Grown Ups Only Please
There you are, working in a government-backed organisation designed to encourage enterprise with a long queue of people asking you for money. Trouble is, it’s government-created, has high overheads so unless you need several £million, they won’t help. Fed up with rejecting one great deal after another because they are too small, a son of 3i (or more accurately baby-of-3i) is born, calling itself 3Cs – allegedly after three Colins who were involved in its creation.
Time flies and this month is the 10th birthday meeting hosted by solicitors Taylor Wessing. If you are in business, it helps to have the right paperwork (partnership agreements, investment agreements etc) and there is a long list of these on their website with explanations of what the various documents do. As a financial adviser, I met several former business partners whose enterprise had failed. The story was always the same: one guy did the work, the other spent the money and it was always the other guy’s fault when it went wrong.
Go on then, inspire me!
Having done more than the average amount of networking over the years, it takes something to consistently inspire and 3Cs manages to do that, being as I have oft said, my favourite networking group. Normal meeting format is 4 pitches with one of those taken by the host. Two speeches done, a short break is taken and then two more. Like many networking events, the golden hour(s) can often be before the meeting or afterwards. Recently, hosts have let us stay on at their offices after the meeting but if that option isn’t available, this continues at the nearest pub. Regular locations include: lawyers Simmons & Simmons, British Library & the business incubator unit of University College London UCL Advances.
If you need to prepare a business plan or pitch, a visit to the Business & IP Centre at the British Library is essential to see what other people are doing in your chosen sector, the size of the market and what ideas have been patented/registered already.
Crucially, 3Cs works on a pay it forward basis so anyone brazenly touting for business and who does not contribute, is quietly asked to shut up or leave. Occasionally speakers who have “been there and done it” are asked to come back to share their experiences. This being the 10th anniversary, the format is 14 previous speakers who have 6 minutes each – any one of whom would make an interesting blog on their own.
Lessons Learned
* Investors hate risk! This was almost enough to make me fall off my chair, but investors do not like surprises. This can include not asking for enough money in the first place. James Barnham was able to de-risk his NovaFlo product which stops baths overflowing, with the aid of a £40,000 grant. Once he had a working prototype, he was then able to look for proper funding.
* Investors are not romantic. Just because you and your mother would buy it, doesn’t mean anyone else will.
* Consultancy helps. Until your business can stand on its feet, how about using your skills as a consultant to help other businesses grow?
* Big companies move slowly. A small business has to grow to survive. A big company can do what it did last year and still carry on.
* Reward yourself when you get a result. Don’t penny pinch all the time. One speaker described being an entrepreneur as being a paranoid optimist
* If you are totally new, there is nothing to compare your idea against. Try copying 80 per cent and innovating 20 per cent. If someone has not done it before, there may be a good reason.
* Investors invest in the management. Good idea, poor team – likely to fail. Poor idea, good team – still potential to succeed. Good idea, good team – still a struggle.
* Try not to hang about. NovaFlo’s investors thought it would be great to go for the American market. When they tried to do this, someone had registered the name beforehand, so they had to choose a new name for that market – Flowban.
* Want to polish your business skills? Have a look at the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Initiative.
Next Meeting Tuesday 9th July 2013. Two more meetings after that for this year. Contact me if you want to pitch: george@cancerifa.com 07801 939 531
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