Tag: interview with founder

Start-Up Service Connecting People With Their Medical Reminders

Posted on by Drew Neisser

This is the transcript from my interview with Jesse Middleton, founder of GetMinders, a start-up service that hopes to make missing your meds a thing of the past.

What is GetMinders?
GetMinders connects people with their medical reminders, their medical professionals and their families/support networks all via a quick phone call or text message. Our system calls patients to remind them to take their meds, get to their appointments or do their therapy and then offers to connect them with all of the above people to help keep them compliant, happy and healthy.

We’ve been running a super early pilot and the feedback has been amazing so far. We now have a private beta launched that is making over 350 calls per week and we’re really excited to continue to grow the company, build the product and gain more advice and feedback throughout the industry and from people like you.

Where did the idea for your business come from?
While I was traveling recently I began a discussion with a distant cousin who is a dentist. As we got talking about the needs of his patients I thought of my grandfather, in Florida, who is in a very late stage of Parkinson’s. It’s easy for someone in his position to forget to take their meds, mess up which ones they take when most importantly become disconnected with his family, friends and medical professionals.

Why are you doing this?  I mean why not just get a job at a fast growing company and stop killing yourself?
I’ve been on both sides. I started my first company at 16 and I’ve worked for numerous large corporations and start-ups over the past 8 years. I felt like it was just the right time to take the leap and try to build a business that could help people on my own. NOTE: My wife gave me a kick in the ass to really get the ball rolling. She told me that right now we have some cheap rent and two annoying cats to take care of. One day we’ll have kids and other responsibilities and it’ll be a lot harder to do.

What does success look like for you personally and for your company?
As a company, getting our product in the hands of millions of people that need to remember to take their medications, keep track of their compliance or take care of their loved ones would be pretty amazing for us. For me personally I’d like to make it to a point where I can invest in others’ ideas that can make the world a better place.

How long have you been at it and where do things stand right now?
We’ve been working on GetMinders for only a couple of months. The real coding and build out came only about a month ago. We’re now in a very early stage where we’re making over 350 calls per week and looking at next steps including funding and market testing.

Other than money, what are the biggest barriers to your success right now?
The biggest barrier for us is the need for a real voice. Speaking to the right people in the industry can be hard. Insurance companies are huge, pharmaceutical companies are even larger and medical networks and hospital systems have so much red tape it can take years to get things from idea to production. Making sure that we’re getting the right introductions and talking to the right people are very important to our success now.

Describe some of the highs you’ve experienced thus far
Right after the first weekend I built a very simple prototype we were making over 100 calls per week with our platform. When I put out simple request for testers on Twitter/Facebook the emails were overwhelming. The fact that people jump at the opportunity to help their friends (and others in the same industry) gives me a strong feeling that we will be successful.

Just a day ago I presented at a technology Meetup in Stamford, CT run by Roger Wu. After presenting our product to over 40 people along with 4 other start-ups we won the user-choice award. It wasn’t so much the winning that mattered but the fact that people sat and listened and offered fantastic input as to the future of GetMinders and the health industry as a whole.

And what are the low points?
I’m not sure that there have been any real low points so far. The hardest thing has been cutting back on spending. Having spent a few years in larger corporations (I last worked for LivePerson, a publicly traded tech company in NY) with a real paycheck it was easy to forget about the budget that my wife and I had set out. Now that my partner and I are working really hard on the start-up, I need to really focus on the spending. No one is signing expense reports or bi-monthly checks anymore.

Where has the money come from to get you this far?
It’s come right out of our pockets. My co-founder, Mike, and I have put smalls amounts in where we need it. We’ve had little overhead as we don’t have an office space yet and the minutes and message costs are all pay-as-you-go through Twilio. For now we’ve kept costs low but eventually we’ll be ramping up and that’ll be a whole new ballgame.

How hard has it been to raise money?
Well we’re still in the process so I don’t know that I can speak to the final outcome. What I can say is that the most important thing I learned through the process is that you have to ASK if you want to get money. Too many times I’d end a conversation with thanks for the input instead of, “So, do you believe in us and would you be willing to invest?” Learning to say this sentence has done wonders for us while raising funding.

Looking back, what would you do differently?
I would have done this two years ago instead of now. I was afraid before to go out on my own. Now that I’ve taken the leap I’ve found that the support network that I have spreads much further than I thought. We could be so much further along had we started long ago.

Did you think it was going to be this hard?
Yes. I’ve heard the stories of how hard it is to start a company, build a product, raise money and then sell the product to people from friends who have been through it. I was lucky enough to enter this whole thing pretty grounded.

Has you business taken any major pivots from concept to where you are today?
Not any major pivots. The idea began with medication only. We’ve branched out to looking at all sorts of healthcare and wellness but we’ve stuck to the same industry.

How much money do you need to raise now to get you to the next stage?
We’re currently looking at a small friends and family round (below $200k). This will let us really figure out the right market, build out an even more stable product and to get even further along with discussions all over the healthcare world (pharmacies, insurance companies, etc).

If your friend was about to start a business, what advice would you give them?
Just fucking do it. A good friend of mine has JFDI tattooed on his arm. He’s been telling me those same four words for a long time and finally did it. If you don’t give it a shot I can guarantee you will not succeed.

Do you see yourself as a serial entrepreneur or is this your one big idea?
I am pretty sure I’ll wind up being a serial entrepreneur. If I do my job right this start-up will grow into a real company. My hope is that my next steps involve helping others do the same thing.

What lessons do you wish you’d learned from others?
As I mentioned in the advice I’d give to a friend, JFDI. So many friends have went off, raised money and built successful companies. They all struggled until they finally dove it and did it. I think I learned that lesson now but it took me a heck of a long time to get here.

An Unexpected Entrepreneur’s Success Story

Posted on by Drew Neisser

The following is an interview I had with “unexpected entrepreneur” Emily Lutzker, founder of OpenInvo, a start-up with an innovative approach to innovation.

 

What prepared you for being an entrepreneur?
Before launching OpenInvo I was an artist and academic, and felt more comfortable at an art gallery doing a performance work in the nude, or moderating a panel of cultural theorists than in a boardroom. But not only now have I discovered that being an entrepreneur is one of the most exciting and creative things I have ever done, but my former life was the best preparation for bootstrapping a business that anyone could ask for.

As an artist, I created sculpture, video and performance works and showed my work internationally. Like many early career artists, I did not make much money from my work, nor did I have big budgets for any productions. When I needed to recruit 5 other performers, costume them, organize rehearsals and film, I normally did it on a shoestring. I can’t remember spending more than $500 on a project. Out of necessity and drive, I managed to wrangle people who were enthusiastic to help and resources that got the job done without spending much money. It does take time, attention, and people skills to get such projects done — the same skills needed for managing a startup. I can go on about this at length, but I think you get the idea.

Since I began OpenInvo, I’ve approached it with the same budgetary constraints and understanding as I did as with an artistic production. I know that the people involved are my greatest assets. That, even though 3 people give you high estimates for a job that there are always alternatives, but most importantly that people like to help. (I like to help people too).  They especially like to help when they see enthusiasm and drive for a project — those things are contagious.

Now, OpenInvo has been in live beta since the end of September, and growing at a steady pace. I do hope that in the near future we won’t we bootstrapping it quite to the extent that we have been in the past, but I do know that just about anything is possible with a little creative problem solving.

 

Where did the idea for your business come from?
My friends were tired of hearing me come up with ideas for new products and services. They all said, “why don’t you do this business or that one — that’s a great idea!” But I had an art career and didn’t want to be a business owner, although I would have loved to prosper from my ideas. Then my (now) co-founder said to me, “Why don’t we have a business selling ideas?” I said, “That can’t be done!” With a mountain of research I happily discovered I was wrong. It’s the only business I ever wanted to be the owner of — so far.

Why are you doing this?  I mean why not just get a job at a fast growing company and stop killing yourself?
I only had a “real” job once. At some point, I was told I was disruptive to the workplace. I’ll admit it,   I was bored. I’m sure I was disruptive. Actually, It never occurred to me to work at a “fast growing company” or hardly a company at all.  Besides, I’m sort-of un-hirable… my resume says PhD, artist, media producer. My web presence says a combination of crazy naked person and esoteric cultural studies scholar. Companies see “troublemaker.” Sure, I’m good for a university Art or New Media department, and I did love teaching, but I’m not a true academic in my heart.

What does success look like for you personally and for your company?
This is a trick question! Success means changing the world, no?  Seriously… to have a thriving marketplace where people with great ideas get valued for their ingenuity, where companies get true fuel for innovation. Success for the OpenInvo is to be a center for innovation, a support system for the innovation process, and to constantly keep growing and evolving from within. I’d like to think that success is still a starting point, not only a result.

On a large scale, I think that the wonderful things that people dream up should be seen as a commodity. Over the last 50 years, any art form that can be reproduced has become increasingly cheap or free — music, films, books, etc. The people who suffer from that phenomenon are the independent thinkers, not the pop-culture successes. But independent thinking and creation are the assets of humanity, and not to foster that aspect of culture is a shame. I don’t believe we should return to a pre-mechanical reproduction culture, but instead move forward and reinvent. On a philosophical level OpenInvo can inch us towards valuing people’s creativity, rather than valuing “stuff.” Seeing that kind of shift occur will be success for OpenInvo as well as for me personally. I’m a bit of an idealist, and I want to live in a world that fosters and rewards the things that make us human and celebrates our differences.

How long have you been at it and where do things stand right now?
The original conversation that inspired the company occurred more than 2 years ago. I was living in Tel Aviv. A year and a half ago I moved back to New York to start OpenInvo, mostly because my network is here and the innovation business, in terms of content, should be here. I then had a bit of a learning process in the business and startup arenas — it’s still not over, but I’d like to think that I gained some skills and had some that I repurposed from the art and media world. In a way, I could say that I’ve been at it all my life, I just didn’t know what “it” was. It took me until March 2010 to officially form the company, and the first public release of the platform went up in late September.

 

Other than money, what are the biggest barriers to your success right now?
Gaining trust from the would-be Idea Provider community. To have those users understand that not only does OpenInvo NOT want to “steal their idea,” but we actually don’t want ideas to be “stolen” at all.

Describe some of the highs you’ve experienced thus far
I didn’t ask anyone for money, they volunteered. I raised a small amount from friends and family who felt my enthusiasm and believed in me, saying they wanted in. That was an amazing high — to be heard and supported like that.

And what are the low points?
The low points are only the few days when it’s more of a struggle than an adventure — realizing what I don’t know and how much there is ahead. I have an impatient streak, which makes me frustrated when things don’t go as fast as I would like. Also, it would be a relief to not spend time worrying over the lack of budget. It is a bit of a roller-coaster ride… Ohmmm…

 

Where has the money come from to get you this far?
Friends and family.

 

How hard has it been to raise money?
The small amount I raised I got without asking. Now I’m just starting to look for the right investors to grow with. I’ll let you know how hard it’s been when it’s done.

 

Looking back, what would you do differently?
Who has time to look back?

 

Did you think it was going to be this hard?
Struggle isn’t something I was ever afraid of. Yeah, sure I knew it would be hard. When are worthwhile things not hard?

Has you business taken any major pivots from concept to where you are today?
Major, no. Minor for sure. And I’m sure there are some to come. I thought i would raise money earlier, but instead just blasted ahead. I wouldn’t have been able to without the amazing support of the people around me, and perhaps a touch of insanity.

How much money do you need to raise now to get you to the next stage?
Need? I’ll make it work with whatever I have. But with 500,000-600,000 OpenInvo would be able to grow at an optimal rate.

If your friend was about to start a business, what advice would you give them?
I’d just make sure she/he  knew the level of commitment and drive it takes. I would load a bunch of resources into her/his hands, spin her around three times and, say, “go get em! Call me when you need me — for advice, a shoulder to lean on, or a drink.”

 

Do you see yourself as a serial entrepreneur or is this your one big idea?
I can’t imagine not having another big project ahead of me. Whether that will be a for-profit business or not, who knows. Do we have a name for someone who embarks on one big project after another that are not necessarily business ventures? I’m a serial one of those.

Someone said that “any idiot can learn from his/her own mistakes, it takes a genius to learn from the mistakes of others” — what lessons do you wish you’d learned from others?

That business isn’t boring at all. That the language may be different for different industries, but often the skill set is easily translatable. And that when someone offers you a breath mint, take it.

Innovative Start-Up Making Products Out of Recycled Materials

Posted on by Drew Neisser

This is the transcript from my interview with Ashok Kamal, founder of Bennu, a start-up dedicated to making new products out of the stuff you throw away.  This is the first in a series of interviews I conducted for a FastCompany.com post on entrepreneurship that will go live later this week.  I also have Ashok to thank for the pearl metaphor I’m using for my larger story with his comment, “bu diamonds and pearls are made under pressure, and so are great businesses.”

Where did the idea for your business come from?

Like any good business, the idea behind Bennu was born out of a problem. The difference with Bennu and other social enterprises is that our problem affects society as a whole, not just individuals. We wanted to address the obscene amount of garbage being dumped into landfills. Therefore, we started Bennu to make products out of recycled materials, both solving a practical consumer need and protecting the environment for all of us.

Why are you doing this?  I mean why not just get a job at a fast growing company and stop killing yourself;-)

To me, entrepreneurship is another word for freedom. Freedom to live your values, freedom to work with people you care about, and freedom to innovate. Once you’ve experienced the freedom of running your own business, conventional employment feels like a prison sentence.

What does success look like for you personally and for your company?

When your lifestyle revolves around your business, the line between personal and professional success is blurred. In the short- and medium-term, my success entails creating a stable enterprise that delights both employees and customers. Bennu’s mission is greening the standard for a new lifestyle so our goal is also to influence peoples’ behavior by promoting sustainability. Over the long-term, I hope the business will outgrow its founders and operate as a well-oiled machine.  At that point, personal success would mean being in a position to help aspiring entrepreneurs to achieve their dreams.

How long have you been at it and where do things stand right now?

My partners and I began working on Bennu during our first year of business school in the fall of 2009. We entered and won the Baruch College & Merrill Lynch Invitational business plan competition and officially incorporated in July 2009. We continued to develop Bennu during our second year of business school and committed ourselves full-time to the venture upon graduation in June 2010. Currently, Bennu is a fully operational, revenue-generating company and we are focused on establishing our brand, designing products and creating marketing programs.

Other than money, what are the biggest barriers to your success right now?

Business is about seeing around corners. As a socially responsible company, Bennu caters to the green consumer segment, which is growing rapidly but still represents a fraction of the mainstream market. At present, the volatile demand for green products is a threat to our business, especially since sustainability adds cost. We’re betting on a green tidal wave that changes consumer preferences such that corporate social responsibility is the expectation, not the exception. The risk we assume is that we’re peering too far around the corner, waiting for a paradigm shift that may or may not occur.

Describe some of the highs you’ve experienced thus far:

As student entrepreneurs who made the leap from classroom to market, a definite highlight was being selected to compete in the 2010 Rice Business Plan Competition in Houston, TX. The event is considered the most prestigious student business competition in the world and participating validated our concept and potential. Additionally, making our first sale was a thrill. The idea becomes viable when a customer agrees to pay for it, suddenly making the business real. As a corollary, it was equally fulfilling to successfully deliver our first order. When customers are consistently made happy, it signals not only the start of a business, but also its likelihood to thrive.

And what are the low points?

Running a startup involves constant troubleshooting. From supply chain disruptions, to managing cash flow, to technical glitches — almost every problem could spell the end of the business because there is little room for error. While no single crisis stands out in my mind, the persistent challenge to withstand shocks and survive can be stressful. Entrepreneurship is an emotional roller-coaster and some days the low points compound. But diamonds and pearls are made under pressure, and so are great businesses.

Where has the money come from to get you this far?

Bennu was awarded $40,000 in seed money by winning the 2009 Baruch College & Merrill Lynch Invitational business plan competition. This capital injection allowed us to start up and earn revenue, and also compelled us to put skin in the game and invest in ourselves.

How hard has it been to raise money?

Bennu is a bootstrapped startup by design. Rather than exhaust resources chasing money for an unproven business, we decided to operate lean and focus on proving our concept. Raising external capital to support an unconventional business model in a down economy would have been extremely difficult. Now that we have an emerging brand, company infrastructure and base of customers, we hope that growth capital will be more accessible than if we had fundraised out of the gates.

Looking back, what would you do differently?

Bennu took too long to evolve. We launched by selling customized backpacks made from recycled plastic bottles. While these Greenpacks have been successful, they don’t suggest the growth of a successful company. A singular product focus is risky and nothing is safely protected from imitation. By listening to both our champions and critics, we realized that our core competency was developing marketing programs for recycled products, which could include but were not limited to children’s backpacks. Our business model became an integrated product development and marketing company focused on the recycled market.  We can help larger companies deal with their waste by offering structured corporate social responsibility solutions based on our diverse products and marketing programs.

Looking back, did you think it was going to be this hard?

When you feel fear, you can either run from it or confront it. Obviously, an entrepreneur is someone who faces fear head on. The psychological leap forward is scary and nothing can prepare you ahead of time. Accepting that all responsibility falls on your shoulders and there is no safety net is something you can only digest in real-time. However, the anxiety becomes overshadowed by the excitement of positively impacting the world and achieving your dreams.

How much money do you need to raise now to get you to the next stage?

In order to scale up and accelerate growth, we will be looking to raise at least $800,000 by the summer of 2011.

If your friend was about to start a business, what advice would you give them?

First, I’d subject the person to a psychological examination to ensure that they are just crazy enough to start a business. Assuming they aren’t either too sane or too crazy, I’d advise them to become consumer-facing as quickly as possible. Regardless of the idea on paper, the ultimate success lies in the hands of the buyer. The most important feedback, especially at the outset, is also likely to come from consumers, so it makes sense to prototype and test before investing unnecessary resources in a dud. Lastly, I’d remind my friend that passion should be at the center of the business. It’s the driver that will get the person through setbacks and make the victories more meaningful.

 

 

Do you see yourself as a serial entrepreneur or is this your one big idea?

I see the entrepreneurial lifestyle as a chronic disease, and I consider myself hopelessly afflicted.

Someone said that “any idiot can learn from his/her own mistakes, it takes a genius to learn from the mistakes of others” — what lessons do you wish you’d learned from others?

I think you can avoid a lot of unnecessary mistakes by establishing an advisory board from the outset. It’s easy to neglect this task in favor of immediate concerns, but once we recruited seasoned and candid advisors, Bennu became much more efficient and productive.