designed, tested, and handed over to your team for ownership
/ project
Growth + Raise Sprint
Combine operational strength with investor-grade metrics and storytelling.
Everything included in the Growth Sprint
Investor-ready data room and metrics dossier (cohorts, retention, payback, unit economics)
Targeted VC list with thesis alignment and warm introductions where available
Mock investor Q&A sessions and narrative refinement based on your real number
/ project
Clarity before anything else
Answers to common questions about how we work and what to expect.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes. Mutual NDA before any commercial work, and portfolio company names are never disclosed. Case studies are anonymised.
What's in scope?
Europe, Seed to Series B, with Series A the sweet spot. Software and marketplaces, typically €1–10M ARR. Not deep tech, biotech, or physical products. And not companies where the founder has already left the building.
Do you take equity?
No - cash, with a success component tied to recovery above your current holding value. In a buyout, the equity is the transaction.
What if the company can't pay?
The dying company never pays. The fee is a line item in the rescue capital, underwritten before work starts. If neither the fund nor a bridge can cover it, that's a verdict rather than a discount — and usually the point where we'd talk about buying the position instead.
What if we've already written it off?
Then it still sits on your books, still takes partner time, and still returns nothing. That's the case where we buy the position outright — cash at close, plus a share of what a later sale produces. You stop carrying it. We take the operating risk from there.
Does the first fee count for anything?
Yes. Diagnostic and triage fees credit in full against a mandate signed within 60 days.
Clarity before anything else
Answers to common questions about how we work and what to expect.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes. Mutual NDA before any commercial work, and portfolio company names are never disclosed. Case studies are anonymised.
What's in scope?
Europe, Seed to Series B, with Series A the sweet spot. Software and marketplaces, typically €1–10M ARR. Not deep tech, biotech, or physical products. And not companies where the founder has already left the building.
Do you take equity?
No - cash, with a success component tied to recovery above your current holding value. In a buyout, the equity is the transaction.
What if the company can't pay?
The dying company never pays. The fee is a line item in the rescue capital, underwritten before work starts. If neither the fund nor a bridge can cover it, that's a verdict rather than a discount — and usually the point where we'd talk about buying the position instead.
What if we've already written it off?
Then it still sits on your books, still takes partner time, and still returns nothing. That's the case where we buy the position outright — cash at close, plus a share of what a later sale produces. You stop carrying it. We take the operating risk from there.
Does the first fee count for anything?
Yes. Diagnostic and triage fees credit in full against a mandate signed within 60 days.
Clarity before anything else
Answers to common questions about how we work and what to expect.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes. Mutual NDA before any commercial work, and portfolio company names are never disclosed. Case studies are anonymised.
What's in scope?
Europe, Seed to Series B, with Series A the sweet spot. Software and marketplaces, typically €1–10M ARR. Not deep tech, biotech, or physical products. And not companies where the founder has already left the building.
Do you take equity?
No - cash, with a success component tied to recovery above your current holding value. In a buyout, the equity is the transaction.
What if the company can't pay?
The dying company never pays. The fee is a line item in the rescue capital, underwritten before work starts. If neither the fund nor a bridge can cover it, that's a verdict rather than a discount — and usually the point where we'd talk about buying the position instead.
What if we've already written it off?
Then it still sits on your books, still takes partner time, and still returns nothing. That's the case where we buy the position outright — cash at close, plus a share of what a later sale produces. You stop carrying it. We take the operating risk from there.
Does the first fee count for anything?
Yes. Diagnostic and triage fees credit in full against a mandate signed within 60 days.
A write-off is a decision, not a fact.
A write-off is a decision, not a fact.
Occasional notes on distressed venture: what we're seeing inside portfolios and what actually gets a stuck company moving.
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