What about bootstrapped startups? They have to be in the black very quickly, if not from day 1. Do they count as startups?
Really, we've got four different terms we're trying to delineate.
"Exponential growth business" vs. "Incremental growth business".
and
"Unstable business with total expenses exceeding profits" vs. "Stable business with total expenses below profits"
All 4 permutations are valid. I personally like putting the startup vs. small business terms on the first category, which makes for the 4 pairings ["stable startup", "unstable startup", "stable small business", "unstable small business"]. I think this helps prevent the confusion that makes fruit stands think about E rounds.
Really, we've got four different terms we're trying to delineate.
"Exponential growth business" vs. "Incremental growth business".
and
"Unstable business with total expenses exceeding profits" vs. "Stable business with total expenses below profits"
All 4 permutations are valid. I personally like putting the startup vs. small business terms on the first category, which makes for the 4 pairings ["stable startup", "unstable startup", "stable small business", "unstable small business"]. I think this helps prevent the confusion that makes fruit stands think about E rounds.