11/19/12 Telegraph Journal - Business - Innovation :: Launch36 launches second round

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INNOVATION
LAUNCH36
LAUNCHES SECOND
ROUND
New Brunswicks Launch36 startup accelerator has finalized its
second cohort of startups a group the programs director says is
more impressive than the first crop.
And based on the success of the first group, thats saying a great
deal.
Organized by Propel ICT, a New Brunswick tech group, Launch36
aims to aid 36 companies over a three-year period.
The program was formed in late 2011 and initially aimed to accept
five tech startups. After being flooded with strong applications, the
programs organizers welcomed 11 companies, including two from
Halifax.
Those companies took part in a five-month mentoring program that
culminated last June with Demo Day, an event that allowed the
startups to unveil their progress and pitch investors on their
product.
In the months since, the initial Launch36 companies have raised
close to $3 million from angel investors and venture capitalists. In
addition, 43 full-time jobs have been created and a third of the
companies are already generating revenue.
Trevor MacAusland, the programs executive director, is optimistic
the second cohort can match or even surpass the strong showing of
the first group.
The second cohort consists of seven companies and reveals the
programs regional ambitions: three of the startups are from New
Brunswick; three hail from Nova Scotia; and one is from Prince
Edward Island.
The final group of seven whose names have not been released
was whittled down from more than 40 applicants. Thats not a huge
increase from the last time, MacAusland said in an interview. But I
will say that the quality was significantly higher this time. It was really
tough narrowing it down.
MacAusland admits that some of the rejected companies would have
likely made the cut last time. That speaks to the quality, he said.
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11/19/12 Telegraph Journal - Business - Innovation :: Launch36 launches second round
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There were some strong contenders.
Each company in the second cohort is paired with a coach, a
fellow entrepreneur who will help guide them through the five-month
program. Each startup must meet with their coach for a minimum of
two hours per week.
The startups must also attend a series of fireside chats. The first
such session, held in Moncton, featured a talk by local entrepreneur
Dan Martell. Martells latest startup, Clarity, is a web-based
application that allows entrepreneurs to request a phone call with
the adviser or mentor of their choice.
Earlier this week, the Launch36 group attended two events in Halifax
run by Ash Maurya, the Texas-based author of Running Lean, a
guide to launching successful startups.
Maurya dissected each startups business model and offered insight
and guidance.
One of the participants said, That two minutes alone was worth the
drive from Moncton to Halifax, MacAusland recalled.
The Launch36 participants will dedicate the next three months to
customer validation. In other words, theyll spend a good deal of
time calling potential customers, attempting to test their hypothesis
with the market.
In late January, the participants will take part in a four-day boot
camp in Halifax, aimed to teach them the art of pitching to investors.
By March they should all be ready to pitch at Launch36s second
Demo Day.
Its been roughly a year since MacAusland put out the first call for
Launch36 startups. And so far the results have been impressive.
He points to LeadSift, perhaps the most impressive company of the
initial crop. LeadSift is developing software that produces sales
leads by combing through Twitter data.
The company has attracted the attention of big-name investors.
Earlier this month, LeadSift was named one of the most enterprising
new companies in digital marketing at Ad:Tech New York, a
prestigious digital marketing event.
Concludes MacAusland of Launch36s brief run: Its exceeding my
wildest expectations.
Brunswick News encourages rich and vigorous debate from its
customers and reserves the right to contact commenters to solicit
further dialogue.
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11/19/12 Telegraph Journal - Business - Innovation :: Launch36 launches second round
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