The Gift of a Thank You
This past Christmas, I received a present from a complete stranger that made my day – and possibly my decade! It was one of those moments that rocks you back and makes you realize building that startup had a far more significant impact than you ever imagined. The message said …
“Thanks so much for founding Accuri. It’s an instrument I get the privilege of supporting nearly every week, and it remains a proven performer in this flow cytometry space.” The LinkedIn message was from a research application scientist at the Fortune 200 company that bought Accuri in 2011. I got his thank you message 15 years after we started.
Back in 2004, we co-founded Accuri to address an unmet need in the research tools space while doing due diligence on some university-developed technologies. Starting with just a concept and $10M in hard-raised invested capital, our small founding team built a radically different scientific instrument. In only three years, we developed a product that delivered what our future customers were telling us they wanted.
Our goal was to break from the limitations of existing solutions and deliver something that had the capability of the market leaders at a cost that individual labs could finally afford. To do that, we had to invent a product that could overcome the cost and complexity barriers to ownership.
In early 2008, we launched our first product. Our unique combination of scientific power, ease of use, and affordability allowed us to create and then grow a whole new segment in the flow cytometry market. Within 18 months, our instruments could be found on all seven continents, and we were doing all we could to keep up with demand.
In 2011, just six short years after founding, Accuri was sold to the industry leader for 10x trailing sales. Along the way, we grew from two co-founders at a kitchen table to over 80 employees, raised and spent $31M, and grew to over $20M in annual sales.
To hear from out of the blue that the customers we cared so much about are still getting benefits from our hard work more than a decade after product launch was an incredible treat! Thank YOU to that application scientist who took the time to seek me out and tell me that our work made a difference.
Reflections
- Solve a painful problem that meets the needs of your target customers in a really good way
- Take the time to say thank you to those who make a difference in your life. That may be the encouragement they need to tackle the next unsolved problem!
4 Comments
Matt Gibson
Great article. The timing of your post is interesting because I was just recently thinking of another time when you deserved a thank you. When I was at the University of Michigan Center for Entrepreneurship, you visited the Entrepreneurs Leadership Program to share your experiences like you are doing with your blog. You were with Accio at the time and there were some rough waters, so know it wasn’t easy to give of your time to something else that had no apparent benefit to you. However, I also know that you left an impact on those budding entrepreneurial students that day. Thank you!
Your posts are great, so keep sharing. So much to learn from your experiences.
Jen Baird
Matt – Blast from the past! I have always enjoyed speaking to the UM students in various schools. Thanks for the encouragement to keep writing! Jen
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