Michele Boone's journey is not your typical startup failure story.
A year before her company, Valet Boss, shuttered, Boone and her co-founder Suzie Steiner were in the beta-phase and in serious talks with investors. Valet Boss was an app and platform that launched in 2006 and allowed users to place a request when they wanted their vehicle returned, allowing them to wait inside. The valets could also be paid through the app, eliminating the growing hassle of having to have cash on-hand.
She is now the president of Confident Me Health Care Center, a Brandon-based startup with a focus on treating bladder leakage for patients through a new medical device.
"It was so much more than 'the business didn’t work out,'" Boone said. "It wasn’t making poor business decisions, it was a death. But it's relevant to what you're doing and the story you're creating — to go through all the steps of a startup, get some traction, get press, have a tragedy, have another tragedy and still want to do a startup — is a homage to perseverance."
Q: Why’d you launch the business; what did it do?
A: "We created an interfacing valet parking application. The idea was, when you checked in, the valet would have an app and the consumer would hit a button. Valet brought it around so you can wait inside not outside, and you could pay within the app. We also were an enveloping backend enterprising software, so the user could see what the service valets were doing in real time and track the cars."
Q: Biggest Milestone / Success?
A: "Oh my gosh, that's tough. I think it was when we were honored to be a Tampa Bay Startup Scholar. We got to go through the program — they used to have a program through startup scholars — and we were voted Tampa Bay's hot new company to watch. For that, we went to Las Vegas and got the chance to compete to pitch in front of Tony Hsieh.
Susie Steiner brought startups to Tampa Bay — we worked through the incubator for the event, it was with a group out of Vegas."
Q: A year before shuttering, describe the state of the business/brand.
A: "We were in beta, we were getting some traction and had a partnership to launch it with a local company that provides valet parking."
Q: So. What happened?
A: "As we were gaining traction, going to the next part of development, that's when my business partner Suzie Steiner passed away. She committed suicide. There was a lot of press surrounding it, the whole thing was very tragic. At that point, Valet Boss went into probate. Of course, any of her assets in the company went into probate and when it got out of that, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.
You can't make this up. After going through the diagnosis, we decided that was not the right startup to pursue."
Q: Before the untimely end, were there any issues with the actual business?
A: "The only concern we had — there were a lot of different oars in the water. We had lots of conversations, going back and forth. 'Is this something we should continue?' Which is the ebb and flow of startups. I don't think there is anyone in startups always on the right path, always making the right decision. We went through the obstacles and decided 'Yes," we wanted to pursue it.
When Susie was here, there wasn’t anything unique to us, we were just going through the process of building the business."
Q: Obviously you cannot avoid things like death or cancer. You're not only grieving the loss of a business partner, but a friend. After some time spent grieving, do you think you could you have continued the business?
A: "Immediately that was the first thing I thought of, was, 'Yes, I'm going to keep doing it. It will be a homage to all her hard work.' So the idea was there, for sure.
I was just at a complete crossroads. It never leaves the back of your mind for any of us in the startup space, to say 'If we just try one more thing, or give it one more try...' That was still in my mind."
(After Steiner died in 2014, Boone was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015). Unfortunately, I failed at chemo, too. I was in the 1% that doesn’t tolerate it, so I almost passed away twice. It takes a lot of family, capital resources. And after that, to be honest the thought of re-launching the startup got to be too much.
Q: How did this experience personally affect you outside of the office?
A: "I think the main thing was the stress. I don't want to say it caused the cancer, but it contributed to the cancer. (The experience) created a lot of self-doubt, and we do second-guess ourselves. I would have done that differently, if we’re honest. But, in startups, we all have that feeling."
Q: What were your biggest lessons learned from the experience?
A: "Some of the biggest lessons I learned was don't take anything for granted, and make sure you have a backup plan in case something happens. Susie and I were co-founders. There was a third-party who had a small stake in it, but it was just us."
Q: Describe your current business through the lens of the shuttered one; what’s different?
A: "I don't own the startup, I'm president and tasked with running it off the ground. (But our owner) is the principle, he is taking on the entire burden of capital through the startup. So, that helps me look through a different lens also.
The barrier to entry of this startup is so much greater than Valet Boss. This is in a medical space, with a brand new medical device. It's changing the way we treat the patients. It's very exciting, and it's something everyone is passionate about."
Q: What made you want to get back into startups, after all you had been through?
A: "I have the utmost respect for our owner, for him and his family. He is the driving force that reached out to me, and I thought it was such gift, I couldn’t say no. Startups are challenging, but it's a lot of fun. Startups are a lot of fun, and I talked to someone who had (a startup) and I asked for a piece of advice. They said 'They're not smooth and they're not pretty, and you fail during startups. So fail quickly, fail fast. Do it, and move on quickly.'"
