Built To Enjoy: Andrew Fox’s 100% Owned $30M ClubPlanet (Part 3)

SM: What was the next major evolution in the business?

AF: Guest lists were very hard to quantify. The nightlife business is very fragmented, and is very much a vanity business for a lot of people. The mechanism of the guest list was an honor system. >>>

Entrepreneurship Education: Are You Ready For Funding?

One thing we’re hearing continually from angel investors – mind you, angel investors, not VCs – is that entrepreneurs approach them too early and without adequate preparation. Folks, you cannot (and should not) do this. Once you get rejected by one investor, you will not be able to go back to that same investor anytime soon, unless you have a strong pre-existing relationship with the individual.

So don’t blow your cartridge too soon and without doing the necessary homework. >>>

Entrepreneurship Education: Who Is the Right Seed Investor For You?

I am sure many of you are reading 1M/1M Ambassador Irina Patterson’s Seed Capital series where she’s interviewing seed investors from various walks of life, and with a diverse set of perspectives.

Whereas Mike Maples is interested in the top 15 deals in Silicon Valley each year, Basil Peters likes to invest in businesses that have a quick exit path. >>>

Built To Enjoy: Andrew Fox’s 100% Owned $30M ClubPlanet (Part 2)

SM: How did you actually get ClubPlanet going? You were working on it on the side, so did you just leave once you had enough revenue to support your cost of living?

AF: My philosophy at that time was that when other people were sleeping I would be working, when they were on vacation I would be working, and when they were goofing off I would be working. The business started growing rapidly and I decided it was an interesting opportunity, but I was not sure if I wanted to be known as a nightlife guy. >>>

Roundtable Recap: July 15 – A Market Of Late Adopters

This week’s roundtable had two entrepreneurs from India. Now for those of you who are unfamiliar with the Indian market, it is a market that has not seen as much Internet adoption as elsewhere. Whereas China’s Internet penetration will reach 518 million this year, India’s is only about 80 million, and access is still largely from companies and cyber cafes. Broadband Internet access from home has been elusive. Even at small and medium companies in non-IT or ITES sectors, Internet usage and in fact computer usage, is relatively low.

Against that backdrop, Tarak Nagraj started off by presenting Abhaya, his SME ERP solution targeting the Indian ERP market, focusing on manufacturing companies with $2 million to $15 million in revenue. Tarak’s product is built on top of Tally, India’s de-facto accounting software standard, and supplies the additional modules such as manufacturing resource planning, customer relationship management, and other functions. Tarak’s analysis is that manufacturing companies in India are operating at 28-30% efficiency levels, and introducing MRP into their midst dramatically enhances their performance. Abhaya has been in business since 2007, and would like to be a pure play SaaS company.
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July 15 Roundtable Recording

In case you missed it, here is the recording:

Roundtable Starting In 30 Minutes

Today’s roundtable is starting in 30 minutes, at 8 a.m. PST/11 a.m. EST/8:30 p.m. IST. Click here to join.

Built To Enjoy: Andrew Fox’s 100% Owned $30M ClubPlanet (Part 1)

Andrew Fox is the cofounder and chairman of ClubPlanet and the CEO of Track Entertainment. He has spent the past six years running entertainment and service companies. ClubPlanet is the largest and most comprehensive nightlife destination on the Internet and provides content, listings, tickets, and many other features for nightlife events in over 35 cities around the world. Fox is also the founder of 3-G Communications, which finances and leases cellular towers in North America. He is a member of the executive committee of the Ad Club of New York and director of the New York City chapter of ChairScholars Foundation, Inc., a national nonprofit organization that provides scholarships to children and adolescents with disabilities.

SM: To start, tell me about yourself. Where do you come from? What is your background?

AF: I am from New York City. I was born here, but I moved to Florida when I was five. My mom has very bad allergies and needed to move there. I grew up in Tampa, Florida, which was a great place to grow up, but I always knew that I wanted to move back to New York. >>>