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Blog 7: Key Partners

What partners do you need?

Tissue, cell distributors 

Tissue model kit companies

Why do you need them and what are the risks?

They have the networks and the resources to be able to get in contact with the decision-makers and influencers. They have pre-established relationships we can leverage and the resources and industry knowledge to support 

The risks would both include being under their names and entrusting them with our methodology - so they won’t use it without our permission or take it and doing their own business with it. We would be an add on service under their name, so primary credit would be theirs and potentially overshadow and take revenue away from our standalone business.  We would/could have our own separate service as well 

Why will they partner with you?

We are a value add to their cell culture and mediums. With their partnership, they would be able to have more satisfied customers because of our excellent customer care. They will receive above-average attention to details by our consultants and any after-sales support required. We would tailor and treat them like they are our only customer, thus making customer retention higher. 

What are the benefits of an exclusive partnership?

They will be competitive in the market, having access to a methodology that would be providing so many extra benefits other companies can not compare too in a price, service, and product standpoint. We would also be offering an exclusive partner pricing for our services and licensing to them and for customers that choose to use them.

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Blog 5/6

S62 Solution (left side)

Revenue model:

 Method Licencing will be automatically charged annually at $30,000/Year

 1st Consulting session will be free per new user. After that, rates will be:

Packages - ability to roll over hours - Min of 4 hours per in-person session if it requires flying to the customer and no min required if it’s within the city. A monthly subscription that will be billed automatically to the end of the year of each months bill

Session by need: $80 /hour

4 hours per month  -- $310

8 hours per month --- discount off $500

Online chat and phone call would be free

Consumer (right side)

Buys the product on a per/year base

Put in a request for consulting session 

Gets automatically billed for each session

A subscription gets bills per month

Key Financial metrics?

Consulting hours and number of licenses 

How do Competitors Price?

$50-120/hr depending

Key Financial metrics?

 Consulting hours and number of licenses

How do Competitors Price?

$50-120/hr depending

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Blog 4 - Key Terms

Through which channels do your Customer Segments want to be reached?

Direct

In-person 

Online and phone support

Indirect

Partners

How are they being reached now?

From salespeople contacting them directly in person or via online platform or phone

From (usually smaller) companies doing research and reaching online researchers/partnerships

Referrals from companies to their sister or partner companies as well 

Which channel is most cost-efficient?

Online and Phone support will be cheaper and more convenient as we would not need to travel to the customer site and online/phone are easier to maintain, post, market ourselves. It is also easier to manage any changes and news. The cost of acquisition for online would be much cheaper as there would not need to do any demos or waste time with any potential client and have the vetting process all online. The labor would also be cheaper when you have no need to hire a salesperson to talk in front of a client and just read a script or have a cheat sheet answer sheet for the online/inside sales team. We would not need to travel to trade shows or external events to promote.

How do you create end user demand?

Reaching out to the researchers, going to trade shows, demoing at shows and at client sites

Publishing journals and scientific research and data to gain credibility

Partner referrals and incentives for recommendations 

How is demand creation for your different channels? 

Salespeople go out and reach out to potential customers: Generating awareness in the market by proactively reaching out to different companies and journals to get published and in front of decision-makers. 

Online and market presence: Publish research papers and case studies on blogs, websites, journals to generate views and traction, Blog postings on websites

Monetary incentives 

Evangelism or existing need or category?

Existing need and Category 

Interview 5-10 people in your channel (Sales, marketing, ext)

What kind of initial feedback did you receive?

It’s a tough industry to get into and hard to get out of. What they do is put companies through a heavy vetting process. You need to show consistency in data across various cells. 

They need scientific data to back up claims and multiple test cases to prove effectiveness. (5-10% increase in efficiency is ideal) so having someone knowledgeable in the industry, different tissue regenerative methodologies is ideal

What are the entry barriers?

Gaining reputable traction. 

Proof of Concept - oversaturated with people trying to get their own product in. 

Data and case study validations

Research papers and articles 

Numerical and quantifiable proof of improvement on a process where they will allow in-person meetings

They set up meetings with the hospitals and send in data to then, in turn, leads to an in-person meeting → Only issue there is that it’s usually really busy. We could try learning institutions or even  

Does anything change about your value proposition or Customer/Users?

We pivoted from making skin grafts to licensing our services and consulting them

Does your product or proposition extend or replace existing revenue for the channel?

Extend what is currently being done and in part, replacing a portion of the market. By utilizing our method, they are able to be more productive in creating tissue models thus creating an added benefit of utilizing more tissues more effectively. 

This also replaces the revenue due to the fact that they would not have to buy extra equipment, extra machines or reagents, special scaffolds, or spend extra money on more tissues. 

What is the “cost” of your channel, and it’s efficiency vs your selling price?

Direct

In-person

Sales and Marketing: 50-60k + Commission

Trade shows each about $4,000

Online and phone support 

Website: $100/month 

Phone and Internet Bundle Package: $80 

Indirect

Partners

Case per case base

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Blog 3 - Value Proposition & Customer Profile

Customer Pains

Long R&D and culture growing time >>> stakeholders unhappy

Convoluted method

Expensive

Inaccurate results

Societal and governmental pressure to use fewer animals

Regulations

Wait for others

Time restraints

Budgetary restraints

Value Pain Relievers (Chronoglically) 

Faster to create

Easy to understand

Less expensive, simpler, faster method to reproduce

More accurate results

Ethics: Not testing on animal tissues

Depending on the market; doesn’t need FDA

Can be created in-house

Faster to Market

Cheaper than what’s currently on the market

What we Learned

There is not only societal and governmental pressure to create a safer, more effective drug, but also a pressure from stakeholders to push the drug into the market as soon as possible. This can lead to cutting corners or distributing a drug that is not as effective as it could be. In some cases, companies who put more time and effort into developing a drug will result in the drug being marked up tremendously due to their investment in the research and development phase.

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Post 2 - Customer Discovery

Business Canvas Model:  Pharmaceutical Tissue Modeling Drug Testing

Section 1: Assumptions

The tissue modeling market is relatively new and is still being developed. Most models are being used in pharmaceutical companies for pre-clinical and clinical drug testing, but what are currently being used are animal models that can not accurately replicate human biological systems. This can lead to inaccurate results and a longer and more costly time to market. Not only does our method create a high quality, dense model, but it also opens the possibilities of testing on artificially grown organs due to its 3D stackability. The goal with this is to see the full range of effects during their preclinical or clinical trials which would create a faster time to market and regulation approval.

There is also a lot of potential in growing skin tissue for burn victims. Many people whose trauma cover a large surface area tend to have many scars even with the new skin they receive. Our tissue modeling would allow these people to heal much faster with less scarring and less cost.

Section 2: Customer Discovery

Paul O’Brian

Works at Herman EMT, Paramedic school, MBA Software Engineering

1. How do they find new products for work?

Usually, they find products that will improve efficiency (5% is great, 10% even better).

2. How much time do they (the company) spend on (Task x)?

Everything in the medical field required government approval and must abide by government regulations which is why it’s so hard to enter the U.S. market. Because of this, it’s become having to get market shares overseas and then enter the American market after, because the transition will be smoother.

He sees that we fit into the Pre-Clinical (R&D) market, which focused on preventative and reactive medication.

The skin grafting market would be very difficult to enter in as well, but it would be very profitable since we can bill insurance (regenerative market)

3. What are the top 3 challenges in your job related to (task X)?

Everything is done, so creating a product that will disrupt the entire market is very hard. That’s why people seek improvement on processes instead. If they still do, it’s even better.

Sigrid Langhans

Head, Cancer Epigenetics Laboratory A.I. duPont Hospital for Children

1. What are companies and researchers currently using for drug testing and development? Is it actually 2D models? What are the main issues with what they are currently using?

There are several excellent reviews on the advantages and disadvantages of 2D and 3D cultures. Some of them are cited in my review which you mentioned below; I suggest you use those as a starting point for your literature search .

2.  Do you believe that our models could be used instead to solve these issues?   

I do not know your model enough to make a judgment, but drug discovery is a process that ranges from identifying potential drug targets to high-throughput screening of libraries to target validation. Your model may be better suited for one step over another.

3. Where do companies and researchers currently get their tissue models from? Do they make it themselves? Do they purchase them from suppliers? How does that work? 

I cannot answer your question regarding sources for companies. Many researchers make their own models in order to help them to answer particular questions in their field of research.

4. How long does a tissue model take to form usually? And how long do they last, or a better question would do they expire? For example, if I create a model today how long would I be able to wait before I couldn't use it anymore?

There are several approaches that can help to answer specific scientific questions ranging from simple 3D cultures to organoids.  Thus, I think your question cannot be answered in general terms but would have to be addressed for each model individually.

5. Based on your knowledge and experience could companies and researchers actually be interested in a tissue model formation method like ours? 

Probably, if you can show more specific applications and demonstrate that your model is superior to current culture methods.

Dr. Naveed Farooq M.D.

Hospital Consultant, help prevent wound developments and infections for bedridden patients or nutritionally depleted patients who are at risk of developing wounds or those with wounds due to diabetes, burn, circulation problems, etc. Treating skin infections, such as cellulitis.

Ten years in the industry, Doctor for 20+ years. Use to do emergency medicine.

1. Do you work with tissue models or cell cultures?

Yes, in a way. I use skin grafts that are purchased from Kerecis, a company that develops fish-skin products; these are used for wound treatment.

2. How is your budget handled?

The hospital manages the budget; however, the doctors recommend which medicines to purchase and how much to buy, usually on a per-patient basis. The doctors find out about these new drugs at events such as conferences.

I currently uses Kerecis, who develops fish-skin products to heal human wounds and tissue damage. Fish skin helps wounds and burns heal quickly because it is rich in Omega3. Kerecis makes the graft according to doctor's specifications. It currently costs $500-$1500 depending on the size of the wound, but insurance usually pays for the grafts.

3. How do you find new products?

New products are usually found at conferences; the end goal is to make patient care better.

Medical salespeople come to talk about their product

4. How much time do they spend on buying grafts?

The buying is done by someone other than the doctor.

5. Who should I talk to next?

Talk to pharma companies who are engaged in pharma development and talk to hospitals like MDAnderson. You need to focus on people doing research, because doctors aren’t the best path. 

Nathanial Wiggins

Professor in the Department of Mathematics at the University of Houston with adjunct appointments in Biology and Biochemistry at UH, and BioSciences at Rice. I am a member of the Mathematical Biology group, and the chair of the Gulf Coast Consortium for Theoretical and Computational Neuroscience.

1. What do you think is possible with this IP?

Possible creation of this invention was due to astronauts in space losing muscle density, so check out the areas around on their use of skin. Potential is there, preclinical is the best bet.

2. What have you seen these being used for?

Potentially use this method of burn victims, astronauts losing muscle density from long exposure in space could apply to create new and better muscle and skeletal organs for people, drug testing is most plausible but many companies and organizations that I have worked with before have all done it in house.

3. How hard is it to get into these markets

Very difficult. Medical companies are not looking for something revolutionary because it will be costly and risky. They want something that is proven to work so they look for things that will be more efficient, compliant, and stays within something they are used to but improved upon. 

Rebrecca A. Dobry

HR Generalist at Methodist Hospital

1. What does your job entail?

Working alongside those who are involved with the research institute mainly, also involved with Cath Labs

2. How is the budget and purchasing process handled?

Relations between a multitude of different departments inside the hospital can get hectic. The hospital establishes an annual budget, but each department has its say on what gets ordered and repurchased on a regular basis. 

3. Who should I talk to next? 

Rebecca is now working with me to help schedule an appointment for me to meet with Dr. Broner who works adamantly with internal medicine

Section 3: This is what we learned 

Preclinical companies decide on what tissue model to use based on external pressures (e.g. the government); other than this, they choose based on their pre-existing knowledge about the model. That being said, factual information will be needed to convince them to switch over.  

Small companies currently use outside sources to fill the need for pre-clinical trials, which is where we fit in.

The current model is very expensive and has a long lead time, which is why some companies have produced tissue models in-house in order to customize it to their own uses trials.

Companies are in need of a model that’s cheaper, that can enter the market faster and provide more accurate results. The biggest issue for companies trying to get into the market right now are the regulations that don’t present themselves until it’s too late.

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Post 1 - Research & Background

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Initial Value Proposition

The Seed Spot (S2) aims to help pharmaceutical companies who want to lower their drug production failure rate by providing researchers with 3D, human-like tissue models that better simulate realistic human environments at a faster and more cost-effective rate than companies who provide 2D tissue models, which are ineffective in screening and dismissing unsuccessful or toxic drug compounds that result in extremely high development costs.

History

NASA scientists Marguerite A. Sognier and Michele L. Marquette began researching ways to improve tissue formation after learning that astronauts faced extreme muscle and skeletal-mass loss during their extensive periods in space. However, due to special reagents required and production time, the current tissue-creating process can cost upwards of several thousand dollars. After learning of this issue, Sognier and Marquette began researching ways to improve tissue engineering processes.

Since being coined in 1933, Tissue Engineering has greatly expanded its reach from the BioMedical field to encompass cell therapy and tissue modeling, opening doors for the commercialization of artificially-grown tissues in clinics, hospitals and the like. Tissue Modeling today is used to aid the scarring process in burn victims and to test innovative drugs without the need of animals. 

**Currently getting connected with new contact with NASA to get more accurate information.

Product Description

Unlike traditional models, the High-Density Spot Seeding (HDSS) Method is an easy, four-step process that does not require expensive serums or growth factors. These samples are used for a variety of applications including, but not limited to, wound treatment therapy and the tissue modeling of skeletal muscle, drug testing, cardiac muscle, nerve and bone.

Features and Benefits

Simple: Uses a natural process to generate a variety of tissues

Cost-Effective: Does not require the use of expensive reagents

Superior Quality: Produces highly-aligned, linear, contracting tissue

Fast Production: Enables quick tissue generation with a reliable timescale

Functional Cells: Produces contracting muscle tissue models

Potential Application

Basic Research and Development Pharmaceutical Development Regenerative Medicine Drug Screening and Testing

Current Status of the IP

2016-01-26: Application granted - Publication of US9243223B2

2019-09-10: Application status is Active

2030-09-13: Anticipated expiration

**Currently trying to connect with our inventor who left NASA.

**Currently getting connected with new contact with NASA

Stakeholders

Michele L. Marquette, Texas City Tx

Michele L. Marquette is a program manager of the Science Education Programs at UTMB. In addition to her three patents, she has also published multiple research papers and spearheaded campaigns that focus on tissue, skeletal and cell cultures. Her research focuses on the development of medical and technological applications of engineered tissue.

Marguerite A. Sognier, Houston, Tx 

Dr. Marguerite A. Sognier holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from the UT Health Sciences Center in Houston and is currently the executive director of the Southeast Regional T-STEM Center and Director of Educational Outreach at UTMB. She spearheads efforts to develop and implement educational programs focused on promoting interest in STEM fields to students, educators and the community. In addition to her work at UTMB, she directed research at the Johnson Space Center in the Biomedical Engineering for the Space Exploration Lab for 16 years. Since leaving, she has co-invented the HDSS Methodology.

Team

Angela Lin - CEO

Angela Lin is a management information system and entrepreneurship student with a minor in sales. Lin graduated top of her class with her minor in the #1 Sales Program in the Nation - Program for Excellence in Selling. Through these programs, Lin has launched two Amazon E-commerce businesses, sold to Fortune 500 companies like Dell, Apple, HPE, Hilti and Rackspace and is currently working on an Intellectual Property with NASA. 

Altovely Uriostegui - CIO

Altovely Uriostegui is a first-generation Mexican American student double majoring in entrepreneurship and marketing.  He has worked extensively in researching Lithium-Ion Battery Cooling Systems and has had research published on major nanotech journal websites. Uriostegui is currently working under the mentorship of the Gray Matter Marketing Communications CEO in addition to learning how to do cost estimates on home remodeling under a personal mentor. Uriostegui also co-founded and led his first venture, Brute Force Transportation, LLC.  

Irfan Bhuiyan - COO

Irfan Bhuiyan is a supply chain management and entrepreneurship double major at the University of Houston. He recently completed an operations and logistics analysis project at Southwest Shipyard, a marine transportation manufacturing company, and during which he improved manufacturing operations, saving the company roughly $40,000 annually. Bhuiyan also founded The Wedding Chasers, wedding photography and videography production company .

Katie DeBakey - CMO

Katie DeBakey is an entrepreneurship and marketing double major set to graduate May 2020. She is currently working as a marketing consultant for greater-Houston, non-profit organizations such as Mercy Cares; in the future, DeBakey will open her own bakery/restaurant with the intent to work alongside non-profits to help feed those in need. 

Grier Gracin Jr. - CFO

Grier Gracin is a dual marketing and entrepreneurship major. He has a minor in psychology, which ties in his passion for people and culture with marketing. Gracin is currently working under the advisers at the University of Houston: Small Business Development Center. 

Technology

Our High-Quality, Tissue-Formation Method utilizes High-Density Seed Spotting (HDSS) to create natural, functioning human tissue models that work in a variety of applications such as wound treatment and the tissue modeling of both skeletal and cardiac muscles. It’s a quicker and more cost-effective manner than traditional methods which require expensive reagents.

How it works

At The Seed Spot (S2 ), we conduct spot seeding of cells at different concentrations onto a Petri dish without the need of extracellular matrix components. The cells are then incubated to allow attachment after which the culture is rinsed with a medium to remove unattached cells and a growth medium is added to enable the cells at the periphery of the spot to proliferate and differentiate, outward from the center cells. This pattern of growth results in a 2D model of dense, organized, mature cells. It is proposed that the 2D formations can be stacked upon another via lamination process to create 3D tissue models.

Key Assumptions

Basic Research and Development

Pharmaceutical Development

Regenerative Medicine (??)

Drug Screening and Testing https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258063249_3D_in_vitro_tissue_models_and_their_potential_for_drug_screening

Skin Grafting

https://www.bellicum.com/contact-us/ | (832) 384-1100

Hypothesis

Our HD Tissue Formation Method (The Seed Spot) will not only save costs in creating new tissue but also yield better human-like tissue models that can be used for more accurate and replicable testing of cardiovascular drugs during the development phases of pharmaceutical companies.