Steve Franks – Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Well, it’s almost 2012, a time for predictions.  I’ve never made predictions before, but for some strange reason, I’m compelled to gaze into the future this year.  I work with, care about, and write about entrepreneurship, technology, and the arts.  So, my predictions will (loosely) touch on those areas.

In general, I believe that our community is nearing critical mass in three areas.

1. Significant local economic growth will come from downtown mini-economies.

Yes, I believe that we will see noticeable growth in our local downtown economy – more than from our suburban sprawl.  Shocked?  Well, just think of the growth already happening in the Calhoun-Wayne, So-Cal, Broadway, and Wells Street mini-economies.  Companies like Conspiracy, Studio 13, CS3, Pint and Slice, Dash-In, JK’s, Toscanni, Hyde Brothers, La Michocana, Fort Wayne Outfitters, George’s, El Amish, Revolution, and the Brass Rail have led the charge so far.  Look for more – success attracts success.  Be ready for these districts to break out in 2012.  We may not connect them all together geographically in 2012, but they will expand.

2. The today-mostly-unseen youth and alternative arts communities will be discovered, discover themselves, and receive their  due credit.

The growth of downtown mini-economies is largely driven by young diverse populations.  This growth will bring more people to those downtown areas.  Shops, boutiques, galleries, ad-hoc performance spaces, opportunities for the public to come mingle (and shop) with artists.  Conspiracy already regularly hosts art and music events that draw a few hundred people.  Drop Your Avant-Garde proves that a huge young audience is capable of filling downtown in the name of art (well, and to have some fun together).  With even more people arriving, we start to hit the critical mass for some new arts infrastructure.  If you want to envision this growth, go walk around a college town like Ann Arbor.  Sure, the traditional arts district will continue to grow, but 2012 is the year where growth of the arts community happens more organically, little by little, on streets and in shops.

3. At least one of the Innovation Center’s tech companies  - and at least one tech company not connected to the Innovation Center – will hit big growth.

Possibly coming from the ranks of NIIC’s student ventures, at least one venture will experience the kind of growth that entrepreneurs only dream about.  Just like downtown districts, the startup community in Fort Wayne is growing in number.  Just like downtown districts, the startup community in Fort Wayne has nearly hit a critical mass.  From my viewpoint at the Innovation Center (for those who don’t know, I work there), the 50 or so companies at the Innovation Center campus are just the tip of the iceberg.  Over 100 have passed through the Innovation Center, and there are many more entrepreneurs that are out there in the city dreaming right now.  2012 will be the year that a couple of them go big.

4.  Nick Arnett will be named Mayor of Fort Wayne – no election needed.

OK, well this probably won’t happen – but it should.

Happy New Year to you all!

Steve

Paul Graham recently published an essay about why startup hubs work.  Nice essay – well thought out and makes good sense.  A bit more simple model this time than his seminal 2006 essay on how to create a tech startup hub.  It cites two reasons:

1. An environment where startups are a commonplace accepted activity.
2. Chance meetings with “people who can help you”.

It’s all about people – both factors are about the number of startup people.

Here’s what this new essay means for us here in not-quite-yet-a-startup-hub Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The essay not only explains why startup hubs work, but it also explains why startups outside of hubs are more difficult.  As Paul says, “Startups in other places are just doing what startups naturally do: fail.”  Ouch.  I know that some will read this and say, “See, don’t bother trying that tech startup in Fort Wayne” or “See, don’t bother trying to grow the tech startup community in Fort Wayne”.

Really?  No thanks!

That is EXACTLY why we have to continue what we are already doing to grow the tech community here.  Remember, if Silicon Valley had adopted that philosophy in the early days, it wouldn’t have developed.  Same for Austin, Boston, Boulder, and NYC.

• Every new tech startup here in Fort Wayne grows OUR hub.
• Every successful startup convinces a few more people that startup entrepreneurs are really “OK” or maybe even “cool” – not just “unemployed” as Paul says non-hubs see startup entrepreneurs.

Various people and organizations are working to grow the startup (and tech startup) community here in Fort Wayne.

• Me, for one.
• The Innovation Center.
• The Innovation Center’s BizWiz and Student Venture Lab programs.
• Ivy Tech and NIIC’s Launch New Venture competition.
• The University of St. Francis’ Business Plan competition.
• Huntington University’s Digital Media Arts program.
• The new kid on the block, Elevate Ventures.

Others are working on making our community a great place for tech entrepreneurs to live and play (to see why that is important, read Paul’s 2006 essay).

• The Alliance is working on ways to create a cool downtown environment conducive to young entrepreneurs.
• Nick Arnett is on a quest to find why communities create a great environment for Millenials.  One of the elements of Nick’s model, by the way, is “creating placemaking” – to foster exactly the sort of chance encounters Paul describes.
• YLNI is mobilizing the young professional community.
• Craig Crook is mobilizing our creative thinkers around TEDxFortWayne.
• Calhoun/Wayne, SoCalho, Broadway, and the Arts district are all growing great neighborhoods.
• Recently Arts United and DID brought Carol Coletta to town to talk about how to create a more vibrant creative community.  More than one person went away inspired and ready

We are not going to stop.  We are not going to send our entrepreneurs to San Francisco.  In fact, for those of you in San Francisco who are tired of the cost of living and the commute – come see us in Fort Wayne and be part of the story of a newly developing startup hub!

I attended the Legacy Fort Wayne Task Force meeting this week.  They were trying to work out their final recommendations (they’ll need at least one more meeting).

The idea I had proposed (a fund for Tech and Arts ventures) either didn’t make the most recent cut – or was lost somewhere in the big omnibus “do a bunch of stuff” economic development item.

The theme of this meeting was, “It’s all about downtown.”  The momentum is toward spending all Legacy money downtown, a concept being led by a friend of mine, Dave Corcoran.

1. First, the task force collapsed the Arts category and the Riverfront category into the downtown category.
2. Then, at the end of the meeting, Dave asked the group to collapse the Economic Development category into the others by agreeing to fund only that economic development that occurs either downtown (or for Youth Development, the third remaining category).   The group couldn’t agree to that, and they tabled it for further discussion.

I applaud Dave for taking a bold position!

1. Instead of doling out a bit of money to every proposal that came forward, he wants to concentrate the relatively small amount of money we have to work with ($80M IS small when you consider it is for a whole city) on something big enough and memorable enough to leave a legacy.  Great idea.  Whatever is done should be big enough to be visible as a legacy.  Go for it!
2. He wants to improve our downtown.  I remember when our downtown was absolutely vibrant, and would love to see it brought  back to life!  We have some momentum there already.  The arts district is both growing and improving.  Calhoun / Wayne is coming alive.  Broadway is more vibrant.  Parkview Field is a draw.  Let’s make it even better.

And while we are doing that, maybe we can hazz some financial support for an arts business incubator, perhaps with some venture funding for the arts businesses there?  So we can create even more future goodness downtown.  That would be so cool!