Ignyte takes startups to next level

BOULDER — After a year of homing in on a business model, followed by a year of fine-tuning the approach and putting what worked into practice, founder Ryan Ferrero is confident Ignyte Lab LLC is a “maturing” company ready for growth.

Coincidentally, that’s also a fairly good description of the type of startups Ignyte was formed to help.

Merging lessons from startup accelerators, incubators, coworking spaces and various institutes and foundations, Ignyte is trying to carve out a new niche with a sort of executive-level management-for-hire model. The company works with seasoned entrepreneurs and companies in revenue that are looking to scale. The typical client is one that has maybe been through an accelerator and is looking for assistance with the next stage.
But rather than simply serving as consultants or mentors, Ignyte’s staff takes on the operational tasks that might be done by a chief operating officer, chief marketing officer or chief operations officer.

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“We’re operational and do things,” Ferrero said in a recent interview. “We get into the weeds and do things with those seasoned entrepreneurs and have operational responsibilities each day.”

In exchange for its services, Ignyte, which so far has seven client companies, generally takes an equity stake, but can also do work for fee-based compensation. Ferrero says the size of stakes can vary widely and depends on the scope of work being done.

Ignyte earlier this month launched a Series B funding round in which it’s trying to raise $750,000. That money will be used to add team members, help broaden the company’s services as it looks to bring on another three to five clients over the next year and, as Ferrero puts it, “take our systems, take our team, take what we’ve learned and take it up a notch.”

Ignyte vice president of operations Tate Behning is a founding partner, while former Celestial Seasonings president Peter Burns is chairman of the Ignyte advisory board.

The idea for Ignyte came after Ferrero — a longtime car dealer turned serial entrepreneur — began his stint as entrepreneur in residence with advertising firm Crispin Porter + Bogusky in 2012. Ferrero had worked with CP+B in building his previous venture, Green Garage, an auto repair shop that had aimed to shake up the repair industry by focusing on improving the customer experience and using Earth-friendly methods in the shop. The original vision for Ignyte was to create an accelerator.

“What we found out through about a year’s worth of research was we decided to build a new category for early-stage business development,” Ferrero said. “After an accelerator, you’re usually left to fend for yourself. You’ve learned a lot but now what do you do? … (Ignyte) is kind of the next step.”

Ignyte, which has just shy of 10 full-time staff, is based at CP+B’s offices in Gunbarrel, but its clients range from local startups to companies in Nashville and San Francisco. In addition to providing in-house services, Ignyte partners with companies such as CP+B and others to help its clients with various aspects of business development. Strengthening relationships and bringing on more such partners is another objective of the new funding round.

In addition to services, Ignyte is also delving into entrepreneurial programming early next year when it hosts a “Pro Camp” in February. The week-long retreat in Boulder will provide intensive training and professional development for 25 to 30 entrepreneurs.

But management services are the company’s core.

Ferrero said the startup community in Boulder has added a bit of sophistication to its adrenaline and scrappiness, with a more seasoned investment community and a focus on execution. Startups are realizing that having smart people guide their growth is as important, if not more so, than the amount of money raised.

A focus on bringing onboard smart people, Ferrero said, reduces the amount of capital you need to deploy. “It’s less dilutive, and you get things done faster.”