Times of Entrepreneurship Stories
A Founder’s Collaboration Skills Can Be The Key To Success, Especially in Deep Tech
University of Florida’s Innovation Center is finding a new way to measure how startups make a difference.
An Immigrant From Argentina Reinvented A Hot Niche In The Beauty Business
She recognized that waxxing shouldn’t be as painful as it was. Now, her franchise operation is employing 300 women and bringing in $21.5 million.
What You May Have Missed
Rising Mexican Food Brands
Nina Roberts reports on the entrepreneurs who are taking on the ossified supermarket brands as the Mexican-American consumer market matures. “Consumer packaged goods on supermarket shelves have been lagging so far behind. “Mexican”-style products like Old El Paso taco kits, owned by General Mills, are still sold at supermarkets across the country, a throwback circa 1985. B&G Foods brings Ortega sauces, like taco ranch, to the market, when there are thousands of better salsa options available across the country, and PepsiCo is still producing Rice-A-Roni’s Mexican style rice.”
VC Spotlight: Realist Ventures in Connecticut
Ellen Chang highlights a woman-led fund focusing on healthcare and biotech. The VC also launched Realist Lab, a tech accelerator for underrepresented founders in Connecticut, to support entrepreneurs seeking help with funding, technology and practical tools to scale their businesses and startups.
How To Recruit A Superstar Tech Cofounder
An immigrant entrepreneur working on a new kind of board game found a creative way to appeal to a hard-tech “superstar” and creator of Xbox.
A Founding B Corp Shares A Financial Secret To Success
A B Corp in central California finds an investment structure that makes investors happy but keeps the pressure off founders.
News With A Future Spin
Making Way for Small Business: There was a kerfluffle at the Federal Trade Commission this week, as the lone Republican, a regulator with a track record of favoring big companies, resigned in a slashing op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, accusing FTC chair Lina Khan of disregarding the law. Here’s Khan’s classic analysis of Amazon, which helped launch the progressive anti-trust movement. These events look like Washington insider politics, but they will shape the ability of todays small businesses to grow into medium-sized businesses. Read the Amazon piece here.
The Dollar as Global Currency.
Vis a vis the debt ceiling debate: If you want to see what the federal government spends money on, here’s a handy interactive graphic here.
The single largest category (18.3%) is national defense, followed by Social Security and Medicare. Together those three things account for half the federal budget.
A significant amount of the national defense budget can be thought of as world security. NATO guarantees the security for 1 billion people in Europe, with the United States bearing the brunt of that cost and responsibility. One of the benefits the U.S. got for anchoring the world’s security after WWII was that the dollar became the near-global currency, which has incalculable benefits for private businesses in the United States. That’s what’s at stake if the U.S. defaults this spring or summer.
The Struggle to Remember in Frankfort, Ky. Change comes slowly. We spotted a new historical marker alongside the Singing Bridge in Frankfort, Ky., remembering the victims of two lynchings that took place here: of Marshall Boston on August 15, 1894, and of John Moxey on June 3, 1909. Both were dragged from the local jail while they were awaiting charges. Lynching memorials have been rising around the country. But they don’t always stay, as the struggle to remember continues. In Wise County, Virginia, one lynching memorial was stolen in November. Here’s Nina Roberts’ story on the struggle to remember in Elaine, Arkansas.
Living the dream
Buzzworthy: A Montana Steakhouse Helps Kids Sit Down
Rib & Chop House, a 12-unit chain headquartered in Bozeman, Mt., has a great brand differentiator. When a family with a child is seated, servers hustle to the kitchen and should, “apple.” In less than 60 seconds, the child is presented with a sliced apple with yogurt for dipping.
Best Practices: How to Collaborate Well
The University of Florida accelerator’s has some best practices for collaboration. Here’s what you need to talk through (and potentially express in writing) if you’re embarking on work with another company, founder or business partner:
• deliverables
• resources
• expectations
• time frame
• intellectual property
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Support Climate Innovation
One of the hottest startups on WeFunder working on climate is CrowdSolve. They’ve raised $150k+ – and they are now taking on more investments. CrowdSolve’s software platform helps entrepreneurs around the world get support for their ideas. Read more here.
Rathskellar
Work/Life Hack: From Amantha Imber’s Time Wise (as related in The Economist): Don’t agree to coffee meetings with a vague purpose, and schedule calls instead for wasted times, like a commute. But there is an exception: if a youngster asks for help or a networking meeting, you’re probably obliged.
Made in the USA: Made in the USA: Georgia’s Sweet Potato Pie seasoning, made in Louisville, Ky., ships nationally. You can buy it here for less than $20.
Upcoming Opportunities ⭐
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Link: https://bit.ly/TimesofEOpportunities
1. GET Champions: Tech Leadership in Miami
Forward-thinking Miami tech industry leaders are invited to apply for GET Champions Miami. The program will accept 20 participants in 2023 for its program of virtual training and curriculum, executive coaching and events over six months. Designed by GET Cities and powered by Radical Partners (a Miami-based social impact accelerator), the GET Champions Miami program aims to grow the pool of diverse talent in each tech leader’s company, as well as empower tech leaders to create real world change by positively impacting the technology industry, which disproportionately excludes marginalized communities. GET Champions accelerates the representation and leadership of women in tech through the development of inclusive tech hubs across the U.S. Launched in 2020, GET Cities is led by SecondMuse and Break Through Tech, in partnership with Pivotal Ventures, the investment and incubation company created by Melinda French Gates. GET Cities launched in Miami in January 2022 and has other locations in Chicago and the DC area.
Link to apply: here
Location: Miami
Deadline: Feb. 20, 2023
2. Should Climate Starups Consider Grants?
Sedale Turbovsky of OpenGrants will answer three key questions:
Why should climate startups consider grant (aka non-dilutive) funding?
Where can startups find grants? How do you win grant funding?
Where can startups find grants? How do you win grant funding?
Location: Virtual
Time: Feb. 22, 11 a.m. MT
Register here.
3. Startup302 Pitch Competition for Underrepresented Founders
Delaware Prosperity Partnership is opening applications for the Startup302 Pitch Competition for Tech-Enabled Ventures with Underrepresented Founders. Startups must be technology-enabled with at least one founder from an underrepresented group: women; people of color, including African Americans, Latin Americans and Native Americans; and members of the LGBTQ+ community. Startups can be based anywhere in the world. Winners will share more than $215,000 in cash grants and receive mentoring and networking connections such as introductions to potential investors.
Location: Virtual
Deadline: Feb. 24, 2023
Link to apply: startup302.org
Link to apply: startup302.org
4. Robotics Factory Launches
Pittsburgh-based Innovation Works is launching the Robotics Factory to create, accelerate and scale startups and manufacturers. The Robotics Factory’s program lasts seven-months and is designed for pre- and early- stage startups. Companies will locate in the Pittsburgh facility and will receive an investment of $100,000, mentorship and resources. Entrepreneurs developing robotic and related technologies are encouraged to apply when the application cycle opens Feb 1, 2023.
Location: Pittsburgh
Deadline to apply: May 20, 2023
Link to apply: https://www.roboticsfactory.org/
5. A Course To Reach the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs
In this free course developed by entrepreneurship professor John Lynn, professors and other entrepreneurship educators get a curriculum and supporting materials based on the influential book, The New Builders.
6. BK-XL
A new accelerator launched by Clara Wu Tsai invests as much as $500,000 in founders of color. Entrepreneurs from around the world are eligible and asked to move to Brooklyn for mentoring.
Applications opened: https://bk-xl.com/
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