Best of Bootstrapping: Bootstrapped an IoT Company from NC

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page. 

North Carolina, at one point, had a large concentration of cellular technology companies. Some of that talent then came together around IoT, including Bob Witter, CEO of Device Solutions. He shared his journey with me in 2016.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the very beginning of your journey. Where are you from? Where were you born, raised, and in what kind of circumstances?

Bob Witter: I was born in Springville, New York. It’s in the western part of New York. I grew up in central New York. I went to school at State University of New York and graduated in 1981 with degrees in Computer Science and Mathematics. I started my career in Rochester with Eastman Kodak company in the medical products division that was brand new at that time. I learned a great deal about how to do medical products that has certainly served me well even today at Device Solutions.

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Featured Videos

Bootstrapping to Exit and Bootstrapping Again (and Again): Adam Robinson, CEO of Retention.com and RB2B (Part 2)

Sramana Mitra: Could you double click down and explain with a bit more color and depth exactly what it was that you were doing at Retention.com, which had a different name at that time. Explain the workflow, the value proposition, and the complexity of it.

Adam Robinson: The value proposition was that we can identify 35% of your web traffic and give you email addresses of people that don’t fill out forms.

Learn to Bootstrap with Your Paycheck in September with Course Coupons

Fred Luddy started ServiceNow, a Multi-Billion Dollar Unicorn, as a solo entrepreneur bootstrapping with a paycheck. Fred shares his early entrepreneurial journey in great depth here.

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1Mby1M has been running since 2010, with a mission to democratize entrepreneurship education, incubation, and acceleration. Through numerous case studies, it has been demonstrated how extraordinarily successful entrepreneurs have often begun their journeys by bootstrapping with a paycheck.

For the month of September, we are offering you up to 85% off the courses listed below.

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Video FAQs

Bootstrapping to Exit and Bootstrapping Again (and Again): Adam Robinson, CEO of Retention.com and RB2B (Part 1)

Adam has bootstrapped his first company to exit, and before the acquisition, incubated his second one within it. He’s repeating the same incubation model by incubating a third company within his second one. Really cool strategy and a great interview.

1Mby1M Virtual Accelerator AI Investor Forum: With Jukka Alanen, Rebellion Ventures (Part 6)

Sramana Mitra: I’m going to conclude with some general questions about how you see the industry developing. How do you view General AI?

September 5 – 653rd 1Mby1M Mentoring Roundtable for Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs are invited to the 653rd FREE online 1Mby1M Mentoring Roundtable on Thursday, September 5, 2024, at 8 a.m. PDT / 11 a.m. EDT / 5 p.m. CEST / 8:30 p.m. India IST.

If you are a serious entrepreneur, register to “pitch” and sell your business idea. You’ll receive straightforward feedback, advice on next steps, and answers to any of your questions. Others can register to “attend” to watch, learn, and interact through the online chat.

You can learn more here and REGISTER TO PITCH OR ATTEND HERE. Register and you will receive the recording by email, even if you are unable to attend. Please share with any entrepreneurs in your circle who may be interested. All are welcome!

652nd 1Mby1M Entrepreneurship Podcast with Yash Hemaraj, General Partner at BGV

Yash Hemaraj is General Partner at BGV, and Founding Partner at Arka Venture Labs. This is a very interesting discussion that goes into the nuances of high velocity Positioning and Go To Market strategies.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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652nd 1Mby1M Roundtable Recording

In case you missed it, you can listen to the recording of this roundtable here: