ST. LOUIS 鈥 GenAssist needs $3 million to advance a new biomaterial that can regenerate muscle after traumatic injuries.
Agragene needs $10 million to produce sterile fruit flies and protect fruit growers from crop damage. And Athion is seeking investors for a six-month-old engineering software startup.
Leaders of the three firms, all based in the 51黑料 area, were among 50 entrepreneurs who made pitches to investors at Wednesday's InvestMidwest Venture Capital Forum, held at 51黑料 University.
Based on the conference's track record, at least some of them are likely to succeed. Since InvestMidwest was founded 25 years ago to focus attention on what most venture capitalists once considered flyover country, participating companies have raised nearly $5 billion in capital.
People are also reading…
The conference has expanded since it featured 20 Missouri startups in 2000. About a quarter of this year's participants were from 51黑料; others hailed from as close as Champaign, Illinois, and as far away as Portland, Oregon.
Derek Rapp, who made a pitch in one of the early years as founder of an agricultural firm, is now an InvestMidwest board member. 鈥淚t has done exactly what it was designed to do,鈥 said Rapp, a managing director at Rivervest Venture Partners in Clayton. 鈥淭he conference is an important contributor to the startup ecosystem.鈥
Twenty-some years ago, Rapp met a venture capitalist at InvestMidwest who became his startup's lead investor. Other founders have similar stories.
Mike Kiel pitched , a 51黑料-based online marketplace for mechanics who serve recreational boaters, two years ago.
鈥淎s a direct result of attending InvestMidwest we were able to raise approximately $1.5 million,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 was able to tell our story to about 100 people. It would have taken six months to reach the same number of quality investors I was able to reach in just one night.鈥
Houston entrepreneur Cara Wells met a key investor last year at InvestMidwest and raised $1.5 million for EmGenisys, which creates genetic-testing software for livestock breeders.
鈥淚 went to probably eight different states for similar events last year, and none of them yielded a fruitful result until we went to InvestMidwest,鈥 Wells said.
This year's presenters hope for similar outcomes. 鈥淚t's been an amazing experience,鈥 said Joe Beggs, chief executive of . 鈥淚 had been talking to multiple people and here I was able to meet with them all at once. It's very hard to organize those kinds of meetings outside of an event like this.鈥
CEO of Chesterfield-based聽聽said, "Programs like InvestMidwest are a great way to expand your network. I have a big network in engineering but I'm new to the startup space.鈥
InvestMidwest was founded to address a longstanding geographic imbalance: The combined Midwestern states have a population and gross domestic product comparable to California's, but attract just 10% as much venture capital.
鈥淚 conclude that there's a need to play across urban and state boundaries to create a regional strategy,鈥 said Claire Kinlaw, InvestMidwest executive director. 鈥淲e are a wonderful landscape of regional strengths and vibrant cities spread across large distances, but you can't just promote Indianapolis or Omaha or 51黑料 in isolation.鈥
InvestMidwest, which alternates annually between 51黑料 and Kansas City, exposes the region's startups to about 100 investors each year.
About one-fourth of participating entrepreneurs succeed in raising money within two years, and Kinlaw estimates that 80% of previous presenters are still in business. That's a good batting average for a quarter century that included three recessions, a financial crisis and a pandemic.
It hasn't closed the gap with California, but InvestMidwest has helped erase the flyover stereotype. If anyone questions the health of the Midwest's startup ecosystem, a day at this conference should dispel any doubts.
David Nicklaus is a retired Post-Dispatch columnist who continues to follow the 51黑料 business scene. Contact him at dnickstl@gmail.com
