No matter how “Lean” you try to go, there’s one thing every entrepreneur needs in order to get their startups off the ground: seed money. Seed money is the initial capital used to start a business and get to the point where it can start generating revenue. Because startups in search of seed money are still in the pre-revenue stage, the investment risk is usually a good bit higher than venture capitalists are willing to take on. As a result you will likely need to get creative and proactive in your quest to grow your seed.
Fortunately, startup seed money can come from a lot of places. Most often it starts from a founder’s savings, personal assets or friends and family. There are countless business plan competitions, startup accelerators, and incubator programs that can help you reduce expenses and win money. Crowdfunding has changed the landscape by enabling anyone to chip in to help out a project they believe in. There are grants and similar awards you can try for. One option you may have overlooked as an option for starting your startup is traditional funding via loans from a bank or the SBA.
Mark Rosenkranz, a branch manager for U.S. Bank and commercial lending specialist, will address the topic of traditional funding options for startups at Blayzer’s upcoming Start Up Your Startup St. Louis entrepreneurship seminar and networking event on 11/5/2014.
“A lot of entrepreneurs out there mistakenly think that traditional lending isn’t an option for funding their startups,” says Brad Goldenberg, partner and CEO at Blayzer.
“As Mark and I have discussed on many occasions, this just isn’t the case. As a branch manager and a commercial lending specialist Mark is going to help to dispel some of the myths and misinformation about traditional funding for startups. He has a lot of inside insight into this world that will be invaluable for people who may have overlooked traditional routes to funding their startups because they just don’t think it’s possible for them.”
Mark joins a full program of dynamic speakers who will expound upon how to successfully start and grow a new business in St. Louis. Mark’s discussion will take a fresh look at traditional funding options and requirements for startups, entrepreneurs and small businesses.
Start Up Your Startup is a no-cost seminar and networking event that will shed new light on tools and tactics startups, SMBs and entrepreneurs can use to transform their bright ideas into successful business strategies. The event will be held on Wednesday, November 5th, 2014 at the Venture Café at CIC@4240 in the new CORTEX Innovation District, from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Learn more and register at https://blayzer.com/start-up-your-startup.
