SDEC San Diego Entrepreneur Center Contact the SDEC, we have been in the Entrepreneurs shoes.

We may offer some tips on how to raise capital, review your business model and your presentation deck, listen to your elevator pitch and assist with potential introductions to Private Investors, Angel Investor Associations and Venture Capital Groups. We are based in San Diego, CA but our Investor network expands across the U.S., outside of the traditional Angel Capital Associations. At the very early stages of a concept, Entrepreneurs usually tap into their own piggy bank, lines of credit and friends and family network, capitalized at $5,000 to $150,000 to get things going. Outside Private and Angel Investors want to see if the Entrepreneurs are In it to Win it! Prove to them what and how much you can accomplish at your risk and your own sweat, and initial capital that you personally invested and received, before they can be sold to invest in your business concept. As an example, they want to know if you have the ability to break a pencil in half, without destroying it, and share it, and have your team use it, with the greatest impact.

No Respect? Great ideas are worth less than a dime a dozen. If you say, I have this great idea or concept thats all talk in the Investors mind. Remember, The REAL Entrepreneur does it! The quality execution of a great idea increases the Entrepreneurs valuation and increases the chance to attain outside investors, and the next level of financing in the range of up to $1,000,000 or more. Investor Groups are like Country Clubs, its productive and effective to be introduced versus knocking on their doors unannounced. Today, you can find or identify a cottage industry and large garden variety of startup Facilitators/Connectors who say they help startups and organize startup meetings, and they bring in speakers/CEOs, etc. for you to listen to, etc. At the end of these

meetings/events, ask yourself, what did I take away to really execute? Will these guest speakers/panelist and facilitators/connectors be at my side to help me with my complex business model? You can attend event after event after event, in the end, as an Entrepreneur, you need to EXECUTE to WIN and quit attending passive events. Check the backgrounds and experiences of these Facilitators or Connectors for the following: 1) Have they started a concept before, to full execution? 2) Have they raised capital in excess of $1M from outside investors? 3) Have they, themselves, not the company, business developed or generated sales in excess of $1M. 4) Have they recruited and led a Board of Director committee of seasoned and successful individuals, who were founders and/or executives at fortune 500 companies? Typically, BOD members have made a significant investment in the company, and have taken on a role with fiduciary responsibilities, therefore, D&O insurance is a major requirement. And 5) If they are charging you A LOT (in the hundred$) of money to attend these/their workshops? Dont blame them, they are just being Facilitator-Entrepreneurs, capitalizing on your interests and pocketbook. Important! 6) If they charge you a upfront fee to engage with them, and/or to help you go MICRO IPO or REVERSE MERGER into a SHELL IPO or a fee to you help raise capital, you shouldrun away, run and keep running. The SDEC has experience with these types of organization(s) through a referral, trial and major ERRORso run and let us know who they are, so we can place them on our Watch Out list. Raising capital in excess of $1M and generating sales of over $1M has a different set of requirements and disciplines compared to attaining $10,000 to $100,000 in capital and sales. There are entirely different sets and intensities of lights, buttons, whistles, sirens, levers and temperature gauges to anticipate, read, pull, push and prioritize, that only a person who has been in that control room and chair knows what to do. The analogy is this: If you plan to run your first 26.2 marathon, would you rather spend time training with someone who has ran multiple marathons or hang out with a person who has only thought about it, or has only ran 5K/10Ks? If you trained for and successfully completed a 26.2 marathon, you know exactly what this means. And add some expletives along the way, entrepreneurialism is not for the weak. Also, theres a big difference in the startup entrepreneurial ladder (raising capital food chain) between 1) Facilitators (almost like event planners that collect and pass around business cards and try to sell you their services, their books and wares), 2) Connectors (They collect and pass around business cards, try to sell their services and wares, and know little about

your business, and are not likely to invest), 3) Collaborators (May know and want to know about your business, may synergistically get involved and make introductions, and potentially invest, and develop strategic partnerships). And 4) Investors (Passive or Active investments, most likely to make introductions and develop strategic partnerships, and may require a Board of Director role). The raising capital food chain is based on having a vested interest with risk/exposure. Heres a list of the largest angel investing networks in the U.S., according to the Angel Capital Association, a trade association of investment groups. Other source: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220149 NorthwestAlliance of Angels, Seattle, WA Number of angels: 100 Who it helps: Early-stage investors in startups based in the Northwest region of the country. West CoastBand of Angels, Menlo Park, CA Number of angels: 136 Who it helps: Group of former and current high-tech executives that has invested almost $200 million in early-stage technology companies. Investors Circle, San Francisco, CA Number of angels: 225 Who it helps: Uses private capital to promote businesses that address social and environmental issues. The group has invested almost $150 million in 225 companies, it says. Pasadena Angels, Altadena, CA Number of angels: 100 Who it helps: Provides up to $750,000 in early-stage and seed financing to startups in southern California. Tech Coast Angels, Los Angeles, CA Number of angels: 263 Who it helps: Provides connections, knowledge, mentoring and operational assistance to early-stage entrepreneurs in the tech, biotech, consumer products, Internet, information technology, life sciences, media, software and environmental markets. MidwestHyde Park Angel Network, Chicago, IL Number of angels: 133

Who it helps: Members invest in seed and early stage businesses, primarily located in the Midwest. Industries include: information technology, business services, industrial technology, financial services, consumer or industrial products and healthcare services. North Coast Angel Fund, Cleveland, OH Number of angels: 180 Who it helps: Invests in Ohio-based technology startups. East CoastGolden Seeds LLC, New York City, NY Number of angels: 190 Who it helps: Members invest directly, or through a managed fund, in companies that are founded by or led by women. Sectors include consumer products, technology, software and life sciences. New York Angels Inc, New York City, NY Number of angels: 99 Who it helps: Made up of entrepreneurs, CEOs, venture capitalists and other business leaders, the group invests between $250,000 and $750,000 in early-stage technology companies generally located in the Northeast.

Areas of Assistance (WE offer A to Z Products and Services for the Startup Entrepreneur or Small Business Owner)

Entrepreneur Check List Business Plan Review Executive Summary Development Startup Chart Financial Comparatives Consulting & Business Analysis Investor Capital Review Raise Capital or Alternative Financing Elevator Pitch to Investors or Customers Customer and Sales Development Mentor Search & Match Ancillary Marketing Branding, Web Design and Social Media Services Business Cards, Collateral Material to Signs Mobile App Development Mobile Applications Internship & Development Programs & Events Production New Company or New Product Launches Virtual Office & Coworking Hispanic-Latino Entrepreneur Center Military Transition/Veterans Entrepreneur Center

Team ModelingTeam Modeling is not a fashion show with groups of teams on a runway. The approach is to understand the importance of the development of a team and working as a team. As an Entrepreneur, unless youre like the guy who invented Plenty of Fish, alone in his apartment developing an online dating web site, most likely you will be forced to work with a team as you develop your business. By the way, the Plenty of Fish concept did so well, the founder had to hire employees, his new team. As your business evolves, your team may split into different teams and members may change, but thats okay.

Innovation & ReinventionA person explained that Innovation was the result of NOT being normal. It sounds true, as innovation in some ways is the result of not being satisfied with the status quo. Entrepreneurs are innovators, if your business plan is to copy what your competitor is doing and slapping on your new logo to make a difference, then thats not being innovative. On the other hand, an appreciation of innovation can result in a licensing deal. Some companies may express interest to slap their logo on your product. Sometimes, in order to be innovative, Entrepreneurs might try to reinvent. The artist known as a symbol, we once called Prince tried this and failed miserably. Coca Cola tried that too, with NEW Coke. Apple, stagnant with their Apple branded products came out with their series of i products and crushed it with billions of dollars in revenues.

Applications & ValidationAt the SDEC, Entrepreneurs have the ability to share their development tools in a CoLab environment by establishing an innovative Early Adopters Community. Dont get stuck in the lab or bedroom trying to come up with the perfect product before you release it to the market. Take advantage of field trials, focus group studies and think of the term Protoduction. If youre focusing to much on your product and not on your customer, you may find out that your perfect mousetrap, in which youll make bazzillions of dollars in revenues may not be

exactly what the market (consumers) demand. On the other hand, the perfect mousetrap that you thought could be sold in stores for consumers to purchase directly (B2C), is better positioned as a Business to Business (B2B) product.

Business Life Cycles Entrepreneurs may experience seven business life cycles, where typically there are five. For the Entrepreneur:

Seed Capital Startup Growth Established (the calm before the storm) Expansion Maturity (to Decline) Exit

Strategic PartnershipsCorporations cultivate strategic partnerships as part of their global business strategy. This cooperative strategy forms corporate alliances, even with former competitors. For startups, strategic partnerships can evolve very early, even before revenues are generated. However, it would be very difficult for a startup to call the CEO/President of Hewlett Packard to initiate a strategic partnership. Then, again, there are some ways to peak a fortune 500 Companys interest to work with an early stage company. The SDEC has experience with forming strategic partnerships with startups with little to no revenue.

Mentor Search & MatchEver sat in a meeting where a perspective mentor talks about how much experience they have because they helped launched a franchise chain in Europe during the 80s, and was part of their team that did the advertising and marketing, while your business, today (2011) is a digital marketing play? Yeah, we had the same question, Why am I here?

At the SDEC, our goal is to prevent that from happening to our Entrepreneurs. Our goal is to understand your business, and search for the ideal Mentor who would be a match for your business, we call it Mentor Match. Never discount a potential Mentor. Mentors are a great resource for guidance, knowledge, motivation and introduction to their peers. We can learn from their successes and failures. Its important to work with a Mentor that matches your business and your leadership.

Capital AssessmentAs a startup, you can probably do more with less cash, right? Or, compared to having a lot of cash and not using it appropriately, which would you prefer. Scenario: A new business owner was happy to lease office space with a 3-year lease in a small business park. This enthusiastic Entrepreneur furnished the office space with antique furniture, painted the walls, purchased nice artwork to place on these colored walls. The business was a IT consulting company, where their clients required them to be onsite to consult with them, and their systems could be serviced remotely. Even though this Entrepreneur had enough cash on hand to commit to a 3-year lease, buy furniture and more, do you think this was a priority? Or was it important to start with a sales and marketing plan, hire a sales person first, or? The basic rules apply with Assets and Liabilities. Is spending your capital an asset or liability to your company and your own personal pocket book? When, and how will it generate a 3X multiple when you spend it on your business? Some startups have made thousands of dollars without the need of fancy business cards. How much did you spend on your business card(s)? If you had that extra cash, would you have spent it on other revenue generating avenues? As an Entrepreneur, replace the words Expense, Spent, Bought, Paid, etc. and insert the word, Invested. In simple terms, when and how will your $1 investment make you $3? Also, never throw money to fix a problem, focus on fixing the problem. True storya funded startup had a training room without windows. One of the executives thought that it would be a great idea to seek out an artist, consult with them and have them paint a mural on the wall to brighten up the place, at a hard cost of $1,500. That same startup executive want to purchase $8,500 on artwork for the other walls. By the way, the

office space was a 2-year sublease, and the company barely generated their first sales revenues, it was not profitable. Now, how much capital do you really need to get your business going?

Leadership GuidanceLeadership is earned and not given. Great leaders are their worst critics, as they are constantly reflecting on how they can become better leaders. Many of businesses failed, not because of the lack of customers but because of the leadership. They were unable to maintain employees to fulfill the companys demand. Successful leaders are great delegators. They embrace the methods of empowering people, while providing a clear-cut understanding of their vision. Coaches of sports teams require great leadership skills. Sometimes a great leader needs to be a great follower as well.

Business Execution AnalysisQuantifiable executables are important to list, monitor, gauge and maintain. It all relates to your companys financial being, gross revenues, profits, use of cash and cash flow. As a startup every month, week, day and hour counts. Prioritize and pick your battles. Pretty much everything is a deadline because youre probably self-funded and underfunded, and if you were funded, you have to report to your stakeholders. You have a couple of options, Execute to Win or Execute to Fail. As the popularized celebrity on Shark Tank, Mr. Wonderful states, The numbers and money dont lie. It was a great idea but awful execution.

Business Execution AnalysisQuantifiable executables are important to list, monitor, gauge and maintain. It all relates to your companys financial being, gross revenues, profits, use of cash and cash flow.

As a startup every month, week, day and hour counts. Prioritize and pick your battles. Pretty much everything is a deadline because youre probably self-funded and underfunded, and if you were funded, you have to report to your stakeholders. You have a couple of options, Execute to Win or Execute to Fail. As the popularized celebrity on Shark Tank, Mr. Wonderful states, The numbers and money dont lie. It was a great idea but awful execution.

Our Successful Coworking Formula for An Emerging StartupEntrepreneurs, collaborate with your peers at the SDEC and forget the P.O. Box and home address. There are inexpensive options available versus having a business meeting at a coffee shop or mail counter. Get set up with a business address and mail receiving services for as low as $35/month or a coworking space with a virtual office, starting as low as $225/month for part-time use.

About UsWe believe the evolution of a startup, begins with the Entrepreneur. In Americas Most Entrepreneurial City, the San Diego Regional Entrepreneur Center (SDEC) is by and for Founders-Entrepreneurs seeking collaboration, partnerships, mentorship, startup company or business plan review and business development ideas, marketing, investor guidance, introduction and venture pitch presentation training, business validation & traction, forensic financial and business assessment, financial analysis, licensing opportunities and more, potentially, in real-life business case scenarios. The SDEC is in a great position to be in the epicenter of all activities related to Startups, Entrepreneurs and Businesses on the move in San Diego.

Coworking is a platform that is easily accessible and useful for very early stage concept founders-entrepreneurs, small businesses, or startup with little to no sales revenue. Entrepreneurs require immediate access to resources and a network of talent. Companies/businesses may leverage the SDEC to seek out additional series of funding sources, or to minimize operating expenses until they are ready to commit to long term office lease options while benefiting from the energy of coworking. The SDEC proactively supports a variety of vertical markets/industriesconsumer products, food/beverage, restaurants/bars, real estate, education, construction, architecture, manufacturing, automotive, energy, green/eco, B2B & B2C services, sports & lifestyle, technology-software/hardware, online & mobile apps, non-profits & charities, healthmedical, & apparel, fashion & design, music & entertainment, travel & hotel, photo/digital/print media, aerospace, military, government & legal services. Our SDEC community was built for people with great ideas, who have or are looking to take

their ideas to market by benefiting from Collaboration.

Today, close

to 100 Founders and Entrepreneurs are building their businesses in our own innovation business technology resource center. Our programs will inspire Tech and Creative Entrepreneurs by providing them with the ability to share their development tools in a SDEC CoLab or SDEC Mosh PIT environment, as a result, they are establishing an innovative Early Adopters Community. The SDEC is incorporated into multiple locations in San Diego county, such as downtown San Diego in the trendy warehouse-urban-loft style of the East Village District and adjacent to Petco Park, Convention Center, SD Trolley, Horton Plaza, Market St. with private offices, coworking space; workdesks, private and oversized conference or photo shoot areas, private offices, meeting rooms, and virtual offices for as low as $35/month, all with easy to find, free to inexpensive parking rates.

Founded by Ray Hivoral, a Serial Entrepreneur, Startup and Business Development Specialist, and Chief Collaborator. The vision for the San Diego Entrepreneur Center is to build the Collaborative Epicenter and bring all Entrepreneurs together from all vertical markets, in San Diego, CA and other cities. Rays mission, in a non-corporate style and unconventional approach is to stimulate and support innovation, ignite job creation and build a sense of community in a collaborative environment. With over 20 years of experience in helping startups to fortune 100 companies go to market in the U.S and other countries, as a quintessential entrepreneur, Ray has experienced the heart-felt sacrifices and exciting times related to accomplishments as a founder of a business concept. He knows exactly what it feels like to be in the Entrepreneurs shoes. While many are playing, hes focused, trying to build something that benefits many families, and creates jobs. He is an aspiring author of two ebooks, Execute to Win and The Virtuous Cycle related to his personal journey as an Entrepreneur. Ray is the founder and CEO of Concerto Networks Inc., a multinational company, headquartered in San Diego, CA. Concerto Networks provides business technology solutions to small to medium organizations with a network of members as independent business technology consultants utilizing a franchise/membership system. Today, hes heavily involved in the coworking movement by mentoring, advising and building collaborative communities, comprised of entrepreneurs, freelancers, consultants and telecommuters, all sharing workspaces as a real estate alternative. Entrepreneurs at the

SDEC have the opportunity to Cowork, Incubate, Collaborate and Accelerate their business concepts.

Ray is the founder (co-founder Mike Spangler), executive producer and co-organizer of www.SanDiegoEntrepreneurDay.com This inaugural one-day event started with zero working capital, an estimated $125,000 operating budget and with 1.5 years to create and produce. This event was recognized with a Triple Crown in receiving Certificates of Appreciation by the Federal Government (SBA.Gov District Office for San Diego and Imperial Counties) and California State Senate, and City of San Diego, Mayor Jerry Sanders Proclamation as Entrepreneur Day. Photos can be viewed at: gallery.arroyophotos.com/g/ed_2012

The net result included positive cash-flow with over $9,250 in cash donated/awarded to non-profits, individuals and businesses as part of the event producers Robin Hood Fund. In addition to cash, the Robin Hood Fund also provided useful business products and in-kind services which were available through this inaugural event. Through on-going annual Entrepreneur Day events, programs, activities, contests and membership fees, the Robin Hood Fund plans to award/invest/donate to San Diego-based Entrepreneurs and Small Businesses.

What We Do

Business Plan Review

For an Entrepreneur, the Business Plan is an important playbook. It's a living document. It requires constant financial review, validation checkpoints and field tests. As the Underdog, the journey may take a few unpredictable twists and turns, but your goal is to get there, safe, sound and at a profit.

Investor Assessment
Got Sales? Counting on advertising revenues? What's your business or concept worth? Is there a pre-money valuation or is it based on net profits or gross revenues? From an investor's, even a banker's perspective, they assess businesses with a variety of "formulas." Are you the next $B valuation startup?

Mentor Match
"No country for old men, here". Mentors are a great resource for guidance, knowledge and motivation. We can learn from their successes and failures. It's important to work with a Mentor that matches the Entrepreneur's business and leadership.

Programs & Events

Entrepreneurs demand programs and workshops where they can take what they learned and apply them immediately in real-life business case scenarios. Also, every Entrepreneur requires a break from work, they deserve a social "party like it's 1999" themed event as well.

Hackers, Techsters & Creatives

For you Entrepreneurial Hackers, Techsters, Creatives & Marketers out there, can we all just get along? Let's make Pony Boy proud of us. We may have some challenges for you in the SDEC Mosh PIT, and why not get a job, help finish a project, or create a new startup company because of it?

Virtual Office & Coworking

Yes, a "Virtual Office" is for real! Get a business address, mail receiving for as low as $35/month. Reserve your Virtual Office with a flexible coworking space option for as

low as $225/month. On July 2011, PC Magazine lists our co-working facilities as 1 of 10 great coworking spaces in the U.S. (1)