When Dr. Nicholas Franano had an idea for his first company, Proteon Therapeutics, few people thought it would be successful. In fact, many people told him not to take the risk; he would likely fail. It’s an amusing story to think about as Dr. Franano is arguably one of the most successful entrepreneur to come out of Kansas City –at least in the biotech field.
“When I was first starting out, a lot of people said good idea, but that’s too hard,” said Dr. Franano. “KCALSI was the first organization that encouraged me to move forward with the business venture.”
That was back in 2001. What is the state of the Kansas City startup environment 14 years later, what has changed, what has stayed the same and what are opportunities for growth?
What’s changed, for the better, in the Kansas City startup scene since you created your first company back in 2001?
In 2001, Kansas City didn’t have the life science incubators that exist today. Now there’s actual space to build a company and see it grow, to create. There are actual infrastructures in place for founders to not only have a company space, but to seek advice, get help.
Was it easier to create a second company after your first company was so successful?
Yes and no. The second time around we were a lot more experienced, and had a good track record. We already knew people we wanted to hire or work with; we didn’t have to call around or take as much time investing in good people to work with the second time around. It was also easier to raise money the second time around. Fundraising is never easy or fun, but once you have experience doing it, the process doesn’t feel as painful when you have to repeat it.
In your opinion, has anything stayed the same in KC’s startup environment since 2001?
In this region, people are still very economically conservative with their money; people don’t want to invest like they do on the coasts. The economic climate has changed too. Since the recession in 2009, people are wary of investing in a startup company because they see it as being too risky.
Where does Kansas City need to grow in the startup community?
Definitely in venture capital, as it’s almost nonexistence here. To keep startups here, we need people from the Kansas City community to invest in their local startup companies.
Kansas City has great incubators and accelerator programs, so we’re good with helping startups through that first phase of ~$100,000. The piece we’re lacking is the money that comes after that, when the company needs to really grow and expand.
How has the Kansas City startup culture changed over the years?
The KC community is a lot more engaged and involved in startups, there also seems to be a coolness factor to it now. People are also very curious and interested in startups and how entrepreneurs think and work. Hopefully with so much support and engagement from the community, people will start to support Kansas City startups financially.