Location Isn’t Everything

I just got done commenting on a great article at AskTheVC.com titled, “Location, Location, Location.”

In it, the author points out that location does help when starting a business, but it isn’t everything.

When you live in a small area, or one with a particular background (like manufacturing or traditional telecom), a lot of times the retooling process of the community can be quite difficult.  Economic development agencies are given grants and money to fund young entrepreneurs and innovators which are a lot of times in combination with various college programs.

In starting a business, you see all the success of Silicon Valley startups, or at least enterprises on the Southwest coast, but is it really because location is all that important?

AskTheVC points out several key points of focus when looking to areas outside the valley for a location:

• Don’t worry about (location) - Your life and your future are intertwined.  Live where you want to live.
• Be realistic - In terms of local resources; colleges, businesses, heritage, etc.
• Find the local entrepreneur ecosystem - provided that they ‘get it.’  Some communities don’t.
• Don’t try to get investors to invest outside their niche.
• Don’t play the virtual game - some businesses can work over the wire, some can’t.

In my opinion, there is no doubt that hundreds of communities across the country are trying to suit up for young, technology entrepreneurs; some out of college, some in varying stages of their professional careers, even some looking for small side businesses.

Location isn’t everything, though; as evidenced by the countless relationship that bloggers have.

In many cases, location is transparent.  For those of you who blog, “How many people do you interact with that are located all around the world.”  I have friends and business partners in the US, Brazil, India, Germany, and Japan.  To me, talking to them is no different than talking to my mom.  We get work done through virtual spaces and web conferences.

So is location crucial to a startup?  Not at all.  Some communities need to get their heads out of the sand, but I think both young entrepreneurs and seasoned professionals find a way to flourish no matter where they are.  If there aren’t any clear sited opportunities, it is the entrepreneurial nature to make them.