The founders of BostInno’s 2022 Startups to Watch know a thing or two about building an innovative company, and they’re not afraid to share their secrets. Foremost among them: Start building a company culture from day one.
Three startup founders shared their insights at BostInno’s panel discussion yesterday, on topics ranging from exit strategies to funding — and being prepared to pivot.
Startups to Watch features 22 companies to watch in 2022. Here are the startups that made the
list. The panel speakers included Jerren Chang of civic education nonprofit GenUnity, Jessica Lynch of text message coaching company Wishroute, and Trevor Rozier-Byrd of the investing app Stackwell.
To watch a replay of the 2022 Startups to Watch, scroll below.
The conversation covered idea generation, revenue, company culture, fundraising, unicorns and plans. Here are some key takeaways from this year’s panelists:
Pursue an idea you would regret ignoring.
This year’s panelists left successful, comfortable careers at companies like State Street, McKinsey and PwC to venture into the unknown. Each said the decision make the leap came down to one question: Will I regret not pursuing this project?
“I got to a place where I felt like there was a greater risk in me staying, than me stepping out here and trying to do this thing,” Rozier-Byrd said about starting Stackwell and its mission to close the racial wealth gap. “I felt like this was purposeful work that I was meant to do.”
Long-term funding and revenue are high-priority items, even for early-stage companies and nonprofits.
While GenUnity is a nonprofit, Chang said it's building an earned-revenue model to make the startup sustainable over time. The nonprofit is partnering with companies to help make an impact on civic issues important to those businesses. For example, employees from Blue Cross Blue Shield are participating in the nonprofit’s health-equity program, Chang said..
Stackwell has yet to release its app publicly, but the startup is already thinking about revenue beyond the app’s monthly subscription fee. Rozier-Byrd said the company aspires to provide “the end-to-end financial products and services that people need within the Black community to meet their long-term savings and wealth building objectives.”
Wishroute also relies on a monthly subscription, and reports early revenue already. Lynch said the key for Wishroute’s path to profitability is by finding savings in other areas of the company. For example, the startup is developing natural language processing technology to help its human employees quickly generate and respond to user messages.
As for venture investments, the founders said they’ve had success raising funds from Boston-area connections, but they’re not limiting themselves to local investors.
No surprises: Navigating the Covid-19 pandemic was challenging. But such is the life of a startup.
Lynch said with the Covid-19 pandemic and closure of gyms, the company had to pivot and find new customers for its product.
While the pandemic came with its challenges, Rozier-Byrd and Chang agreed that starting a company and being an entrepreneur is extremely difficult, and the pandemic was just another mountain they had to climb.
“There’s so much uncertainty all the time,” Chang said. “I think the biggest thing is trying to figure out what kind of leader you want to be and to be confident – and to be confident in the fact that you’re making the right decisions.”
Don’t focus on planning your exit strategy. Build a strong company, and you’ll have options down the line.
These startups aren’t gunning for Unicorn status or committing to an exit strategy. They’re focusing on building successful companies and trusting that the right deals will come along if they put in the work.
“I’m focused on building a really awesome, game-changing company and if we get the right offer that’s good for the team and our investors over time, we’ll have to seriously consider that,” Lynch said.
Watch the full replay of the panel here:
