Yeah. Some people shudder at the concept of launching a single startup. Some folks, like me, launch a few companies and are like yeah no. It’s hard to build a single company. Even when that’s your singular focus. But this whole crazy pandemic deal is causing folks to try some random stuff. So what would happen when a serial entrepreneur decided to launch a new company? Oh wait. I mean, every single day. For a whole month. Well that’s the concept that Portland’s Mark Grimes is chasing with 31 startups, this month.
Launching one new startup every day for 31 days in a row. No business plans. No money raised. No teams. No work done ahead of time. Lean and mean. 100% transparent. 100% open. Selected from a list 0f 350 biz ideas scribbled down over the last 18 years.
What kind of startups, you ask? Well, like these:
Day 1: Tillamook Axe Company
Tillamook Axe Company will work with PWM to create an axe throwing target prototype built to the specs of the World Axe Throwing League. Then we’ll see what we have, figure out how to price it, ship it, and go from there to simply try to sell the first ten.
Day 2: Underdog.vc
Diversity has been baked into many of the businesses I’ve launched, funded, or at times (when requested) mentored. I insist any team that I work with be diverse because I believe to my core that diversity and inclusion create a much better solution to all problems. Seriously, the last thing I want is to work with nothing but a team of just old white men in their 50s, 60s, and 70s.
Day 3: Artists Coast Retreat
We are working to build a business model that allows us to turn this tiny green log cabin into an artist’s retreat. A retreat we can offer at no cost to the artist. A place where artists can go (with a spouse if desired) and just chill. A place to find inspiration and create and to simply be. Artists could stay at the cabin between 2–4 weeks at a time, well beyond a typical one week vacation. Visiting artists from around the world would be selected or curated, as it were, to introduce some fantastic people to the Oregon coast.
Day 4: Quarantine table read
Quarantine Table Read startup: simply professional actors and actresses (and perhaps some other surprise guests at times) online, reading a script. The same process that takes place on the set of a film or a live theatrical production where the entire cast sits down for the initial read-through of the script. Often the most hilarious and creatively inspirational moments of any production.
Day 5: Fundenstein
Its Funding meets Frankenstein (I can’t wait for the logo on this one). The overarching idea is the site will highly curate one new crowdfunding project each month. That’s it. So simple.
Day 6: Walden for founders
At the end of the day, this is designed to be attainable housing. Founders can then free up the cash they might have dumped into McMansions, multiple houses, super fancy cars, boats, and airlines. Hey, that’s all groovy if that’s your jam. But deep down, I believe the Walden for Founders crew seeks a different relationship with their housing.
Day 7: Founder growth book club
The Founder Growth Book Club is a pretty expensive venture for seriously heads down startup founders. One of the most common pieces of advice from successful entrepreneurs is, read more books. Well, this book club will dig deep into this. First, you must be working on an existing business; this isn’t for the thinkers and ponderers; this is for the doers, the builders, and the founders and entrepreneurs working on growing their companies.
Day 8: Cowworking
Not even the stupidest idea on my list… Invite a cow to your Zoom meeting and turn it into a cowworking experience
Yes, it’s clearly starting to go off of the rails. But stick with it. Err. Oh wait.
Day 9: Buck Naked Startup
We were a team with very diverse experiences and backgrounds. No one told us what we could do. No one told us what we could not do. We figured it out. In real-time. Transparent and on the open. Anyone that wanted to help could help. There was room for everybody. It was a powerful thing, loosely organized. Be open. Be real. Be authentic. Work to do good things, and make sure to highlight the work of others doing great things.
Day 10: Monster in a box
Unique box design enhances the brand interaction experience with the customer. Think about it; it’s what you see on the shelf. And it’s the thing that reveals the product to you, makes it safe for shipping and tells a big part of the story.
Day 11: Chari-T-shirt
Let’s make a design that visually fits a cause, idea, program, and find a nonprofit to “partner with” at the same time. By partner with, I mean, you get XX% of the gross sales. Not, you get to input ideas regarding the design; we already know that is great.
And there are still 20 days to go. Want more random? You can follow along. Either here where I’ll try to keep up. Or the Google Doc. Or with this handy dandy Twitter thread.
