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THE CARE & FEEDING OF TECH FIRMS IN
DOWNTOWN BOULDER
IDA September 23, 2012
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Boulder Snapshot
103,000 residents
31,000 CU students
300,000 county residents
25 miles from Denver
96,000 jobs
600 primary employers
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Boulder Industry Clusters
Natural/Organic Foods
Outdoor Products
Technology
Clean Energy
Biotech
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Boulder Tech-Related Assets
University of Colorado
Federal Labs – UCAR, NCAR, NOAA, NREL, NIST
Other entrepreneurial clusters
Proximity to Denver and DIA
Major tech employers – IBM, Google, Microsoft/Bing, Oracle
Strong support systsm
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Downtown Boulder BID
49 square blocks
$1.3 million budget
Consumer marketing
Clean & safe
DBI – membership arm of downtown
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Downtown Boulder Overview
3 million square feet
2 million office sf
850 Office tenants
160 Tech companies
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Downtown Boulder Retail/Food
164 retailers
110 restaurants
7 Sushi Restaurants
21 Coffee Shops
5 Brewpubs
“Foodiest Town-2011”
35,000 people within walking distance
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Rental Market
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Engaging the tech community
Tech firms are a whole different animal
Global focus vs. local means different priorities
“Tech minds work a little differently”
The Boulder example of how NOT to do it
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Creating a Tech/Startup Culture
“Don’t treat tech like other small companies. Care and feeding of us is different!”
Downtown orgs, ED groups, Chambers CANNOT lead the effort
“No offense, but when I think of the chamber or DBI, I think Oldsmobile. I’m more of a Prius kinda guy.”
Effort must start with tech entrepreneurs themselves
Our job (downtown) is “lead from behind”
Not a quick process. Plan on 5-10 years for results
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What Tech Wants - Place
Great environment - restaurants, recreation, entertainment
Housing downtown – Live/work, mixed use
Easy Access – Walkable, bike friendly, transit access
“Great bike paths are a bigger deal for us than free parking.”
Funky space – loft, warehouse, open, indoor/outdoor
Coworking spaces are critical in Boulder
Not interested in traditional “Class A” office space
FLEXIBLE lease terms are key to young tech firms – Rocket or Rock
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What Tech Wants - People
Tech is talent driven and all about recruiting strong people
Young people shun suburbs – Good news for us!
“My biggest asset is my team and they won’t come to me. I have to be where they want to be or I lose them.”
Microsoft/Bing tripled overhead to move from an office park to downtown Boulder – “The smartest move we ever made. Recruiting is 100% easier now”
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What Tech Wants – Community
Entrepreneurial Density is important – Many firms close together
Need venues for horizontal networking among entrepreneurs
Downtown gathering places are key – Coffee shops, brew pubs, moderately priced and hip, fast casual restaurants
“The best thing about downtown is the constant exchange of ideas wherever I go – the gym, the Cup or just hanging on the mall.”
Startup events on funding, recruiting, new tech developments
Tech loves networking but NOT traditional chamber mixers
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What You Can Do For Tech
Create a dynamic 24-hour downtown. Housing is key
Promote alternative transportation – bike paths, bus passes
Bring landlords and tech firms together to talk leasing
Add a real estate page to your website and keep it current
Start a bike sharing program
Sponsor (not organize) startup events
Start a downtown jobs page with tech/creative class focus
Explore partnerships with SBDC, University, local incubators
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Partners – The University
Entrepreneurial programs and degrees
Business plan competitions
Free law clinics for entrepreneurs
Host events on startup topics – venture funding, crowd funding, intellectual property, etc.
Biggest value is pipeline of talented young employees
“Best thing CU does for us is provide a stream of fresh talent.”
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Partners - Property Owners
Get FLEXIBLE on lease terms!
Entrepreneurs cannot lock in long term
“In 3 years, my company will grow 10X or be gone. Three year lease? Forget it.”
Consider 12 month leases – or even 6 months
Charge premium and offer no improvements
“I can move 3 times a year if needed. All my team needs are some folding tables and our laptops.”
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Partners – Large Companies
Open the doors to younger/smaller tech companies
Provide space for tech focused social events and training
Sponsor business plan competitions and “pitc h slams”
In Boulder, both Google and Microsoft provide free space for entrepreneurial events
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The Boulder Approach
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Got Their Attention
Found the key players in local tech world Met to listen to priorities and concerns Educated them on what BID/DBI does for
them Got THEM to host a town hall tech
meeting 45 entrepreneurs showed up for pizza
and beer
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Bringing Landlords and Tech Together
Landlord/Tech Summit scheduled next month
Property owners, tech CEOs, Alternative providers
Facilitate conversation on space and leases Educate and understand each other Support creative options
Pivot Desk, Coworking, “Fill-in leases”
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Lobbying the City
Led the effort to change zoning to allow more downtown office space
Support specific projects to increase office space in downtown core – 200,000+ square feet
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Assist in Recruiting Talent
“If you bring me 100 programmers tomorrow at 8 a.m., I could have them all employed by 5:00.
DBI exploring funding a jobs website to centralize downtown tech recruiting
Sponsor recruiting event to bring programmers to Boulder – company/community tours, parties, etc.
Cosponsor booth at tech conferences/tradeshows promoting jobs in Boulder
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Other Downtown Efforts
Sponsor Bike Share Program (B-cycle) Recruit quality fast casual restaurants
Wahoo’s Fish Taco, LYFE Kitchen, Mod Market
Employee Appreciation Day Free pancake breakfast Lunch specials and happy hours downtown Downtown Tug O’ War Championship
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Homework – Check out these Events
Boulder Startup Week BoulderStartupWeek.com
Boulder Startup Weekend BoulderStartupWeekend.com
Boulder Open Coffee Club www.facebook.com/BoulderOpenCoffeeClub
Digital Media Symposium DimeBoulder.com
Ignite Boulder IgniteBoulder.com
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Entrepreneurs LOVE Events
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Check out these Resources
techstars.com
Innovationcenteroftherockies.com
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Alternative Space Solutions
The Boulder Hub HubBoulder.com
Scrib Boulder Scrib.co
The Candy Shop CandyshopBoulder.com
CoLab CoLabBoulder.com
Pivot Dest PivotDesk.com
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Good Reading for the Plane