Over 100 founders, community leaders and innovators gathered together for Richmond Inno’s annual Startups to Watch event on Thursday evening.
The event featured several companies that were showcased on our Richmond Inno Startups to Watch in 2020 list, which took a look at companies that are tackling challenging issues with innovative solutions—and who could see solid traction in the year to come.
The night began with networking and a Startups to Watch showcase featuring Fringe, Trilogy Mentors, Skyphos Industries, Terravive, Tablee, Kamana Health and Kilo Medical Solutions.
Following the startup showcase was a panel comprised of founders from our 2019 Startups to Watch list that included Charles Merrit, co-founder and CEO at Buddy; Andrew Elliott, founder of RoundlyX; and Heidi Drauschak, founder and CEO of CrowdLobby. The panel discussion touched on the challenges each company is tackling, the growth they’ve seen to date, and where their businesses are headed.
Here are a few takeaways from the panel discussion. Their comments are condensed for length:
How was 2019? Anything Unexpected?
Heidi Drauschak: 2019 was an exciting year. We were in Lighthouse Labs and spent the summer rebuilding our platform, relaunching last July. Our platform has gone through many pivots- the most recent being opening up as a host on the platform. The most polished version of the site is now live.
Andrew Elliot: We grew our user base 29% every month. The most unexpected thing about 2019 was realizing how many people want our product over in Europe.
Charles Merritt: 2019 was about finding product-market fit. We realized about 30% of users come back to purchase again without any kind of push. This led us to the need to build user account tools. Something unexpected that happened was that two of our employees got stuck in an avalanche in Colorado while they were on a business trip.
2020 Goals and Outlook...
Heidi Drauschak: Our goal is to make our process more seamless in Q1. We want to find more hosts and find more people who have really meaningful campaigns to post on the site. CrowdLobby is a nonpartisan platform and it is a big year for politics, so we can expect big things for the year to come.
Andrew Elliott: We predict we are about two months from an operational break even. Our goal for 2020 is to take this Richmond based company and become a Global SaaS product for digital products.
Charles Merritt: We have an idea of what end of year looks like but we are ultimately trying to expand of the supply side. Every individual state has to approve the product before it can be put on market. We are currently in 20 states, so by the end of the quarter we are looking to get into all 50. We also are looking to have national scale booking platform pilots. The nationwide platform is really about accelerating growth before any competition can catch up.
2020 Funding and Resources in RVA...
Heidi Drauschak: In terms of accelerators, mentors and support systems, Richmond is brimming. The big thing is figuring out where to push. I think a big thing is bringing in more funding opportunities. Richmond is already really strong in support and mentoring and I think that will keep growing. In terms of talent, it goes both ways. There is a smaller pool so there is a smaller talent pool but at the same time talent is usually cheaper and faster here. An added bonus is that people are working for the right reasons here, which ties back to the ecosystem and producing more passion in talent. Andrew Elliott: Startup Virginia has been great for resources and has been a big help to us.
Generally, Richmond has all of the right things in the mix, but it needs a unicorn to really take off. To do that, you need the right funding available.
Charles Merritt: I second the unicorn concept. We moved into Startup Virginia and it has been great to be around other founders. It is really reassuring to be working next to people going through the same day to day. For talent, I am really optimistic. There are phenomenal universities and programs in the area that are producing great talent. In terms of hiring, it is a little hard because you want to hire someone who has had experience and success within startups- not necessarily someone who just has corporate experience. That can be hard to come by.
What does Richmond need to change?
Heidi Drauschak: I think the strongest thing about Richmond is that people aren't focused on the unicorn, they are focused on sustainable companies that give back to families and to the ecosystem. This creates a better ecosystem with happier founders who are in it for the long runs. The best conversations with investors fall around how you want to shape and add value to this ecosystem, which is really healthy. One thing to change is to build more communities that are focused around caring companies, those who are happy with their mission and want their employees to succeed. There are already many of these present but I think we need to grow a bigger support system for companies already like that. Andrew Elliott: Capital is already good so far for us and lots of other companies around us are getting funded. I think investors really need to focus more on funding highly scalable companies. That will make us more likely to get a unicorn company, which in turn will get us better funding in the ecosystem over time. Charles Merritt: I would love to see the region invest in better infrastructure. Specifically, they should be focusing on things that attract better talent like better connectivity or fiber. Collaborative workspaces are also something that there could be more of, especially ones that can provide lots of amenities for smaller companies or companies just starting out.
Words of Wisdom...
Heidi Drauschak: I wish someone had told me sooner to go through the five why's exercise. Why am I doing this? Why that?... It is easy to get consumed by different problems that arise and get pulled in different directions. This really helps when you need to re-focus. Andrew Elliott: Keep talking to the consumers and keep grinding on those day to day hurdles. Charles Merritt: If you plan on fundraising reach out to those around you. We as an ecosystem can share our contact lists and make intros. This will expand our connectivity and it is really beneficial to everyone.
Take a look below at some photos from last night’s event.
