What can our startup community do for you? — the first question that is asked when someone picks up a 1 Million Cups flyer.
1 Million Cups — which get its name from the premise that entrepreneurs network over a million cups of coffee — is a free program meant to educate, engage and connect different kinds of entrepreneurs and allow them to express their ideas to the community.
The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the leading entrepreneurial research organization in the country, developed 1MC in 2012. Now, the program reaches more than 160 communities in the United States.
“From that was born a real grassroots effort within communities to get together and to celebrate the community of entrepreneurship,” said Theodore Baker, Ball State instructor of entrepreneurship.
Last summer, Baker, who is also the executive director of Innovation Connector in Muncie, attended an innovation summit in Kansas City with the Kauffman Foundation. There, he learned about 1MC.
After the summit, his new determination to commit to being an entrepreneurial ecosystem builder led Baker to build a 1MC community at the Innovation Center.
The entrepreneurial ecosystem of a community refers to the social and economic aspects that might be affecting entrepreneurship within a community. Baker said this can mean discuss about anything from businesses, nonprofits and banks.
“We just take advantage of trying to get as many connections as possible, collaborations as possible to really develop the entrepreneurial mindset in this community,” Baker said.
The first Muncie 1MC event was held the third Wednesday of November 2017.
Since then, every second Wednesday at the Innovation Center from 8-9 a.m., two groups or two people present their ideas for a business, a startup, a product, a service or a nonprofit. These six to seven minute pitches are usually connected with the community, which leads back to the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
After a presentation, the audience asks the presenters questions for 20 minutes while presenters engage and take notes. The entire program is free and, of course, coffee is provided. No pre-registration is required for participation.
“The magic isn’t the pitches. The magic is when the people start talking,” Baker said. “People leave inspired. Not just necessarily because of the pitches they heard but because everyone is involved.”
Kyle Parker, senior software engineer for Developing Technologies, is the co-founder and CEO of 1411 Development, which focuses on software, mobile and application development.
Parker and his partner founded the company a few years ago to acquire the intellectual property of a mobile app he developed called The Traveler, which captures and organizes travel experiences.
Parker said he has been connected with the Innovation Connector for the past three years because of his start-up. Through that, he learned about 1MC and decided to go to the first meeting.
“It’s just a great way to do that networking and meet people in the community and find out what’s going on with all the different start-ups, with the different ideas, with the different businesses that are working in the Muncie area,” Parker said.
He said being able to have the opportunity to hear from others regarding a business, start- up or idea is very beneficial and allows him to grow.
“It’s a very friendly, helpful, collaborative environment that people are truly there to make that person succeed, as well as their community,” Parker said.
Parker will be pitching for the first time at the May 1MC meeting. There, he will work with Krystal Geyer, the assistant director of Ball State Entrepreneurship Center and the lead organizer of the 1MC community.
Geyer meets and talks with presenters before their presentations to make sure the presenters feel prepared and comfortable with their pitch. Geyer said 1MC is really all about the opportunity to make connections and receive some criticism.
“You never know who is going to be in the audience and what their personal network is going to be like,” Geyer said.
Geyer said doing a pitch at 1MC is very low-risk and high-reward, since the pitch is in front of a public audience, but the pitcher ends up with plenty of great input for their idea.
“Entrepreneurship is a very vulnerable thing to get up and kind of share your idea in front of a lot of people and strangers and know that they’re going to be silently judging you and asking questions,” Geyer said.
While the 1MC community in Muncie is still growing, Baker said he wants everyone interested in pitching to come to one 1MC event to see what it’s like.
“You’re pitching among friends and people who are for you,” Baker said.
Those wanting to pitch an idea can apply through the1MC Muncie community website The next meeting will be May 9 from 8-9 a.m.
Contact Andrew Harp with comments at adharp@bsu.edu or on Twitter @adharp24.
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