For most entrepreneurs, a beta stage or beta product is a crucial way
to flesh out new ideas, and find out what works and what doesn’t for
their business. And it’s no different for a new endeavor meant to create
community and dialog between entrepreneurs and investors in the Boston
area.
That endeavor would be The Venture Café, a planned Kendall Square restaurant centered on fostering innovation and connecting members of the startup community with each other and potential investors. The restaurant is in its planning stages, and is supported by Cambridge Innovation Center founder and CEO Tim Rowe, a host of leading area investors and entrepreneurs, and (in the interest of full disclosure) members of the Xconomy team.
The café’s beta phase will start this Thursday and run for 12 weeks. The New England Venture Capital Association is sponsoring office-hour sessions at the Cambridge Innovation Center for entrepreneurs seeking advice and perspective from investors. Flybridge Capital Partners, Charles River Ventures, Bain Capital Ventures, and Polaris Venture Partners are some of the firms that will be sending representatives. Highland Capital Partners ran a preview version of these hours last week, the day the Cambridge Innovation Center officially broke ground on its expanded space.
“It’s a good way to engage with the community, not through the traditional method of networking and one-on-one introductions,” says Nancy Saucier, executive director of the New England Venture Capital Association. “We need to support the innovation ecosystem in a much more open fashion.”
To read the full, original article click on this link: With VCs Ready to Hold Office Hours For Entrepreneurs, Venture Café Gets a Test Drive | Xconomy
Author: Erin
Kutz
