We received a tweet last night – @starcitydreamr Sup, homie? yeayuh – asking about our mission statement here at Grandin Republic: are we only “bout it bout it” as regards technology start-ups, or does our definition of a ‘start-up’ include more than just tech ventures?
Uh. Ok. Let me answer like this. A guy goes to the bank, gets a traditional business loan, hires a commercial realtor to find him a suitable downtown location, and opens a fast-casual restaurant serving American fare…that isn’t a start-up.
If that same guy opens a food truck…is that a start-up? Maybe. Unless he opens a Chick-Fil-A food truck.
But if he opens a food truck that serves Sriracha-marinated sweetbread tacos, then we are having the right conversation (especially if we are having this conversation in Chicago, where unctuous tacos are soooo IN right now ohmygod).
Start-up culture is about trying something different, doing it all a new way, taking risks. The exact definition may be fuzzy, but the outline is (relatively) easy to spot. To quote the immortal words of Potter Stewart, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States of America, start-ups are pornographic. Verbatim, y’all.
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