Experienced collaborators key to startup success

Anyone who has started a business knows the only two commodities in guaranteed unlimited supply are opinions and advice. Two new area endeavors are leveraging the two commodities in the form of guidance designed to assist local entrepreneurs as they attempt to generate capital, launch products and build businesses in the fast-paced world of  startups.

National entrepreneurial network 1 Million Cups kicked off its southwest Missouri chapter Feb. 26 at The eFactory. The Springfield launch generated standing-room only crowds for the first two of its weekly Wednesday gatherings. Springfield is the 32nd U.S. city to host 1MC meetings, which are held at 9 a.m. in the business incubator within Missouri State University’s Robert W. Plaster Center for Free Enterprise and Business Development, 405 N. Jefferson Ave.

Each one-hour meeting offers two local  startups the chance to present their products, plans and problems to an open-door audience of advisers, mentors, fellow entrepreneurs and potential investors. Each session is recorded and posted on the organization’s YouTube channel, forming an online clearinghouse of tutorials.

Although there were several venture capitalists among the March 5 attendees, serial entrepreneur and co-organizer Rick Thomas insists 1MC’s primary purpose is connecting the people with questions to those who have answers.

“The goal is to create a porous, open community,” he said. “The focus is on ideas and opportunities, rather than selling products and services. Everyone is here for the same reason – they’re all giving to get. It’s a zero-sum game.”

A different approach designed to garner similar results also has recently launched in Christian County.

The Carl G. Hefner Enterprise Center, housed in the Ozark Chamber of Commerce’s new building at 1471 W. South St. in the South Pointe Center, is an incubator-style mix of leasable offices and conference area and communal spaces.

Since completing renovations and moving in Jan. 10, the center has leased two of its nine available office spaces – one to Ted Smith CPA LLC and another to Zach Dyer, a Web developer expanding from his home office.

The dichotomy of traditional and modern endeavors illustrates the anticipation and challenge chamber Director Dori Grinder is experiencing.

“Even with a variety of businesses, we expect to see that type of culture occurring naturally,” she said. “We do anticipate a lot of them will be facing similar issues – maybe working on a grant, or trying to get a business plan done. And in that environment, they could easily be sitting next to someone who just finished theirs. We absolutely see that happening, and hope to encourage it.”

A a 2011 study by the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration found there was no single component of a business incubator that guaranteed program success for participating entrepreneurs. Instead, it’s the synergy created by administering multiple practices, policies and services that produce optimal outcomes.

Not yet 60 days old, Grinder said plans are moving forward to provide programs for its resident entrepreneurs in areas such as financial understanding, marketing and other business basics. Additionally, there is a cadre of willing and ready mentors within the chamber membership available for one-on-one consultations.

“We have programming, even though it’s not totally set,” she said. “We’re supporting business anyway at the chamber, so we see it as a natural fit for these two entities to exist in harmony.”

Leased in partnership with area businessman Doug Pitt, the incubator includes the Dream Center, an open centralized area with nine workstations for drop-in usage. Grinder said with an atmosphere that mimics a coffee shop vibe, it’s an area she hopes will develop a regular flow of part-time business traffic and create a shared flow of ideas and information.

Dyer, who relocated his Web development business to the Hefner Center in mid-February, said he had received complaints about background noise in his home from clients while working via phone. Beyond a competitive $160 monthly all-inclusive lease package, the move granted Dyer a quieter environment, increased focus and greater credibility with clients.

“So far, this environment is good for my business,” he said.

“Having a physical address where they can find me anytime helps build that trust factor.”

Dyer believes the business model – which includes a careful screening process for potential members – has the potential to pay dividends for his business down the road. However, with the only other incubator tenant an accountant in the throes of tax season, Dyer said there haven’t been many networking opportunities.

“I was told that I would get a mentor, but it hasn’t happened yet,” Dyer said. “If I did get a mentor or consultant for my business, it would be a help to me.”

Grinder said she expects the concept to evolve as more businesses are added, and mentorship pairings would be dependent on tenants’ needs and the chamber resources available.

That type of open-source knowledge environment is a cornerstone of the 1 Million Cups concept.

It was launched in 2012 by the Kansas City-based Kaufman Foundation, which operates a wide variety of programs designed to support the education and promotion of small businesses, including the website Entrepreneurship.org.

The major question that arises with networking-based support is quality of advice. 1MC organizers point out while the advisory content is reliant on the caliber of attendees, the environment is more likely to be elevated by a few exceptional participants than pulled down by a single bad business apple.

“A rising tide lifts all ships,” Thomas said. “That concept holds true whether you’re talking about a single group dynamic or a widespread network like 1MC.

“This is not a top-down endeavor. It’s bottom-up movement.”

That principal was in full effect at the March 5 meeting, where the two presenting companies – blood bank company Core23  Biobank and food producer Granolove LLC – faced tough questions while making real-time connections.

Former KSPR news anchor turned entrepreneur Christine Daues tag-teamed the Granolove presentation with husband and business partner Joe, playing a video showcasing their four varieties of packaged retail product based on a family granola recipe. During the question-and-answer portion, she conversed with the audience frankly about such make-or-break challenges as limited availability of small-batch food production facilities, costly high quality standards and narrow profit margins.

At the end of the session, the Daueses came away with a few production suggestions, some blunt commentary on their packaging and a handful of leads for their distribution issues – all from acquaintances made via raised hands during the session. And though she had yet to research the contacts, she said the connections were just as promising as those they had made at prior presentations.

“What makes 1 Million Cups different is that it’s not just a local reach,” she said. “Through their network and the YouTube channel, it becomes a national feed, and gets our business out in the national environment.

“It has a different spin than anything we’ve seen so far in Springfield.”