Meet Carlton and Joe. Before
Co-Founders Lab, they were just two lonely entrepreneurs with great ideas but no one with whom to share their passion. "I was at a point in my entrepreneurial endeavors where I wanted to start something, but failed numerous times finding the right person due to commitments to the business on their end," says Joe Dickinson.
"I had a great idea, but didn’t have the technical skills to create the product myself," says Carlton Bowers. "I needed to find somebody who would be committed not only on the technical side of things, but also as a co-founder who simply shared my vision and cared about the success of the company."
After a five minute search on the Co-founders Lab website, Carlton emailed Joe and the two teamed up to create
FannedUp, which combines a love of sports with social networking. Co-Founders Lab, created in DC and now in the Philadelphia market, is OKCupid for entrepreneurs.
The website is designed to match founders, and is augmented by
meetups that take place in King of Prussia every two to three months. The next on May 9 will mark the one year anniversary of Co-Founder's Lab's presence in Philadelphia, which has grown to 200 members, according to Shahab Kaviani, himself a co-founder of Co-Founder's Lab.
"You need someone to complement you," says Kaviani. A technician might need someone with expertise in financial modeling or someone who can raise funds. "Launching a company can be stressful and lonely." In the DC metro and Philadelphia markets, Kaviani counts close to 2,500 members both online and attending meetups. The company has just announced plans for a rollout in Boston, followed by New York City and Los Angeles, with pans for nationwide coverage.
Regarding revenue, Kaviani says CFL has plans to offer premium level access with advanced tools and capability.
Source: Shahab Kaviani, CoFounders Lab
Writer: Sue Spolan