Interesting statistics. I have entered an industry field that is focused on B2B, but it is also open for the public. If I should describe it by comparing with some well-known companies, I would say it is a combination of a coffee-house, e.g. Starbucks, a space with office services like Kinko’s and a community for Blue Chip club members. The niche is that you get several things that a small business owner could need in one place. The added value is the networking element, i.e., meeting other business people in a relaxed atmosphere. We want to become “the third place” after your home and office.

We have done our background check, writing a business plan, etc., but the hard thing is the marketing and to reach out to the small business owners and get them going through the AIDA (attention – interest – desire – action) process. With today’s tech tools like mobile phones, high-speed internet at home, and so on, it could take some time before small business owners get the sense that they should do business in other places in order to become even more productive. At the end of the day, a business transaction is an exchange between two parties who trade value for value. We are working on implementing an element of storytelling into the business, so the customers reach a positive state of mind by getting an insight how it was in the old days at the coffee-houses. The Economist article, Internet in a Cup (December 2003), has been a great source of inspiration for my part. I think a meeting place is the solution for an universal need to interact and talk with other business minded individuals.

I agree with Chris that is should be a plus if you are a determined individual and a spirited entrepreneur. I am an American in spirit and I have got plenty of inspiration from my time at an university in NH and at my work in OH. Even if I am used to the American sense-of-life, I got impressed with the service minded attitude and I am trying to bring this approach with me here in Europe. My long-range goal is to return to the Land of Opportunity and to set up a business venture in the United States of America. I want to learn more about the role of the business angel and other types of investors. I have had a pretty hard time to understand their presence here in Sweden. I wonder if it is much different in North America and other places in the world.

A combination of a correctly chosen industry and a determined entrepreneur would be a real powerhouse combo, don’t you think?

Great entrepreneurial test in the included link, too. I’d advise everyone to take it. Pretty interesting.