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Venture Capital Funding: Napkin Labs On Why Startup Location Does Not Matter

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Venture Capital Funding: Napkin Labs On Why Startup Location Does Not Matter
by Romeo November 28, 2011 Is a startup’s location an essential consideration when looking for VC funding? Put differently, should startups move close to VC firms? Napkin Labs, a provider of tools for companies to create rich customer communities for market research believes it’s not necessarily the case. According to Riley Gibson, CEO and co-founder of the Boulder based Napkin Labs, startups don’t necessarily have to move near VC firms to obtain funding. However, startups may move for the following reasons; Talent Startups will generally tend to move if they face a talent shortage, for instance if there are no persons to fill crucial positions. There are successful startups across the U.S. that have obtained funding and stayed put in their towns of founding.

For instance, there are companies that began in New Haven and Pittsburg but moved to New York and San Francisco in search of talent, not necessarily VC. But at the same time, there are other startups that remained in these areas and thrive today, for instance Trotta and Boulda, says Gibson. Customers Most often, a startup may find itself located at a place where there is a customer shortage. As such, a company may decide to move to a location that opens up opportunities to tap a wider customer reach. Alternatively, some startups opt for a sales office or some form of representation in favorable towns. Never Move For VC Gibson believes startups should never have to move for VCs. Even in San Francisco, competition for talent is high, for instance between Google and Facebook. Rather than worry about VCs, startups in Silicon Valley have to worry about talent, as Google and Facebook go head-on for the best of the best! Solely focusing on raising round after round of VC funding does not turn a startup successful. Startups need to focus on building rich customer communities for market research. Adequate VC funding may be essential for short term success but long term failure, says Gibson. That’s where Napkin Labs comes in. Startups must seek insights about their customers and funnel some of those users in, and actually engage them to create new ideas and insights that help accelerate their product development cycles. How crucial is VC funding in long term startup success? Share your thoughts with us!

Summary According to Riley Gibson, CEO and co-founder of the Boulder based Napkin Labs, startups don’t necessarily have to move near VC firms to obtain funding.

Description Startups must seek insights about their customers and funnel some of those users in, and actually engage them to create new ideas and insights that help accelerate their product development cycles.

Tags: Crowdsourcing, Funding, Idea Management, New Ideas, VC

Posted by Jason Robbins

Nov 29, 2011 03:43 pm GMT Viewed 898 times

Author: Romeo Source

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