Making startup businesses succeed

Starting up a new business is a daunting task anywhere in the world. It is more so when one takes into account that a mere 2 per cent of all new business ventures get institutional support in terms of not only financing but managerial and establishment support also. For the first time in Bangladesh, a nationwide competition for business model selection has been initiated under the aegis of 'Bangladesh Startup Cup 2014'. It is part of a global mentorship competition that is happening in 68 countries this year.
This is a 7-month long 'Build a Business' programme that is designed to scale up startups that have a workable model. The licensee company of the competition Bizcube intends to bring together startup companies, mentors and coaches to give new companies a fighting chance to survive. The question of 'survival' remains a major cause for worry, since a mere 20 per cent of all new businesses survive long enough to become viable companies. It is hoped that by bringing together the tools, resources and financing opportunities on to the platform of the competition, the success rate can be increased by 200 per cent.
One of the myths surrounding startup companies is that they are invariably either tech or tech-driven companies that are software or hardware centric. The community platform of the Bangladesh Startup Cup has, as one of its five components, a social component. This is primarily because social startup companies have a major role to play in helping economic growth. Small entrepreneurs will, for the first time, get the opportunity to interact with potential investors and mentors in the event. Mentors can help entrepreneurs shape their strategies that will make sense to financiers.
 Indeed, when one takes a look at the criterion set for future businesses which can participate in the programme, emphasis has gone beyond the most obvious two categories 'tech' and 'tech-enabled'. It is recognised that social, women founders and creative startups have an ever increasing role to play in both employment generation and contribution to the economy.
Social startup companies occupy a broad spectrum of services geared towards achieving social good. Yet, merely having a bright idea and not having the tools to turn that idea into a product or service for delivery is where the Cup and its professional participants come to play. Women are an established facet in our economy. Indeed, the readymade garments sector employs women overwhelmingly to generate the US$20 billion and growing foreign exchange for the country. The Cup intends to reach out and recognise that women startups occupy a separate category in the race.
The other category is Creative, and one that is perhaps the most diverse of the lot. The businesses that fall into this category include all forms and facets of advertising, the arts and crafts, fashion and design. Businesses hoping to start out in the world of media, both electronic and print and entrepreneurs having an edge or something new they wish to share with a broader audience in the field of animation, photography or documentary will get a chance to field their ideas.
Ultimately, it all boils down to creating the synergy between diverse interests. Startup companies may have the energy and the ideas to bring something new to their respective fields of interest. Yet, as history will testify time and again, success hinges on a workable business model that is led by an experienced team with the right social and business contacts. At the end of the day, it depends to a large extent for the aspiring startup to be able to reach out and make a convincing case with a potential financier.
The Startup Cup intends to be the bridge that will bring investors looking for worthwhile businesses to invest in and future startups hoping to make it out of the 98 per cent of businesses that fail in the first year.
The writer is a a StartUp Activist and the lead             organiser of Bangladesh StartUp  Cup.                        minhaz@betterstories.asia