How to turn R

1
From innovation to success

• How to turn RD results into
• business successes?
• Annual UKRO Conference (Glasgow July 5th and 6th
  2001)
• Steve Glangé
• LIFT- Linking Innovation Finance and Technology
• 11 rue de Bitbourg, L-1273 Luxembourg
• Tel [phone], Fax [phone]
• Email steve.glange_at_lift.lu, Internet www.lift.lu

2
Successful companies

• Gemplus (France)
• Rhein Biotech (Germany)
• Lernout Hauspie (Belgium)

3
Gemplus (France)

• world leader in plastic - and smart card
  solutions
• founded in 1988
• grew with help of Thomson Ventures
• 1999 sales Euro 767m (26)
• 06/00 7.000 employees, 37 countries
• IPO 12/00, value Euro 90m

4
Key success factors

• Co-founder and former CEO Marc Lassus
• alliances with major technology companies
• mixture of research, external finance and
  marketing

5
Rhein Biotech (Germany)

• Vaccines and immune modulators
• Founded in 85, good product but almost bankrupt
  in 93
• 93 new investor 94 new CEO
• 06/2000 sales Euro 20,4m (12x), first time
  profit Euro 2,5m 254 empl. (5x)
• IPO 4/99, value 10/2000 Euro 560m

6
Key success factors

• CEO with business and scientific experience
• Strategy balance between cutting-edge research
  and production
• licensing to strong (local) partners

7
Lernout Hauspie

• speech and language technology
• founded in 1987
• IPO Nasdaq and Easdaq in 1995
• Intel and Microsoft have taken stakes
• sales 1999 344M (63)
• market value 05/00 around 6bn
• but involved in scandal sales fraud

8
Key success factors

• Founders Jo Lernout and Pol Hauspie
• State-of-the-art and easy-to-use technology
• Focused on customers
• Unique blend of multilingual engineers and
  linguists

9
Common denominator?

• What made them successful?
• Product? or
• Market? or
• Organisation? or
• People? or
• .

10
Why were they successful?

• Business idea and technology that guaranteed
  competitive advantage
• AND
• Commitment and skills (mainly non-technical) of
  management to convince partners
• OR

11
Entrepreneurship

• Vision
• Sales driven
• Committed
• Tenacity
• Perseverance
• ...

12
Entrepreneurship

• Committed to achieving success against all odds

13
How to go about it?

• Prepare your case
• Assess your venture
• Quality business plan
• Understand potential partners
• Approach them effectively

14
Assess your venture

• Are you ready for outside help?
• Management?
• Market potential?
• Commercial?
• Partnerships (and requirements)?
• IPR?
• Financial requirements?

15
Quality businessplan (1)

• Executive summary
• Market
• Product
• Business and its trading position
• Marketing strategy
• Manufacturing
• continued on next slide

16
Quality businessplan (2)

• continued from earlier slide
• Forecasts (sales, cashflow)
• Management control
• Required financial package

17
Understand partners

• and their requirements
• commercial
• financial
• business angels
• corporate investors
• venture capitalists
• etc.

18
Effective approach

• to potential funders
• initial contact direct or indirect
• advisors?
• individual or collective
• auction?
• investment forum?

19
How can LIFT help?

• Mission
• Helping entrepreneurs access commercial
  investors
• and
• turning research results into commercial ventures
• (LIFT is free of charge)

20
Partners

• EVCA www.evca.com
• EBAN www.eban.org
• I-TEC www.cordis.lu/finance/src/i-tec.htm
• IRCs www.cordis.lu/irc/home.html
• BICs www.ebn.be
• www.ipr-helpdesk.org
• ESA www.esa.int
• Eureka www.eureka.be
• EIC www.euro-info.org

21
How do we help

• Toolkit
• Workshops
• Helpdesk

22
Toolkit

• User guide to LIFT
• Including the registration form
• Assessing your venture
• Checklist for prospective businesses
• Preparing a technology business plan
• Businessplan model for technology companies
• Financing innovation a guide to sources

23
Workshops

• Introduction to innovation finance
• Issues relevant to the funding of technology
  ventures
• Various players and the decision making process
• Getting your business presentation right
• How to present to investors
• How investors look at proposals

24
Helpdesk

• Individual assistance
• Business plan screening
• Guidance on relevant sources of
  information/advice
• Information on sources of finance

25
On-line access
Http//www.lift.lu
26
Country distribution
27
Type of customers
28
Where we are
29
Success stories 30m raised

• Name Country Sector Amount
• 1. Q-Star Test NV Belgium Micro-chips 1,2m Euro
• 2. Waldman NV Belgium IT Not disclosed
• 3. Hi-flier Italy Web software Not disclosed
• 4. Appianet France Web-portal 1,4m m Euro
• 5. SGD SA Belgium IT 0,25m Euro
• 6. Protodel UK Fiber optic 4,5m Euro
• 7. SecureWave Luxembourg Software 1,5m Euro
• 8. Indigo software Belgium Web software 4,7m Euro
• continued on the next slide

30
Success stories 30m raised

• Continued from the previous slide
• Name Country Sector Amount
• 9. Hispavista Spain Web portal Not disclosed
• 10. L C Belgium Software 6m Euro
• 11. Globalphoto France Webdatabase 1m EURO
• 12. Not disclosed Netherlands Software Not
  disclosed
• 13. Beta-Cell NV Belgium Life Science 3,5m EURO
• 14. IBK Germany Software 0,5m EURO
• 15. Fifex France Webportal 1,1m Euro
• 16. Alditech France Electronics 2,3m Euro

31
How to go about it?

• Find entrepreneur (you?)
• Found company
• Prepare businessplan / presentation
• Send it to info_at_lift.lu
• Feedback within couple of days
• Research investor world
• Approach potential investors

32
LIFT assisting entrepreneurs

• in finding their way over the hurdles of
  financing
• (LIFT is free of charge)
• To produce a quality business plan
• To better understand financing opportunities
• To approach investors professionally

33
LIFT

• Linking Innovation Finance and Technology
• 11 rue de Bitbourg
• L - 2728 Luxembourg
• Tel [phone]
• Fax [phone]
• info_at_lift.lu www.lift.lu