Pre-Seed Investments Process

• Be currently located or willing to grow and locate part of the companies' operation to Danville, VA, Pittsylvania County, VA or Caswell County, N.C.
• Have an innovative and cutting edge technology, new product or new technology application that advances high growth industries, such as: Advanced Manufacturing, Alternative/Advanced Energy, Advanced Materials, Healthcare IT, Medical Devices, Software, and Electronics and Controls.
• Be willing to accept entrepreneurial business consulting, training/mentoring/coaching and support services from The Launch Place.
• Give preference to resources in the Danville region such as Danville Community College, Institute for Advanced Learning & Research and Danville Regional Medical Center to validate the technology and business model.
• Be willing to put an Advisory Board in place that will provide oversight and guidance during the validation process. Agree to accept a Launch Place designee to serve on the Advisory Board.
• Agree to public disclosure of involvement with The Launch Place.
• Enter an agreement including provisions and conditions for the funding.

Depending if the investment is for market or product validation or business model refinement, additional requirements will be needed.

Market or Product Validation Criteria

• At the stage of validating the technology, the technology or product idea is formed, a “bench level” prototype has been developed but the technology or product needs to be proven with one or more Alpha customers before the technology or product can be finally developed.
• Company must have a management person with experience in product development and domain experience with the market being targeted.
• Formal business structure is in place (LLC, C-Corp, S-Corp, etc.)
• Provisional patent(s) have been filed.
• Ownership of the Intellectual Property is vested, or appropriately licensed with the company.
• Funding in this category will typically be up to $25,000 and will be structured either as convertible debt or equity. If in a convertible note structure, business assets will be pledged to secure the note.

Business Model Validation Criteria

There are numerous examples of good products that fail because the wrong business model was adopted. A business model tells not only how the enterprise works, but also how it will create and sustain a competitive edge for the business over the long term. It starts with a clear understanding of who the customers are, what the customer’s value and how your new enterprise can deliver that value on a cost structure that allows you to build shareholder value for the enterprise better than competitors.

• At the stage of validating the business, the technology has already been developed and an Alpha product exists with sufficient features and benefits to make the product marketable.
• Formal business structure is in place (LLC, C-Corp, S-Corp, etc.) and ownership is clearly defined.
• Ownership of the Intellectual Property is vested, or appropriately licensed with the company.
• Entrepreneur needs to secure dollar-for-dollar match for the amount The Launch Place invests.
• Funding in this category will typically be up to $50,000 structured as either a convertible note or equity. If in a convertible note structure, business assets will be pledged to secure the note.