Comments on: Our man in Silicon Valley?

By: Mike Butcher

Mike Butcher — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 21:25:01 +0000

BTW, I have also now created a group for TechCrunch focused on Europe:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=15758615601&ref=mf

By: Helping UK startups get ahead in San Francisco and Silicon Valley | :Ben Metcalfe Blog

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 16:45:55 +0000

[...] is something I’ve been slowly brewing for a while but will probably accelerate now that Mike Butcher spontaneously wrote about it on TechCrunch UK (following a comment on another TCUK post about VC investment in 2008). Spontaneous in a good way, [...]

By: Joe

Joe — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 15:51:23 +0000

Great ideas, and suggestions guys, I’m coming on over to joing the FB group.

By: Paul Walsh

Paul Walsh — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 15:37:34 +0000

@Ben I’ll get them to get in touch with you. I’ll have a chat with JP too @Dennis - need to speak to him about my next event anyway as he has offered the Tower with the rotating restaurant!

By: Dennis Howlett

Dennis Howlett — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 15:21:42 +0000

Ben did take a rep with him - a big one - plus a gig with a then major voice in social media. Everything else is his doing for which full cred.

BT has a presence out there I believe and it’s always worth tapping up JP Rangaswami to make contact.

By: Ben Metcalfe

Ben Metcalfe — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 15:08:02 +0000

@Paul, they can certainly talk to me and I can help or put them in touch with someone else if I can’t.

There is the British American Chamber of Commerce SF but they don’t run any events of this nature - they seem to be more geared towards the financial industry (banking, institutional, rather than VC investment) that is also prevalent in SF.

By: Shafqat

Shafqat — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 15:03:27 +0000

Great discussion going on. We’re one of those startups incorporated in London, business development in Switzerland, and development offshore. Most of the entrepreneurs I meet here in Geneva are now thinking global (we certainly are), although the challenges outlined in the original blog post still remain. I do believe, however, that being outside of the Valley could be a blessing in disguise. Without the constant lure of VCs and the million dollar deals happening in your neighborhood, it allows you to put your head down and focus on building a great product with sweat and passion, rather than with money.

Really looking forward to building this Europe-Valley bridge!

By: Paul Walsh

Paul Walsh — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:47:25 +0000

@Ben - as Chair of BIMA (http://bima.co.uk) during my 48 hour day, I could start some conversations. I also advise the British Council on a number of projects, of which, one is the Digital Pioneer Programme. So, let’s get them talking. Who do I need them to speak to on your end?

By: Ben Metcalfe

Ben Metcalfe — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 13:59:59 +0000

Thank you so much, Mike, for nice the write up.

This is definitely a project I’ve been intending to get going for 2008, so your previous post was fantastic timing. I’m really keen to get this going so I’ll join Paul Walsh’s Facebook group but I’m also interested in hearing from companies directly, especially if they know what they need from the US.

“Left of field appearance” - ha, you should see the new hair colour, Mike - fire red/orange/yellow. (For everyone else who is not sure what on earth this is about - I tend to dye my hair different colours a lot as part of my trademark look. That’s about as ‘left of field’ as I get). Most of my corporate clients think it’s a hoot, other than that it’s pretty average for San Francisco.

Finally, it’s worth noting that the French Embassy has a two-three person presence in San Francisco purely to promote French technology firms and start-ups in the area. They host monthly demo events, etc. It’s a shame the UK consulate in SF doesn’t provide such a service.

By: Daniel Bower

Daniel Bower — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 13:33:46 +0000

A great idea.