Memphis Leading Cities In Women-Led Startup Programs
(Memphis Daily) As a female serial entrepreneur, I experienced firsthand both the challenges and the opportunities of building a technology startup as a woman. I started my entrepreneurial journey in 2004 and in 2013 joined Start Co. as an entrepreneur-in-residence because of the community’s focus on inclusion and empowerment of women. With the support of LaunchTN, City of Memphis, Assisi Foundation, FedEx, Start Co. Angels, and local partners like Baker Donelson, archer-malmo, The Marston Group and others, as a community we can see the impact and success of our acceleration and inclusion programs for women. We intuitively know that it will be nearly impossible to advance our community or our country by leaving half of our population on the sidelines in technology and entrepreneurship. And yet it’s no secret that these areas are primarily male-dominated. In fact, recent demographic reports show that women only make up 30 percent of the workforces at major tech companies such as Google and Apple. Further, less than 7 percent of all startup capital is invested in women founders. In spite of these numbers, we know that gender diversity among company leadership teams, board members and employees creates better, more viable company structures and successes. In fact, a 2012 McKinsey study found that the organizations with the most diverse executive teams had 53 percent higher returns on equity and 14 percent higher earnings performance than those with the least diverse teams. In Memphis, Start Co. and community members examined the landscape in 2012. It was clear
Bright future ahead for Tenn.’s female entrepreneurs
(The Tennessean) While the climate for women in the tech startup world has improved, it has a long way to go. In Tennessee, however, female entrepreneurs continue to have strong success in a variety of different industries, and in all stages of their careers. The issue of underrepresentation is not new. The Diana Project, a multi-university analysis of venture capital investments in women-owned companies, began in 1999. That year, companies with women on the executive team pulled in 5 percent of all venture capital dollars. In 2013 that figure rose, but only to just above 15 percent. Those owning biotech companies did the best, followed by health care services, health care-related IT services and consumer products. At the same time, female partners in venture capital companies have declined, which may be affecting the likelihood of funding for female-owned startups and new companies. Even with this mixed bag of news, the present and future continue to be bright for female entrepreneurs in Tennessee. They’re getting funding, securing agreements with industry partners, picking up awards and much more: •The founder of BarterSugar, a Memphis B2B-trading business that emerged from Start Co.’sUpstart incubator, is heading south to Chile. Layla Tabatabaie has been accepted to Start-Up Chile in Santiago, so will be delaying her capital-raising efforts for a while. Read the full article at The Tennessean
Made In Memphis
Beyond our obvious contribution to BBQ, Memphis has a history of innovation. That’s why, in honor of National Inventors’ Day (February 11), we’re highlighting 6 innovations that arose out of Memphis. The first Self-Service Grocery Store (Piggly Wiggly) – You can thank Memphis every time you select your preferred brand in a grocery store. Prior to Piggly Wiggly’s founding in 1916, clerks were responsible for gathering a shopper’s goods from the store shelves, wasting time and limiting options. The first modern hotel chain (Holiday Inn)– After a subpar family road trip, Kemmons Wilson decided to introduce quality and consistency to the hotel industry in 1951. Guests at his original hotel were greeted with air conditioning, television, telephone service and no additional surcharges for children. Revolutionary. Everything Logistics (FedEx) – Memphis is the proud headquarters of FedEx. First to the line in almost all things logistics, FedEx delivered everything from overnight shipping to money-back guarantees and free proof of performance. In addition to the runways, Memphis also has access to the river, roads and rails, making it a magnet for others tackling logistics innovation. Musical Diversity – In addition to being the birthplace of Blues and Rock n’ Roll, Memphis was home to the first all-African American formatted radio station, WDIA in 1947. The first all-female station, WHER, was also founded in Memphis in 1955. Sewage Systems – Memphis was the first community in the US to pioneer separate sanitary sewage collection systems, which had smaller pipes (and were consequently more affordable).
Investing in Entrepreneurship Key to City’s Success
(Memphis Daily) When approaching economic development in Memphis, it’s important to consider the impact that high-growth entrepreneurial companies have made locally and nationwide. In fact, the Kauffman Foundation found that most net new jobs in the last 30 years have come from high-growth entrepreneurial companies. Here in Memphis over the past four years, Start Co., BioWorks, and EmergeMemphis and other organizations have focused on bringing Memphis into the national startup conversation, conducted experiments on how to effectively build and nurture a startup culture here, along with allocating capital, pooling technical and business resources, and how to recruit and retain talent from around the country, and world. While this momentum is impressive, it’s been carefully orchestrated with strategic effort, coordination and real material resource and true embodiment. In August, nationally recognized economist Edward B. Montgomery came to Memphis to give the keynote at Start Co. Demo Day 2014 – his message was clear and sobering: communities such as Memphis that do not continuously invest in startups and nurture their ecosystems will continue to experience job losses from traditional industries and sectors, even as “new jobs” are added. View the full article at The Daily News
Doorway to success: Local incubators provide startups room to grow
(High Ground News) Fostering economic development and job growth can be a tricky–and expensive–endeavor for governments. But fortunately they aren’t saddled with doing the work alone. Local business incubators are on a mission to promote entrepreneurship and support start-ups in Memphis, and their impact is ever-growing. According to a research study conducted for the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, business incubators provide communities with significantly greater results at less cost than other public works projects. Incubators are making significant contributions to local economies, and Memphis’ programs are no exception. But how are they doing this? Very simply, incubators provide process and support aimed at accelerating the development of a start-up. Depending on the kind of incubator, they may provide an array of resources, from the use of physical space and start-up capital to coaching and networking connections. Several local business accelerator programs are opening their application processes now in the search for summertime cohorts. Start Co.’s Seed Hatchery, Upstart and Sky High incubators, along with Memphis Bioworks’ ZeroTo510program, are expecting their 2015 classes to be their biggest yet. Start Co. officially began as Launch Memphis in 2008 and became a full-time endeavor in 2011. Since then the group has accelerated 37 companies. Start Co.’s Seed Hatchery focuses on enterprise technology, Upstart deals with women-led technology, and Sky High targets ideas and companies involved with social innovation. “As we started to be more inclusive of the Memphis population as far as start-ups, in particular for more minorities, more women and more students, we started to see more social
Start Co. Teams With Innova Memphis
(Memphis Daily) Start Co. has a new partner that’s bringing new funding with them to bolster the venture development organization’s efforts. As a result of a partnership betweenStart Co. and Innova Memphis, an early-stage venture capital firm and the investment arm of the Memphis Bioworks Foundation, teams in two ofStart Co.’s accelerator programs will have a pool of funds waiting on them when the programs kick off May 4. Those programs are Seed Hatchery and Upstart, and they’ll both be getting $25,000 in investment capital. Innova and Start Co. are teaming up to invest that capital into high-growth-potential B2B startups. Those startups will be flowing through Seed Hatchery, the first accelerator in Memphis now focusing on B2B technology businesses, and Upstart, one of the first accelerators to focus on women-led tech startups in the U.S. Read the full article at The Daily News
We’re Recruiting Rockstar Startups
Calling all rockstar startups: We’ve released applications for three of our Summer 2015 Accelerators – Seed Hatchery (B2B), Upstart (Women-Led) and Sky High (Social Impact). Highlights of the programs include $25k seed investment, mentors and partners to bring your business to the next level, national office hours with resources and influencers at Start-Q (aka BBQFest Startup Meetup), and a Demo Day drawing investors and connectors from across the country. Ready to hit the grindstone? Here’s who we’re looking for: Founders that are passionate, flexible and execution oriented. Teams with the necessary technical talent and business know-how Ideas that are solving a real problem (not just building a cool technology) Leaders that are willing to go all in and embrace the risky business of starting up. Think you have the team to get the job done? Apply by March 1st or reach out to us with questions at info@neverstop.co. Program Dates: May 4 – August 13 For application pointers, check out these posts: Fierce, Flexible, Functioning teams Application Hacks
Cabsolutely offers taxi companies, and their riders, a lift
(High Ground News) Cabs are cool again, thanks to a Memphis start-up and its innovative mobile app designed to help taxis compete in the emerging ridesharing industry. With Cabsolutely, taxi companies and their riders now have access to an Uber- or Lyft-type mobile app which makes the summoning and payment process more user-friendly. The business was founded last year by Hungarian entrepreneurs and business partners Virag Reti and Andras Simon. The company partnered with Yellow and Checker Cab of Memphis to launch and test the cloud-based software. Reti said they plan to refine the software here and then reach out to taxi companies in other secondary U.S. markets next month. Reti said the software is simple for both the rider and the cab company, maximizing the user experience in the same way ridesharing companies have been able to. Riders can pay through the mobile app, and those payments go directly to the driver or the taxi operator, which pays Cabsolutely at the end of each month. View the full article at High Ground News
Applications for 2015 Start Co. Accelerators Now Open
Media Alert: Open call for enterprise technology, women-led technology, and social innovation startups. Start Co. will be accepting applications for its Seed Hatchery (enterprise technology), Upstart (women-led technology) and Sky High (social innovation) accelerators beginning Dec. 18. For the second year, accelerators will run simultaneously, allowing for streamlined integration of resources and mentorship for all founders and teams participating in the 100 day program. Start Co. is looking for teams who are passionate, flexible and execution oriented. Their startups should be unique, have high-growth potential and exhibit a national or global reach. Accelerator program participants are typically making use of hardware and software to solve big problems. Those interested in applying can find more information and applications at www.neverstop.co. Applications are being offered through F6S, a leading startup community, and will close March 1. Those accepted will begin their entrepreneurial journeys at Start Co. May 4, 2015, and will receive $25,000 in seed funding. Accelerator programming at Start Co. continues to evolve and build stronger community partnerships, and this year will feature workshops, product development sessions and other resources led by local Memphis business partners such as archer>malmo, AutoZone, Baker Donelson, JumpFund, PayPal, SendGrid, Softlayer, Springboard, The Marston Group, and many more. WHEN: Applications will be accepted from Dec. 18, 2014 – March 1, 2015 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Start Co. is a nationally recognized nonprofit 501(c)(3) Memphis-based venture development organization that relentlessly builds founders and companies, promoting entrepreneurship for everyone with a focus on digital startups. Start Co. is a member
Post Acceleration Support in Greater Detail
Introduction While we focus a lot of Start Co. energy on ensuring that the founders refine their ideas into real businesses, once these businesses gain traction and/or funding post Demo Day, we continue to support the founders from product launch to product success to business success. The period of time just after an accelerator program turns out to be the most important to the long-term success of a startup. Start Co. has developed a standard methodology of portfolio management for the startups that graduate from our accelerator programs. However, we understand that as each CEO and founding team carries out their unique vision, they should use our guidelines to adopt their own principles, strategies, and standards. That is to say that our work is only a guide and not a strict set of rules. This is our process for moving a high growth startup from concept to successful exit. We share these methods with our ecosystem to build a shared understanding of the goals and milestones for the next stages of starting for all parties involved. The result of this work should be stronger, more successful companies. In the 12 months after Demo Day, we believe that if adopted, the disciplines herein will be EXTREMELY valuable to the new investors coming into the startup – thus we are setting our teams of for greater success in the future. 6 Areas of Focus The 6 key areas on which we focus our efforts are as follows. 1) Getting the Right People