1. Community Involvement - with more than 50 people present, this was clearly met. Out of 34 applications, 20 were accepted,,so this number was intentionally limited. Of the 50 people, roughly half were investors (including institutional investors and individual investors). Almost all of the institutional investors in Memphis were there, although a few couldn’t make it at the last minute. And, of course, a summary of the event would not be complete without mentioning the involvement of the FedEx Institute of Technology, where the event was held. Lastly, the Commercial Appeal covered the event, with a reporter spending nearly an entire day at the Institute.

2. Connections - While some people clearly knew each other, most did not. Using the formula (N^2 - N) / 2, there was a potential for 1,225 connections to be made. Since many of the investors already knew each other, the actual number is probably closer to 750. A large number of these connections were more than fleeting moments, but more on that in a moment.

3. Awareness of Entrepreneurial Environment - As we spoke with investors at the forum, and as we reviewed the surveys they completed, the opinion was almost universal that they were impressed with at least some of the ideas at the forum. Many investors commented that they felt the overall quality of the entrepreneurs was superb and surpassed their expectations. The awareness that Memphis has so many people working on ideas was, and is, critical to the success of LaunchMemphis, not to mention the Memphis community at large.

4. Relationships - While some connections were fleeting ‘nice to meet you’ moments, many have become deeper connections. We are aware of at least 20 follow-on meetings that have occurred as a result of entrepreneurs and investors meeting each other at the forum (if you were there and have had follow-on meetings, please let us know!). We can’t know what these will lead to, but we do know that this was one of our most critical success factors, and we are thrilled with this result.

5. Feedback - All of the entrepreneurs received invaluable feedback from the investors. Each entrepreneur received a report of how they were rated by the investors in six categories and received a list of investors that wanted to have follow-up conversations. Metric met.

6. Plan for Moving Forward - One of the key aspects of the forum was providing a platform for everyone involved (investors, entrepreneurs, and LaunchMemphis organizers) to discuss how to improve the current environment. We held an open meeting/roundtable discussion on what investors were looking for, what entrepreneurs needed, and how to engage individual, “Angel,” investors. We believe that this engaging conversation needs to continue, but we were thrilled to have so many people engaged in the conversation, and getting everyone talking was the first step.

7. Direct Investment - For investment forums with a long history, this is the success metric that matters most. However, as organizers, we said from the beginning that it was not our metric of choice for the first year. It is too early to determine whether the connections made will lead to investment. We do know that dialog is underway that could lead to eventual investment and that at least is very positive (again, if you are one of the people who was there, please keep us posted). In speaking with some people who were less familiar with the process of investing in startups, we found a potential misconception around the notion that an entrepreneur might walk away with a check. This was never expected and almost never happens at any investment forum. What does happen is that a conversation follows that can lead to such a transaction. Don’t get us wrong–we do hope that someone gets funded, and that is a goal. However, not having a company funded does not mean the event was not a success.

We want to thank everyone that attended, and to especially thank our sponsors, the Tennessee Technology Development Council, Innova, and FedEx Institute of Technology.

We are still hearing about meetings that are going on and many entrepreneurs are hard at work to get their ideas further along. We firmly believe that great things will come from this event, and, as we plan for more in the future, we look forward to providing a solid foundation for entrepreneurs and investors to connect.

An extended lunch provided an opportunity for attendees to meet with presenters and gain valuable feedback on their business ideas. Participant response for this “fantastic opportunity” was great and ranged from calling the $25 registration fee a “steal” to unanimous agreement that they would definately recommend the LaunchMemphis Boot Camp to other entrepreneurs.

Currently there are plans to hold another boot camp in 4-6 months, but no final date has been selected yet. Please stay tuned to this space or contact Chris Allen at chris@mercurylaunchpad.com for more information. 

LaunchMemphis would like to thank all the presenters: 

• Andrea Valenzuela (Business Plan Development)
• Lori Turner (Marketing)
• Sridhar Sunkara (Technology in Small Business) 
• Jason Brink (Finance/Accounting)
• Harry Brown (Legal)
• Eric Mathews (Moving Forward)

as well as the attendees for making this event such a success! . 

Finally, to show our commitment to the entrepreneurial community here in Memphis, LaunchMemphis is providing all the presentations, free of charge, via download (5.32 mb .rar).

Download LaunchMemphis Boot Camp Materials here.

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

The 100 or so great minds gathered together at LaunchMemphis‘ StartUp Weekend are excited (and busy!) developing a business plan for a grassroots campaign to generate interest in a new social network presence. This network is unique and “organized” around the idea of unorganization. Interested yet?

While names, logos, business models and developments are still being worked out at the time of this writing, the overall concept is set: A community, utilizing Facebook, uniting pickup-game players and facilitating game assembly and peer ratings of one’s related skills.

Focusing on underground sports lacking standard rules, leagues or organizations (starting with ultimate frisbee), this social community will provide a platform for players to connect with others who are on the same level as them, as well as find ways to improve their own games. StartUp Weekend is in full swing in Memphis, and there’s still a full day left! Keep checking back to see how the concept progresses–just watch out for random lightbulbs overhead.

View recent photos on Flickr and get updates via Twitter.

(- Emily)

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.

All of these things have exceeded our expectations, and we are incredibly thrilled.! But the one thing that has been noticeably absent is the involvement of “Angel” investors. Angels are those individuals and groups that have the resources to invest in small companies. They are the critical cog in the machine that is necessary to allow companies that start in Memphis to stay in Memphis. When you look at Silicon Valley, Washington, DC, Austin, TX, and other places with strong startup environments, it is the angels that enable many companies to get over the chasm**.

So, to all the angel investors and potential angel investors in Memphis, please contact us (forum@launchmemphis.com). Hopefully, we’ve reached you through other channels, but if not please join us. We are seeing amazing things here in Memphis through the networking events and the investment forum, and we want to make sure that the wonderful entrepreneurs that we have met have a chance to show you the ideas that they believe in and are working so hard to make a reality. We also want to engage in a discussion around how best to leverage the resources of the many wealthy individuals in the area to create an investment opportunity that is more accessible. So, let’s talk.

* Apologies to Train for borrowing the title of their song of the same name, copyright 2003.
** Moore, Geoffrey A. Crossing the Chasm. Harper Business. 1991.

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

What we are striving to achieve through the networking events, speaker series, Startup Weekend, and (most directly) the investment forums is a ramp. A ramp that will allow a person with an idea and talent to launch a business. For this ramp to work, we have to make sure that those with capital can connect to those with the ideas. This includes the whole range of investment, from small loans and financing to Angel investors to institutional investors. This ramp needs to allow institutional investors be on the front row as companies develop from ideas to outstanding investment opportunities. The ramp needs to include resources for young companies, such as those provided by EmergeMemphis and BioWorks. When this ramp is in place, talent will remain in Memphis, and the investment rewards will also reside in Memphis, providing a powerful multi-faceted attack on some of the issues we have in the city.

Optimistic? Sure. A big goal? Yep. Going to happen tomorrow? Nope. But, we believe it can. It requires the work of multiple organizations–we applaud the activities of BioWorks and Memphis Fast Forward, and we know that what we are doing is only a part of the overall puzzle. It’s going to take work. And it’s going to be worth it.

Hopefully you are wondering what you can do to be a part of making this happen, so here are some thoughts:
Entrepreneurs (a.k.a., anyone with an idea they believe in): Participate in the various LaunchMemphis events and talk to us about participating in the Investment Forum. Get to know others involved in LaunchMemphis and maybe find a partner or an investor who can help you turn your dream into reality.
Angel Investors (a.k.a., those with money to invest): Let us know you are interested in attending the Investment Forum and/or the types of companies you would be interested in investing in. We’ve heard some very interesting ideas and concepts recently, and we want you to have a chance to hear them and help make them a reality.
Businesses (a.k.a., those with resources and an interest in the health of Memphis): Help us by sponsoring some events. Help spread the word to employees and contacts to participate. We had a lot of very talented people come together at Tech Fuel.
Institutional Investors (a.k.a., smart people with resources to help companies): Participate in the Investment Forum. Talk to us about what you think we could do to make sure you can find great ideas in your own back yard now or in the future. Let us know of interesting concepts, trends, and companies in the area that we may not have heard of.

Finally, a big thank-you to all those who attended the networking event last week. It was great to see that there are so many people who want to see great things happen and who are willing to be part of the effort to make it happen.

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