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Launch 100
March 25th, JumpStart's new Launch 100 initiative was officially introduced at an open house at Corporate College East. Launch 100 is a collaborative statewide initiative to create a pipeline of 100 high potential minority and inner-city based businesses in Ohio over the next five years. The initiative provides intensive business assistance and direct access to growth capital from a network of seasoned advisors with specific experience in growing larger scale firms. To qualify for the program, applicants must satisfy six criteria: Sales growth potential of more than $15 million in the next 3 to 5 years. - Your company does not have to be a startup, but you need to be able to
credibly demonstrate how your company will increase its existing annual
sales by over $15 million given the right level of support and resources.
The potential to create 50+ jobs in Northeast Ohio. - Your business can create 50+ sustainable jobs based in Northeast Ohio.
Demonstrate the ability AND desire to raise capital from private equity, angel, or venture capital investors. - You are willing to share ownership in your business to achieve its full
potential to create wealth for you, your employees and investors, and
you recognize this may require a shift in how you have historically
approached your business.
Possess a significant competitive advantage or barrier against future competitors. - Ideally - a patent on a product or process, but this can also represent
an exclusive license or business relationship that is unique and
difficult for the competition to duplicate.
Operating
in a growing national/international market of at least $500 million in
total market value, and conducting or planning to conduct business in
at least a multi-state region. - The total "universe" of potential clients in your chosen industry
exceeds $500 million in overall potential (of which you may target just
3 percent), and your targeted client list consists of customers in
multiple states.
Business requires at least $250,000 in non-bank capital in next 12-24 months to grow. - Your business has a growth and associated risk profile that requires capital in excess of traditional bank support.
If you are a minority-owned or led business and you think you qualify for the program, what's your first step? You can submit an application online, or call one of the network partners for an initial discussion. I've already met with two potential candidates and would welcome a discussion with you regarding your fit for Launch 100.
For more information, check out the Launch 100 pageor read the FAQ.
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Speaker Series
In March, our speaker was Barb Cagley of SCK Design, Inc. Barb gave a great presentation on the value of social networking tools for early stage startups. One aspect I really liked was how she gave hints and tips on how to evaluate the effectiveness of your social initiatives, even in some cases tying them back to ROI evaluations. I hear and read a lot of information and presentations on using social media to grow your business but linking those initiatives to growth metrics to evaluate their effectiveness continues to be missing from many of those presentations. Thank you Barb, for taking the time to give us some tips there.
Our next speaker will be Mike Southworth. Mike's company helps
start-up and established device manufacturers meet the demanding
requirements of FDA and international regulatory agencies.
I'll be sending out the notice for this event soon and I'd love to see you there.
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