Dan Primack calls them the "rock stars" of the start-up ecosystem. If you are a young start-up and aren't plugging into the myriad of angel investment vehicles percolating around the country, you are either clueless or one of the few who are super-wired already into the "Do Not Pass Go, Go Directly to $5M Series A" venture capital game.
Here are home, the angel community in New England is really starting to flex its muscles. Thanks to Scott Kirsner's arbitrary declaration (and admirable leadership), June is Innovation Month in New England and there is a ridiculous amount of activity going on.
It started off on June 1st with Angel Boot Camp, a confab that gathered over 200 angels, VCs and start-ups.
Last night was Tech Stars Boston Investor Night, which continues to gain momentum heading into its second season, as well as the big annual the MITX Awards event. Every night this month, there is something going on. You can see the master schedule at www.neinnovation.com.
Many of these venues didn't exist 3-4 years ago - Mobile Mondays, Web Inno, Open Coffee, etc. New events are coming to Boston this month, including the Open Angel Forum, which is June 18th.
And new institutions are popping up all over the place. New seed funds, incubators (e.g., Project11 - which you'll hear more about in the coming days), the Founders Institute, etc. And when you visit the local campuses, it's amazing how prominent entrepreneurship and getting access to the angel community has become. Every school has a business plan contest. HBS just completed a business plan contest not just for students, but for alumni as well.
Like I said, there's a ridiculous amount of activity going on, and the angels appear to be out in front. At Flybridge we always joke that we treat our entrepreneurs like they're rock stars. Kudos to the angel community for emerging as the new rock stars of the start-up ecosystem!
