Commercial Appeal: One idea, 54 hours: Startup Weekenders build real company
Memphis Startup Weekend was recently featured in the Commercial Appeal . . .
One idea, 54 hours: Startup Weekenders build real company
By Daniel Connolly
Commercial Appeal
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Michael Synk was crying quietly as people left the Emerge Memphis building Sunday night.
Two days earlier, he had stood in front of an audience and pitched a vague idea for company based on Ultimate Frisbee, a sport like touch football but played with a flying disk.
His peers chose his idea over alternatives, and made it the focus for Startup Weekend, an exercise in which entrepreneurs try to build a real company in 54 hours.
Over the next few days, some were so consumed with the project that they spent the nights in the converted warehouse near the river. He said he was overwhelmed by their cooperation.
“It’s just a whole bunch of people took an idea and created something out of nothing,” said Synk, a 51-year-old business coach. “And it’s inspirational.”
It’s too early to say if the fledgling company will survive, but the event and the social events that led up to it appeared to have met organizers’ main goal of strengthening links among local entrepreneurs.
“I met a lot of people I didn’t think existed in my area,” said Jonathan McCarver, a 25-year-old Web developer for Signature Advertising.
Fort Wayne, Ind.-based Startup Weekend LLC holds the events in cities around the country, and the Memphis event had the backing of several local organizations that promote entrepreneurship.
It attracted 100 participants from as far away as Madison, Wis. They paid $40, which covered supplies, food and beverages, including beer, and used the offices of Emerge Memphis, an organization that provides services to startups.
The participants included attorneys, entrepreneurs and tech experts. They were mostly men and mostly white, though there were also many black participants.
The first task Friday night was selecting an idea for the company. Participants presented more than 20 concepts, including several for computer games and one for a solar energy products distributorship.
Speakers who ran over two minutes were cut off by consultant Spencer Dillard, who shouted an unprintable word that means “nonsense.” The practice reportedly comes from a CEO who uses the technique to keep meetings in check.
A preliminary round of voting led to three finalists. Dan Marks pitched a program that would use handheld devices to help golfers measure the distance from the tee to the green.
Meka Egwuekwe, a 34-year-old senior software architect for the marketing and branding firm Lokion, suggested using in-home cameras to transmit images of intruders to customers’ handheld devices.
Synk suggested making gear such as shoes and uniforms for Ultimate Frisbee players. He said the suggestion came from his 16-year-old son, Peter, who plays the game, and later said he had decided to make the pitch only at the last minute.
There was a show of hands, and the Frisbee idea won in a close vote. After more discussion, the groups set up groups to handle everything from legal matters to marketing.
Some people left early, but others threw themselves into the project.
McCarver said he stayed until 1:30 a.m. Saturday, and returned in a few hours and stayed up almost all the next night. He left around 5 a.m. Sunday, slept a few hours and returned to find two partners in the same spot, one programming and the other asleep.
“Everybody was passionate,” he said. “Even people who would obviously be unhappy about the project they had to work on still took a passionate approach to it and did everything they could to make it work.”
He and other participants made heavy use of Internet technology to communicate.
David Barger, president of Internet consulting firm LunaWeb Inc., walked around the room with a laptop computer, using its built-in Web camera to transmit the proceedings live via Internet.
By Sunday, the Frisbee concept had changed radically. It now had a name, Spynnr, pronounced “spinner.” Instead of making gear, its primary focus was creating a software tool for use on Facebook.com, a social networking site that lets people post information about themselves and find people with similar interests.
The software tool would allow players to find local games and rate one another’s skill levels. It could also be applied to other sports and could make money through advertising, Synk said.
By Sunday, participants had created the Web site, Spynnr.com, and a motto: “Is your game on?”
They had even printed up T-shirts with a company logo and brought in local Ultimate Frisbee players for market research.
They had chosen people to turn Spynnr into a reality, though they hadn’t yet incorporated the company or set up a formal leadership structure.
Entrepreneur Don Samulack, 49, who holds a doctorate in neuroscience, will work with McCarver to lead the effort in the short term. They said the company is likely to change in the next few days.
“You can only do so much in 54 hours,” Samulack said.
Contact Daniel Connolly at 529-5296.
Moving forward
Startup Weekend is over, but organizers hope to keep the momentum going for LaunchMemphis, a larger series of events.
Participants are forming interest groups around several concepts that didn’t make the final cut.
An event where startup firms will meet with venture capitalists and other investors is scheduled for June 9 at the FedEx Institute of Technology on the University of Memphis campus.
A “boot camp” to help entrepreneurs turn ideas into plans is scheduled for June 14 at the Emerge Memphis building Downtown. It will be held in the offices of Mercury Technology Labs LLC, an organizer of the LaunchMemphis events.
A reunion for Startup Weekend participants is scheduled for Aug. 7 in the same space.
For more information, call Lori Turner at 266-2662, or visit launchmemphis.com or startupweekend.com.
To hear the sounds of Startup Weekend for yourself, listen to an audio presentation at commercialappeal.com.
© 2008 Scripps Newspaper Group — Online
Memphis Business Journal: Memphis Startup Weekend a go for May 30
Memphis Startup Weekend was recently covered by the Memphis Business Journal
Memphis Business Journal
Thursday, May 22, 2008
100 technology entrepreneurs will meet in Memphis May 30-June 1 for the city’s first Startup Weekend, during which they will create a start-up company from scratch.
Startup Weekend will take place at business incubator EmergeMemphis for 54 hours and will host developers, business managers, start-up enthusiasts, marketing professionals and graphic artists.
By the end of the weekend, a viable business will be built, a management team will be appointed and each participant will own a piece of the company, according to organizing group LaunchMemphis.
Startup Weekend is the brainchild of Andrew Hyde, who kicked it off in Boulder, Colo., last year. The program has run in several cities in North America and Europe.
600 people were involved in bringing Startup Weekend to Memphis.
“We are really inspired by the amount of support Startup Weekend has received from local entrepreneurs, startups and established businesses,” said Gwin Scott, president of EmergeMemphis, in a statement. “This support really says something about Memphis as a hub of innovation, entrepreneurship and technology advancement.”
Copyright(c) American City Business Journals Inc. All rights reserved.
Commercial Appeal Coffee Break Section: “Looking for Entrepreneurs”
The LaunchMemphis Early Stage Investment Forum was recently featured in the Commercial Appeal.
Commercial Appeal — Coffee Break Section
May 17, 2008
Looking for Entrepreneurs
Got the entrepreneurial spirit? Or maybe need a little help taking your business to the next level?
If so, LaunchMemphis is looking for you.
The recently formed organization of Memphis business leaders is dedicated to growing the entrepreneurial community. To forward that mission, the group will host a forum on June 9 at the University of Memphis that will pair entrepreneurs and small business owners with potential investors.
The program is geared toward entrepreneurs who need funding assistance and small firms with high growth potential. Investors include Innova Memphis and the Mercury Alpha Fund by Mercury Technology Labs.
The forum is free, but application deadline is Tuesday. For more information, visit online at launchmemphis.com
LaunchMemphis events will build up ties among entrepreneurs
LaunchMemphis was recently featured in the Commercial Appeal. Read more here.
Commercial Appeal
LaunchMemphis events will build up ties among entrepreneurs
By Daniel Connolly
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
If you’ve recently started a company in technology or biosciences — or you’re just thinking about it — you’re the target audience for LaunchMemphis, a series of networking and educational events that starts this week.
The events are meant to build up social links among tech and science entrepreneurs in the area. The key organizers are Eric Matthews and Marc Diaz, principals with Mercury Technology Labs LLC, a relatively new company that helps scientists and researchers turn their ideas into working firms.
The pair have attracted a wide range of sponsors and collaborators, including EmergeMemphis, an organization that provides office space and other support to small businesses, and the Memphis Bioworks Foundation, a nonprofit that promotes the development of science-based industry.
The highlight of the LaunchMemphis series is Startup Weekend, which comes at the end of this month.
Dozens of people are scheduled to gather at the FedEx Institute of Technology to create a real company in 54 hours.
Participants in the event will make a short pitch for their ideas before the group picks one and starts working on it.
Everyone from lawyers to Web developers will offer input as a facilitator tries to keep the process running smoothly, Diaz and Matthews said.
The organization is accepting 100 people, and 20 slots were still open as of Monday. Those interested may register online at launchmemphis.com or startupweekend.com. A $40 fee covers food and supplies.
The event will be run by Startup Weekend LLC, a new company based in Fort Wayne, Ind., that has organized similar events in cities including New York and Seattle.
The principals with Mercury say the event is meant to educate participants and forge connections among local entrepreneurs. Creating an actual company may be more difficult.
“Every business is risky, and I would be pleasantly surprised if this created a viable business,” Diaz said.
Several events will come before and after Startup Weekend. The first, a networking party, is scheduled for Thursday at the Fox & Hound restaurant in East Memphis.
The post-weekend highlight is an investor forum on June 9, where entrepreneurs will have a chance to present their work to venture capitalists and private investors.
Contact Daniel Connolly at 529-5296.
LaunchMemphis events
5 p.m.-7 p.m. Thursday: LaunchMemphis kick-off networking event. Fox & Hound, 5101 Sanderlin Ave.
11:30 a.m., May 13: Networking session and talk by the University of Memphis’ Kevin Boggs on using university research to form companies. Memphis Bioworks Foundation, 20 S. Dudley. RSVP to Courdria Pointer: cpointer@memphisbioworks.org or 448-2799. Lunch is $5.
5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. May 22: Startup Weekend participant gathering. People registered for startup weekend have a chance to meet each other in advance. FedEx Institute of Technology at the University of Memphis, 365 Innovation Drive.
May 30-31 and June 1: Startup weekend at the FedEx Institute of Technology.
June 9: Early stage investment forum. Young businesses have a chance to meet with early stage venture capital firms and private investors. FedEx Institute of Technology. Online registration required at launchmemphis.com.
June 14: One-day intensive session to turn business ideas into business plans. Mercury Launchpad at Emerge Memphis. 516 Tennessee St. To register, contact chris@mercurylaunchpad.com.
For more information, call Lori Turner at 266-2662or visit launchmemphis.com or startupweekend.com
© 2008 Scripps Newspaper Group — Online
Commercial Appeal Coffee Break Section: “Fill up on ‘TechFuel’”
The Commercial Appeal recently reported on our upcoming networking event.
Commercial Appeal — Coffee Break Section
May 1, 2008Fill up on ‘TechFuel’
“TechFuel,” an idea-sharing and networking event for businesspeople, entrepreneurs and technologists, is set for 5-7 p.m. May 8 at the Fox and Hound, 5101 Sanderlin.
The event is sponsored by LaunchMemphis, recently established by area business leaders to promote entrepreneurship. Get details at launchmemphis.com.
Memphis Business Journal: LaunchMemphis seeks to match investors with local entrepreneurs
LaunchMemphis Early Stage Investment Forum was recently featured in the Memphis Business Journal.
Friday, May 2, 2008
LaunchMemphis seeks to match investors with local entrepreneurs
Memphis Business Journal - by Einat Paz-Frankel Staff writer
There’s talent and money in Memphis, but they don’t always meet.
LaunchMemphis, a group of local technology leaders, aims to change that by connecting investors to startup companies and Memphis entrepreneurs. The group says many local venture capitalists invest in companies outside Memphis, which is part of the reason why many brilliant ideas born in Memphis never make it to market.
In a series of events starting May 8, LaunchMemphis will attempt to engage both entrepreneurs and investors in advancing technology locally.
“When growing a successful science or a technology-based company, you can find the right ingredients within the grassroots infrastructure of LaunchMemphis,” says venture capitalist Eric Mathews, principal of Mercury Technology Labs LLC, who co-created LaunchMemphis with attorney Harry Brown. “From finding a new management team member to tracking down funding, the events organized can help entrepreneurs take their idea from the back of a napkin to the next level.”
The most significant event for those entrepreneurs seeking funding, the LaunchMemphis Early Stage Investment Forum, will take place June 9 at the University of Memphis FedEx Institute of Technology. Applications for funding — or, rather, for the opportunity to pitch your idea to investors at the forum — will be accepted through May 16.
Lori Turner, managing partner at The RedRover Co. and one of the founders of LaunchMemphis, says there are two types of applications: One is for seed funding of under $100,000, intended for entrepreneurs who “literally have an idea on a napkin or a very sketchy idea”; the second track will focus on more advanced ventures of more than $500,000 and is intended for companies with a solid prototype.
About 12 investors have already signed up for the forum.
“It’s not for all entrepreneurs, it’s not for the beauty salon down the street,” she says. “While Memphis needs all kinds of entrepreneurs, our niche is science and technology startups.”LaunchMemphis
Entrepreneurial consortium
Address: 516 Tennessee, Suite 133
Web site: www.launchmemphis.com
ep@bizjournals.com | 259-1764
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Memphis Business Journal: Next great company could be in Memphis
Memphis Startup Weekend was recently featured in the Memphis Business Journal. Check it out here . . .
Memphis Business Journal
Friday, February 22, 2008
Next great company could be in Memphis
After beating out such cities as San Diego and Indianapolis, the city of Memphis was selected to be the next site for Startup Weekend — an event that aims to bring together local entrepreneurs with the goal of creating a real company in just 54 hours.
Memphis will join cities such as San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C., which have all hosted Startup Weekend events.
“Over 600 people in Memphis have said we want Startup Weekend here,” says Eric Matthews, Mercury Technology Labs founder, who is helping organize the event. “It is a real testimony to what people want here as far as building an entrepreneurial community.”
Matthews says Memphis Startup Weekend will be held May 30-June 1 and will be hosted at EmergeMemphis at 516 Tennessee St.
EmergeMemphis is helping organize the event along with Matthews and Harry Brown, a local entrepreneur.
At the event, participants will decide on an idea for a company the first night.
After a decision has been made on a company, participants will split up and work on all the issues that come with starting a company — from branding to public relations.
Participants will be rewarded with shares of the company, which ideally could become operational in the future. Matthews says five of the original Startup Weekend businesses are still around and 10 more don’t have the funding, but could be viable businesses.
From staff reports
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Daily News: Biz Startup Event Slated for Late May
Memphis Startup Weekend was recently featured in the Daily News. Check it out here . . .
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Biz Startup Event Slated for Late May
ROSALIND GUY | The Daily News |The possibilities are endless.
With a group of 100 people, experts in various fields and many different visions, there’s no telling what ideas will come out of the weekend event that br….
