Off the Ground Blog

2014 Funding Roadshow

May 5, 2014

The SBA program, together with Fundica, invites you to the 2014 Funding Roadshow, designed to educate and fund entrepreneurs.

Industry Overview: Florist Shop Business

Apr 4, 2014

A florist shop is a retail establishment that sells cut flowers and ornamental plants. The floral trade involves activities such as flower care, flower arranging, floral design, merchandising, and often flower delivery. Florist shops are an ever popular industry and one of the most searched guides on our website. As such, we want to provide you with a current industry overview, trends and challenges as well as provide some research resources for those interested in the florist shop business.

Co-founder Partnerships: Four Tips for Buddying Up – Video Content Roundup

Mar 3, 2014

There’s no getting around the fact that entrepreneurship is hard work. The rewards can be tremendous, but the time and effort that goes into building a company from the ground up is more than most people can handle—by themselves, anyway. To ease the burden of managing a startup, many entrepreneurs go into business with a co-founder. Splitting the responsibility takes some of the load off your back while also providing a second set of opinions and strategies that can steer your company in the right direction. However, co-founding a startup is a tricky endeavour in itself.

Fundica Roadshow 2014

Mar 3, 2014

We are proud to support Fundica’s 2014 Funding Roadshow and think it is a great chance for entrepreneurs working on an innovative product to pitch their business seed/ideas to a panel of angels, VCs, banks, and government organizations. Entrepreneurs will individually pitch in a closed setting to funders in order to: • Receive candid feedback on their pitch and business model • Meet experts who provide one-on-one tips for their business • Follow-up with funders and potentially get funded

Industry Overview: Wedding Business

Feb 2, 2014

For engaged couples, staging a wedding can be both exciting and stressful. To help manage the process and to ensure a picture-perfect (stress-free) wedding, hiring a wedding planner is a smart idea. Wedding planning is an ever popular industry and one of the most searched guides on our website. As such, we want to provide you with a current industry overview, trends and challenges as well as provide some research resources for those interested in the wedding planning business.

Four Tips for Entrepreneurs Seeking Venture Capital -Video Content Roundup

Feb 2, 2014

Money is a major source of concern for all entrepreneurs. Developing a startup isn’t cheap, which is why it’s important to secure enough funds to get your business on the road to success. In order to clear this hurdle, many entrepreneurs seek out investments from venture capitalists (VCs), receiving funds in exchange for a share of the company’s equity. Though there are numerous risks associated with attaining money from VCs, the payout can be tremendous. To help you navigate the murky waters of the VC landscape, consider the tips below.

Four Ways Successful Startups Tackle Customer Relations - Video Roundup

Jan 1, 2014

Customer relations will either make or break your startup. According to Steve Blank, author of The Startup Owner’s Manual, new ventures rarely go belly-up due to a lack of technology. Instead, they fail because they haven’t found enough buyers willing to take the plunge. Customers are more than a source of profit—they also provide firsthand insight into your value proposition, allowing you to continually tweak and change your prototype until it suits your market. These four tips will change the way you think about customer relations and propel your startup toward success.