Remarkable Mind: Kenneth Bryant (Ii)

Abstract

Bryant is the founder and CEO of the Re-Markable Paint Co., which has developed the technology for completely removable paint for athletic fields. He has identified a commercial research-development firm, Turf Technologies, run by Fossey, which has the capacity to develop an alternative formulation for removable paint that remains environmentally appropriate and suitable for artificial turf and grass. It is now time for Bryant to finalize the consulting fee for Fossey. He is reasonably certain that another firm paid Fossey a consulting fee of $75,000 for a six-month contract and has reservations about paying Fossey $35,000 for the six-month contract. Excerpt UVA-OB-1016 Mar. 10, 2011 Remarkable Mind: Kenneth Bryant (II) You are founder and CEO of the Re-Markable Paint Co. Many years ago after a brief stint as a financial analyst on Wall Street you earned your MBA in finance and accounting from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. After business school, you spent a few years as a buy-side analyst evaluating high-yield bonds. Despite assurances that you were on the fast track to portfolio manager, you opted to venture out on your own. You had strong finance skills, but you recognized that you lacked passion for the work. You explored many options, including the acquisition of a local college town coffee shop that roasted its own beans. Ultimately, the owner decided not to sell and established shops in numerous locations, creating a following and significant mail-order demand for roasted beans. You took this as a sign of your good business intuition. Eventually, you fostered connections in the research office of the major university in the town in which you resided. Through that office, five years ago you licensed university-developed technology for completely removable paint for athletic fields. At the time, many municipalities and schools were forced to have multiple field markings for different sports, confusing players who, in the heat of play, would lose sight of the field boundaries to which they needed to adhere. Additionally, professional teams that own their venue would like to be able to lease space to teams in other sports without having a significant turf overhaul each time a change in sport occurs. You had some early success raising capital and ambitiously attempted working with the researcher who invented the technology in the hope of making it more stable and scalable in production. After developing a catchy name for your company and establishing an informational website, you continued to receive a constant barrage of requests for samples. It seemed as though there would be no shortage of demand. While you have managed to send samples from time to time, scaling up the initial formulation has been largely unsuccessful. The original researcher understood turf but lacked sophisticated understanding of the chemistry behind the initial technology. The solvent that “removes” the paint operated within a narrow range: Too little solvent and the paint would not come off, and too much solvent and the grass would be damaged. So despite significant demand for such technology, you have been unable to produce it in larger quantities and sell it commercially. . . .