Seedlings

Knowing When to Let Go

For all the help Cargill gives EVentures' companies, itdoesn't treat them as corporate properties. Instead, Cargillinsists on the independence of the new companies, similar toadult children who have moved out of the house but stillhope for sizable checks in their birthday cards from mom anddad. "Cargill and other investors bring wealth and knowledgeof the industry, and they bring liquidity," saysLumpkins. "But Rooster is an independent company, and wethink it's very important that it be independent."

This means that the companies make their own decisions onissues ranging from hiring to further fund-raising. Forexample, Lumpkins points out that LevelSeas, theLondon-based bulk shipping marketplace, has taken on morethan 20 investors since its inception, diluting the stakesof the founding companies. "If Rooster goes public -and weview it as a company that will go public someday- all theleadership stakes the founding members have will be reducedsubstantially," says Sayre. But that's OK, notes DinahAdkins, president and CEO of the National BusinessIncubation Association in Athens, Ohio, because return onequity isn't the sole motivation for corporateincubators. Companies such as Cargill hope that theire-business units will not only deliver profits but infusethe corporate parent with innovative technologies,pioneering business strategies and the in-your-face attitudeof gutsy startups.

Now that EVentures has helped develop marketplaces for manyof Cargill's major interests, the group's focus has shiftedto refining the startups' business models and productlines. "When you start venture-type companies like theseyou're never sure what the customer wants and needs," saysLumpkins. "There's no question that we have modified ourofferings as we've better understood what the customer iswilling to pay for." NovoPoint, for example, began as amostly transactional system for the exchange of food andbeverage ingredients. Now it includes supply chainvisibility, order tracking and contract management, all ofwhich work toward improving customer and suppliercollaboration.

Sayre emphasizes that like NovoPoint, most of the newcompanies began as B2B marketplaces and have since expandedbeyond the basic marketplace concept. "In the end, it is theunique services that they offer to industry participantsthat will define their growth," he explains.