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Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

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Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#31

Post by mosburger »

LukeRB wrote: post #23
socratic wrote: post #17

Is there a particular type of startup that would be appropriate for Boston versus other locations? My instinct is that outside of Biotech and Enterprise software, it is still a huge disadvantage to start a startup in Boston, but I would love to be proven wrong (ideally by some sensible statistics). Is Boston the kind of place where you can locally raise a seed round with ten or twenty angels for your consumer web sta…

ITA and Kayak were both founded in the Boston area. I've never really figured out why travel sites seem to have such a base in the Boston area. Anybody have ideas? Proximity to Logan for international travel? MIT and Harvard being located there hence lots of travel...?

So was TripAdvisor.

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#32

Post by mhartl »

feralchimp wrote: post #4

People actually move to new cities in order to found startups? And when they do, they move to Silicon Valley or the Bay Area , where talent is more expensive than anywhere else on the planet? WTF? I live in Boston and dig it, but this sort of article screams "trying too hard." Anyone who even considers the possibility that Boston might not have enough talent for their startup is a crackhead. Basically any place with…

Basically any place with a university and access to the internet is a good enough place for the right founder to build something of quality.

This is true, but making a successful startup requires a lot more than building a quality initial product. Although successful companies can be founded virtually anywhere, the domain knowledge needed to grow and scale a technology startup is concentrated in certain geographies—especially Silicon Valley and San Francisco. In terms of tech entrepreneur social networks and institutional knowledge about investment, growth, scaling, etc., Boston is far behind the Bay Area, and the gap is growing every day.

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#33

Post by mhartl »

martincmartin wrote: post #21
socratic wrote: post #17

Is there a particular type of startup that would be appropriate for Boston versus other locations? My instinct is that outside of Biotech and Enterprise software, it is still a huge disadvantage to start a startup in Boston, but I would love to be proven wrong (ideally by some sensible statistics). Is Boston the kind of place where you can locally raise a seed round with ten or twenty angels for your consumer web sta…

Dropbox and Facebook were started in Boston.

And now they're both headquartered in the Bay Area. I doubt that's a coincidence.

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#34

Post by davidedicillo »

I run a startup and a consulting business in Miami.

My girlfriend has been offered to move to Boston, and I'm not going to hide that I'm afraid at the idea of leaving a place where I built tons of connection in the past 6 years (I moved to Florida from Italy, so I started with 0 connections). I'm afraid that I will have to start from scratch again in Boston, where I don't know a single person.

What are you thoughts about moving a company to Boston? Are people open to accept a new person in the community or is it very closed and elitist (I'm definitely not MIT or Harvard material).

EDIT: By the way, I will be in Boston (she's going to check the place) from March 10th to the 13th, I would love to meet you or participate to any event. So if you are there please email me at davide at 39inc.com :)

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#35

Post by mhartl »

evandena wrote: post #29
matt1 wrote: post #9

Related question: if you're not aiming to raise money or grow big fast, how important is it to be in a tech hub? I live in Waltham, right outside of Boston, and am considering moving somewhere cheaper and warmer because the benefits of building a company here (or SV) don't seem as important if you're going the MicroISV/Micropreneur route. Thoughts?

Check out Madison, WI. http://techcrunch.com/2010/07/24/wisconsin-land-of-beer-chee... As one comment summed up: "As the founder of a 5 strong semi-stealth Madison startup I can definitely attest to our fair city's startup culture. Great university, great lifestyle options and create urban and natural environments. It's hard to beat our live-work-play stats outside of Europe. We've been rated the best place to live i…

I always wonder if such commenters have ever lived in or even visited SV or SF. I liken it to occasional comments I've heard that the Bay Area has a thriving entertainment scene. These people have clearly never lived in LA. Until you've lived in a hub for Industry X, you really have no idea how thoroughly Industry X can saturate you and seep into your brain by osmosis. It seems like everyone in Silicon Valley is in on a deal or a startup. In LA, people talk about "the industry" without explanation—everyone knows which industry they're talking about.

If you want your tech startup to have the best chances of success, there's no substitute for moving to the Bay Area. That's only one axis on which to optimize, of course, and there's more to life than maximizing the value of your company. But anyone who thinks that the Madison (etc.) startup scene is a reasonable substitute for the Bay Area needs to get on an airplane tout de suite and hang out in Palo Alto, Mountain View, or SOMA for a week. Believe me, it'll blow their mind.

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#36

Post by whirlycott1 »

davidedicillo wrote: post #34

I run a startup and a consulting business in Miami. My girlfriend has been offered to move to Boston, and I'm not going to hide that I'm afraid at the idea of leaving a place where I built tons of connection in the past 6 years (I moved to Florida from Italy, so I started with 0 connections). I'm afraid that I will have to start from scratch again in Boston, where I don't know a single person. What are you thoughts a…

The startup scene is not elitist at all. There are lots of easy places to plug in and I think people are generally receptive. Feel free to ping me when you arrive here or email me. I'm easy to find online.

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#37

Post by LogicX »

LukeRB wrote: post #23
socratic wrote: post #17

Is there a particular type of startup that would be appropriate for Boston versus other locations? My instinct is that outside of Biotech and Enterprise software, it is still a huge disadvantage to start a startup in Boston, but I would love to be proven wrong (ideally by some sensible statistics). Is Boston the kind of place where you can locally raise a seed round with ten or twenty angels for your consumer web sta…

ITA and Kayak were both founded in the Boston area. I've never really figured out why travel sites seem to have such a base in the Boston area. Anybody have ideas? Proximity to Logan for international travel? MIT and Harvard being located there hence lots of travel...?

Founders of ITA were MIT grads, and hired lots of MIT folks. (Former ITA Software employee here - though not an MIT grad). ITA has been around for over a decade FWIW.

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#38

Post by cykod »

davidedicillo wrote: post #34

I run a startup and a consulting business in Miami. My girlfriend has been offered to move to Boston, and I'm not going to hide that I'm afraid at the idea of leaving a place where I built tons of connection in the past 6 years (I moved to Florida from Italy, so I started with 0 connections). I'm afraid that I will have to start from scratch again in Boston, where I don't know a single person. What are you thoughts a…

Davide - looks like you're going miss it, but if you're ever in Boston on a Thursday you should check out http://www.venturecafe.net/ - it's a very friendly and open entrepreneur-centered event every Thusday.

There are hundreds of events every week (most free) if you want to meet people (see http://greenhornconnect.com/ )

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#39

Post by kellishaver »

I really like the Boston tech scene, and the atmosphere and social environment created around it. I work with a lot of folks from/around the area on a daily basis, so even though I'm not in Boston, I have a lot of friends and connections there and make at least one pilgrimage there a year to spend a few days doing business in person. If it weren't for separating the child from the grandparents, I would move into the area (though maybe not in Boston itself, due to the high cost of living). Maybe when the kid is older.

Re: Built in Boston: Why Great Entrepreneurs Are Choosing MA to Build Their Startups

#40

Post by jhull »

LukeRB wrote: post #23
socratic wrote: post #17

Is there a particular type of startup that would be appropriate for Boston versus other locations? My instinct is that outside of Biotech and Enterprise software, it is still a huge disadvantage to start a startup in Boston, but I would love to be proven wrong (ideally by some sensible statistics). Is Boston the kind of place where you can locally raise a seed round with ten or twenty angels for your consumer web sta…

ITA and Kayak were both founded in the Boston area. I've never really figured out why travel sites seem to have such a base in the Boston area. Anybody have ideas? Proximity to Logan for international travel? MIT and Harvard being located there hence lots of travel...?

Expedia is around as well
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