About 300 people attended the event at Ben Franklin TechVentures in Bethlehem, where audience members heard presentations from three finalist entrepreneurs, then “funded” the companies, crowdfunding-style, to determine a winner.
This year’s winner, Apis Innovation, develops a device that enables landfills to capture 20% more methane from decomposing waste, while also increasing a typical customer’s biogas-to-energy revenue by more than $400,000, and reducing operation costs by $25,000.
The event illustrates a significant way in which early-stage entrepreneurs seek and obtain seed capital. R. Chadwick Paul, Jr., President and CEO of BFTP/NEP, said many new companies generate no revenue in their first few years, and that angel groups and small venture capital funds generally start to become interested only after they do so.
About 300 people attended the event at Ben Franklin TechVentures in Bethlehem.
“Raising capital for a startup technology company is complicated, time consuming, and often emotionally challenging,” Paul said. “One of Ben Franklin’s most important jobs is to provide just enough gasoline in the startup’s tank to help them move from the pre-seed to the seed stage.”
A total of $15,000 in prize money was allocated among the finalists based on the audience vote. The other two finalist companies – which were narrowed from an original pool of seven companies – were American Paper Bag LLC and Ophidion.
American Paper Bag LLC is a manufacturer that produces a fully customizable, more environmentally-acceptable paper bag that reduces operational costs while offering unique design features. The company anticipates generating about $500,000 in revenue in 2019.
Ophidion is a biotechnology company with a platform technology that exploits an endogenous receptor-mediated transport system to deliver various therapeutic cargos, including biologics, into the brain for the treatment of various CNS disorders and brain malignancies.
The event also included a panel discussion with founders of startups that have won past Venture Idol competitions, including Phil Williams of Game Face Grooming, Nick Gilson of Gilson Snow, Katy Worrilow of LifeAire Systems, and Andy Goldberg of Signallamp Health.
The panelists offered advice about advancing from the pre-seed to seed stage. Worrilow said it is important to provide detailed communications and full transparency to investors so they know exactly how their investment dollars are being spent.
Gilson said to remember that engaging investors is “all about the people.”
“Early on, when you get caught up in the need for cash flow, a capital infusion almost becomes like a blood transfusion, an ability to transfer oxygen to the organs that so desperately need it,” he said. “It’s easy to lose track of the fact that you’re talking to another human being. You need to take a deep breath, step back, and think, ‘What would YOU need to hear to be comfortable with that investment?’”
Several of the Venture Idol companies and judges were featured before the event on the Made Possible in Lehigh Valley Instagram account. Check them out below, and be sure to follow the account for future posts.
