Obsidian Launch: Accelerate You Business

The majority of startup incubators, such as Y Combinator, require entrepreneurs to give up small percentages of equity in exchange for small amounts of seed financing, usually in the range of $15,000. While they are usually tremendous opportunities to work alongside seasoned entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, it is still questionable whether or not they actually increase the entrepreneur's chance of success and if it is worth giving up their equity. The connections that are made along the way are valuable, but as these firms take on more projects (Y Combinator has seeded over 80 companies) the returns for entrepreneurs diminish as those resources are spread thinner over time. Obsidian Launch takes a different approach. Resources are focused for a longer period of time. The entrepreneur doesn't have to give up any equity either! Well, they do have to give up "phantom equity," but this it's not the same. Instead of taking shares, Obsidian Launch takes a percentage of earnings for a specified amount of time. In exchange, Obsidian Launch provides a team of professionals such as accountants, lawyers, and entrepreneurs to accelerate the growth, revenue, and profits of the company that it has undertaken. The success of Obsidian Launch is more closely tied to the success of a young entrepreneur's company, creating a much larger incentive for the company to make the startup successful. Fewer companies are taken on in a given time period, allowing the entrepreneur to work closer with the firm.

I have had the pleasure to meeting Obsidian's founder Mike Michalowicz and am proud to say that he is an inspirational and charismatic leader as well as a successful entrepreneur. He has already built several companies and sold them for respectable sums. Due to the differences explained above, he is able to pride himself on being the "nation's only business growth accelerator that partners with young, first-time entrepreneurs." Besides supplying a team of dedicated experts, Mike also aids in the development of differentiation strategies, implementation of systemization tools, complete office staff, as well as key introductions to a large network of contacts that you would expect from any incubator. Obisidian Launch is extremely selective in who they partner with, but have already helped expand and grow six successful companies that have been able to make Obsidian Launch profitable already. Most investment vehicles bank on exiting through merger, acquisition or IPO, whereas Mike's model may be less risky and far better for their firm AND the entrepreneur. If you are interested, check out their requirements and apply! What model do you think is best. Comment to let us know.