NOVEMber 15, 2019

For past editions, visit the SHELTOWEE NEWS ARCHIVES

Nov. 16th:  “Understanding Yourself For Business” Workshop Delves Into Self-Assessment

Sheltowee Business Network LLC’s CEO Alex Day lights up when he talks about understanding passions, and living a more fulfilling life. He would like to bring his knowledge directly to you via a new SBN Workshop entitled, “Understanding Yourself for Business.” This 1^st workshop will take place on Nov. 16^th in Louisville at the iHub Co-Working Space from 10 AM to 3 PM.  Register at www.sheltowee.com/events or on Eventbrite.  If you join for the month as a member at $29.95, you are eligible for this free workshop.  Or pay just for the workshop at a total of $150 (includes the Eventbrite charge).  For remote access, select either approach and a dial in code will be provided upon registration completion and membership validation and/or payment.

Day’s academic background is in physics, mathematics and Russian language.  He founded his own company in 2000 and has helped to start dozens of companies since then.  He has been instrumental in the state of Kentucky in the area of plant made pharmaceuticals and has assisted in raising over $50 million in capital for his client companies.  Day is passionate about science, entrepreneurism, the outdoors and his faith.  He has managed venture capital funds and understands what it is like to be on both sides of the table, both as an investor and as an entrepreneur seeking investment.  Day is interested in developing and deploying systems and programs that will significantly enhance the entrepreneurial ecosystem and have a strong impact on that ecosystem in his home state of Kentucky and around the country.

He points out that your business should fit your life plan and not the other way around.  The Sheltowee Business Network offers information, tools and guidance in this course that shows this process of self-assessment is a journey and not a destination.  “We need to be able to articulate our passions as individuals, and our core values.  This takes time to assess and consider what’s important,” Day points out.

The process at the upcoming workshop will include...   continue reading    

A Brief History of Angel Investing

By Eric Dobson

Angel investing may be the sixth oldest profession.  You know the first two, the third would be agriculture/manufacturing, quickly followed by logistics and banking.  The term “angel” was coined for patrons of the theater in the 1920’s and was then retasked in the 1970’s for individual investors that support budding entrepreneurs and their grand visions.  The industry has changed in several epochs beginning with Black Friday in 1929.

The Crash of 29 was driven in meaningful way by fraudulent private equity sales – sales of stock in companies that had no value or intention of creating it because there were few if any restrictions on the sale of stock in private companies.  However, with the Crash, many things changed.  First, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was formed along with immediately outlawing all private equity investing.  And, the SEC has never forgotten why it was formed.

What followed this ban on private equity investing between 1929 and 1934 was a period of pronounced economic stagnation.  This is not surprising.  Startups need cash to grow.  The banks were in a panic.  There was no legal private equity investing.  The vast majority of people in the country were economically wounded by the Crash.  So, the simple equation is no capital, no startups.  No startups, no economic growth.  All this finally drove Congress to act to move the SEC in 1933 to create what we know as Regulation D, Rule 506 (“Reg D”), an exemption for private equity investing and the “Accredited Investor” definitions.

Essentially, anyone with an income of $200,000 ($300,000 filing jointly) per year or a net worth of $1M was allowed to invest in private equity so long as the company did not generally (openly advertise) solicit the investment.  It was amended in 1934 and remained intact until 2008.  That amount of income and network represented a fabulous amount of wealth in in 1934.  In 2008, it simply meant ...   continue reading    

Trends Seen In the Sheltowee’s Startup Week Pitch Contest

This November, Sheltowee put together its first startup week pitch contest which can be analyzed for trends in technology and consumerism.  As we soon head into 2020, understanding the trends that drive innovation remains important to being a catalyst for change.  And, every entrepreneur learns that being a catalyst for change means knowing when to act.

These are some of the trends we observed through the participants of the day:

1.        Fintech continues to seek more analytics in its data integrations and for its shareability inside organizations.   Forbes identified several trends that are driving startups in this area.  They included: (a) Big banks looking for more AI; (b) a catering to millennials (28-38 years old), as they are the largest generation of the workforce; and (c) big money flows into fintech. 

Presenting at the SBN event was Forecastr, an online financial forecasting platform that helps CEOs and management teams confidently forecast revenue, budget expenses, and manage cash.  Forecastr serves a high “shareability” among investors and mentors.

Goldman Sachs estimates the worldwide fintech pie to be worth $4.7 trillion.

There are more than 12,000 fintech startups worldwide, according to CB Insights.

2.       There’s now a focus on medical devices for pediatrics.  FDA is committed to supporting the development and availability of safe and effective pediatric medical devices. As reported by AAP News, unlike pharmaceuticals, companies are not required to study medical devices in children, and development continues to lag behind devices for adults. Over the past decade, only about 9% of devices going through pre-market approval or humanitarian device exemption pathways were approved with pediatric indications for children under 18, according to data presented by the FDA.  The need has been observed and in the years ahead, there is anticipated more emphasis on youth medical devices.  Innovation Therapeutics, at the pitch event, is a pediatric-focused device company that solves early medical and developmental issues in infants and children, preventing long-term and more complex problems.

3.       Ecommerce for Small Business continues to jump forward.  Curated datasets are getting easier, and with more emphasis of artificial intelligence and machine learning, the ability to narrow focus target audiences continues.  Online sales growth continues to creep upward.  And business-to-business ecommerce is escalating.  At our pitch event, we welcomed Tacklehack, the curated marketplace and software platform that allows anyone to...   continue reading