Feasibility study presented to MRED

Several of the MRED board members spoke with Bob Donnelly following his presentation about the feasibility of entrepreneurial development in Moniteau County. In the photo, from left, are: MRED Chair Mike Kelley, board members Becky Lawson and Jennifer Cary, and Donnelly, who is with Missouri Technology Business Development Ecosystem, LLC, Branson.
Several of the MRED board members spoke with Bob Donnelly following his presentation about the feasibility of entrepreneurial development in Moniteau County. In the photo, from left, are: MRED Chair Mike Kelley, board members Becky Lawson and Jennifer Cary, and Donnelly, who is with Missouri Technology Business Development Ecosystem, LLC, Branson.

A representative with the Missouri Technology Business Development Ecosystem presented a feasibility study summary Jan. 11 to the Moniteau County Regional Economic Development Council (MRED) during a meeting at Bobbios in Tipton.

"In Mid-Missouri, it's hard to attract new businesses," said Bob Donnelly, who had worked with MRED previously on a national USDA grant to develop a plan to take advantage of the high speed internet which has become available due to the installation of fiber optics by Co-Mo Connect. He suggested that targeting certain types of businesses shown to already exist in the area is part of the task. Another part is to work on developing entrepreneurial activities. Perhaps helping some of the 70 home-based businesses to grow.

The presentation involved the feasibility of entrepreneurial development. One of the main points of this type of development are "Entrepreneurial Supportive Secure Environments." These include co-working shared space facilities, business incubators and "seed accelerators."

The shared space open environment is a growing trend, since social media and internet tools make doing business more mobile.

The business incubators provide advice, guidance and various forms of support, such as appropriate office space, flexible leases, shared business services and equipment (such as printers), technology support and business mentoring and counseling. Business incubators usually take 5 to 10 percent of the client's equity and an additional few percent for the mentors.

Seed accelerators are also known as start-up accelerators. The programs are intense to "jump start" start-up and emerging companies. Participating companies typically receive a cash investment for a percentage of equity.

According to Donnelly, the next step is to determine if Moniteau County is in a position to consider a shared space facility. To do this, a local economic development leader is needed to work with local leaders from both public and private leaders. One of the first steps is to have one or more informal events to inform the public. "Such events should be after business hours and include refreshments and appetizers," Donnelly said. He further emphasized that the successful entrepreneurial development is usually based on community involvement and persistence.

In the committee reports following the presentation, the need for an inventory of available buildings and locations for building was emphasized. If some entity is interested in locating in the county, there needs to be a list of what is available for a business to consider. The website (www.mred.biz) can be a source once there is a list. More information and possible building or business locations should be put on "LocationOne" about what is available in the county, including the Tipton and California industrial parks.