I went to the NextFab workshop in Philadelphia (PA, U.S.A.) to meet Marco Bonifaccino, an Italian entrepreneur who successfully started a business in the U.S. I interviewed him about the main traits of start-ups in this country and its difficulties.
About Marco
Marco Bonifaccino is the CEO of B Solutions, a high tech consultancy company based in Philadelphia. He has already launched a brand called Digi Thermo which shook up the HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) market. Digi Thermo is a smart sensor with a diameter slightly larger than a coin and able to measure and transmit air parameters.
In my opinion, Marco was able to establish his business with low costs and rapidity by exploiting the typical tools and environmental advantages of the so called light company. In brief, he externalized every non-core activity, based his company in a co-working space and used free cloud tools to manage it.
Use the government resources
Starting a business in the U.S. can be easier than expected. Of course you can entrust a company which makes the paperwork for you, or you can go through the process by yourself to save money and entrust to your patience.
In the second case, the U.S. government makes all useful information available to you in the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) website. Here you can find not only the procedures you have to follow, but also the fees and the aid the government applies. There is a ton of advice about how to build a business plan and you can also apply to a mentoring program for free.
Less paperwork, more market validation
According to a research of CB Insights venture capital database, the main reason why a start-up fails is because of no market need. So it’s clear the focus must be moved on a market validation of the product or service rather than writing down a perfect business plan because you will change your plan hundreds of times during your path.
The advice of Marco is to think about customers before the capital. It means you need to test your product or service as soon as possible, build an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) and verify your assumptions.
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