A Strategy, Systems, and Scale MasterMind for eCommerce Entrepreneurs

Background Idea 

First of all thank you so much for your interest in learning more about Catalyst88. It is a distinct honor to be given a chance to earn your business. Thank you sincerely for your investment of time. 

Your business matters most to you and to your family. But, it matters to us as well. We love entrepreneurs and a core value we share is that we believe the world needs more entrepreneurs! We believe our core mission is to empower today's entrepreneurs by providing access to experienced entrepreneurs and related resources, adding strategy to building an e-commerce business, providing insights about systems evolution and how to scale your business. That is the value we intend to deliver in every event.

We understand that your entrepreneurial drive keeps you driving towards your dreams. We have it too. But, like all other entrepreneurs you face challenges and even isolation as you guide your business into new and unknown directions. Not only can this be nerve racking it can have a material impact on your decision-making process. We've been there. 

Perhaps your business is focused on the Amazon marketplace today, but you wonder what other channels you can develop to reduce your risks of selling through a single channel. Maybe you have decided to expand your e-commerce offerings, but you don't know what steps make the most sense for your business.

What is the Catalyst88 MasterMind? 

The Catalyst88 MasterMind is designed to add strategy, systemic thinking, new tactics and sustainable business ideas that you can learn and implement into your own business to achieve the scale you desire. 

At the same time, the group can act as your sounding board, ideation solution and even your "virtual board of directors" when needed. We can share some proven ways to scale your business and probably save you a few headaches during your journey. The reality is we've made enough costly mistakes over the last 25+ years that if we help others avoid only a few of the pitfalls we faced the value in this mastermind will be extraordinary.

Our vision of a MasterMind is an exclusive group of high impact players who are ready AND willing to help each other in meaningful yet non-competitive ways. 

Catalyst88 is a 25K per year MasterMind which will meet 4 times per year as an entire group, starting in the Seattle area. A registered business partner or spouse can join for 60% off the price as well. You will be responsible for transportation and lodging for each event, but we will take care of you during lunch and at least one group dinner per event. Any transportation to offsite activities will also be taken care of by Catalyst88. 

Who can join the Catalyst88 Mastermind? 

This group will be very exclusive and limited membership based on specific qualifications. Each prospective member will answer a series of questions about their business and goals to be certain there is an alignment of purpose for each member as well as the capability for each member to contribute in a meaningful way to the group. We may engage personal references or phone interviews as part of our screening process.

This group is generally not well suited if you just started up your company. Although there may be exceptions, a fresh startup has different challenges and systemic needs than a company that is generating 1M per year or more in revenue. The journey from zero to one million dollars in annual sales is different than the journey from 1M to 10M.

The entry fee is designed not only to create amazing experiences and events but as a qualifier for those who may want to join, but are not yet ready to join. Ideally the fee will result in a tidy little profit as well for the group organizers; after all, we are capitalists too and our time is both limited and valuable. 

What is the schedule?

The official MasterMind dates for 2017 are:

Q1-2017 - February 23rd-25th 2017

Q2-2017 June 1st-3rd 2017

Q3-2017 August 3rd-5th 2017

Q4-2017 October 5th-7th 2017

Other dates for various China trips or getaways which include "mini-masterminds" are an open registration for catalyst88 members first and then non-members. Catalyst88 members will not have to pay any fees for the mini-mastermind sessions but will be required to cover any trip-share costs related to the trips if applicable. In any case Catalyst 88 members will always have an inside track to the best deal on any coordinated trip. (Tripshare costs can include all package elements. e.g. - hotels, meals, and other included amenities which are shown prior to trip booking.)

Other planned excursions that may have TRIPSHARE fees:

Tropical Getaway: Carribean January 12th-19th 2017 - NO FEE - Join on your own in ROATAN. 

Canton Fair Phase 3: China April 29th-May 5th 2017

Yiwu Market & Trade Show & Shanghai: China May 5th-May 13th 2017

Yiwu Market & Shanghai: China August 18th-26th 2017

Apply only if you can answer YES to the following questions: 

1) Can I afford 25K per year for this MasterMind? 

2) Am I willing to contribute my best ideas, tactics, and strategies for the benefit of other members and do so selflessly on a regular basis? 

3) Could I benefit from experienced help in strategic, legal, accounting and other key areas of business? 

4) Do you ever wonder if your business is “Real”?

5) Do you ever worry about your business just disappearing as a result of Amazon or other 3rd party whimsy?

6) Do you believe that you have the passion and desire to build a world-class business, but you lack experience?

7) Can I identify a monetary target to achieve for revenue, profit, and personal wealth? 

8) Are you willing to commit yourself to regular personal development to achieve your goals?  

9) Do you think that by investing in a MasterMind you can accelerate your success? 

10) Is your personality compatible with fast growth, constant change, and dynamic situations? 

(If you answered yes to these most of these 10 questions you are probably a good fit.)

What makes the Catalyst88 MasterMind unique?

Firstly we would ask the members to create a 3 person membership committee to help make decisions about the content and direction of the MasterMind group. This committee would be created by the members for the members to speak on behalf of the membership when needed about any topic related to the MasterMind. 

Furthermore, the committee would be responsible for helping select topics for each meeting and review agenda prior to the events. Although the organizers will make the final decisions we believe that a clear open line of communication between the members and organizers is critical to maintaining alignment for the long term.

1) Workshops - We will include workshops that illustrate new tactics and provide time for you during the session to implement the idea live to fully understand the concepts. 

2) Inspiration - We will provide presentations from accomplished entrepreneurs or other valuable resources to provide insights as well as inspiration to help you on your journey. These presentations will include entrepreneurs or resources who have generated millions in wealth during their e-commerce business operation and exit as well as lawyers, accountants and other noteworthy and relevant speakers. 

3) Field Trips - During each 2-3 day retreat(to be determined) we will schedule visits to certain companies to learn more about their products and services. For example, we will try to schedule a time to go to the Amazon offices in Seattle to meet with one or more of the Marketplace teams. We will try to schedule time with Bing.com in the Microsoft offices so you can learn about their services. We can also reach out to a number of other service providers as well as interesting and relevant companies to your business. We can probably arrange a time at the Seattle campus of Google, Facebook, and other local businesses if there is demand for it. If members have a certain objective they should let us know and we'll do whatever we can to make that happen. (e.g. - do you want to visit an Amazon fully automated warehouse? We can help arrange that for you.) NO SPECIFIC TRIP IS GUARANTEED.

4) Strategy - Perhaps most importantly we shall add significant focus on the strategic focus you must maintain to drive your business forward. There are many wonderful tactical options for you to stay in touch with some of the latest and greatest tips and tricks to drive your business forward and we'll share some of those, but our focus will be on your big picture strategy and how to build and protect your company from start to exit. We will share some of those ongoing tactical resources from time to time, but we'll also encourage you to really start thinking systemically and strategically.

5) Your ideas welcome - In addition to all of the above we will ask all members to present a ten minute "Smart Session" about their favorite new idea that has a material impact on their business. These ideas will be pitched ahead of time and the decisions about presentations will be made prior to each meeting.

6) The lighting round - We will ask any member to bring forward their biggest challenge and the group will discuss and present ideas and potential solutions on the spot.

7) Feedback loop - Every session will have a post-event survey to gather feedback about each topic, presenter and the event itself and ask for priority topics for the next meeting. The members will drive the agenda.

8) Access to other resources - For any content, contacts, Facebook group or software that is created for the benefit of the group shall be accessible at no additional cost to all members during their term of membership. We promise not to nickel and dime you and we expect you will find great value in the exclusive events we have planned.

9) One Year - Your term of membership will be one year and include a total of 4 meetings plus access to any activities commencing from your first meeting for a period of 12 months.

10) Experience - We will bring significant experience from decades of running companies from start-ups to significant scale businesses. If you are building a company you can benefit directly from this experience.

Payment Terms

We understand cash flow and we want to make this something manageable for each participant without adding stress. So we've broken up the 25K into 4 payments. Because we have to put down deposits for the resources we bring to the table and pay them in advance we do require

Before we ask you to submit payment each application will proceed through a vetting process to be certain that your fit with the group is as compatible as possible. Once your application is approved (2-6 week process) you will receive a notification of conditional approval and a bill for $6250 which is due within 5 days of submission. Only after receipt of your first billing is your membership finalized. We will then schedule 3 subsequent billings on the following dates: 

February 1, 2017 - $6250.00

Apr 1, 2017 - $6250.00

July 1, 2017 - $6250.00

If any payments are missed your membership will be suspended until such time as the account is properly serviced. Accounts may be terminated for failure to pay. We know that the members that are approved will not have any issues on this topic, but we want to be transparent about the process. We are putting this payment format in place as a service to members. However, if the process of managing billing and A/R is problematic payment terms may be altered or eliminated in the future.

Want Social Proof?

Our recommendation is to ask people who have attended a past event or mastermind with Steve Simonson or the team to see if our events have delivered value. We don't beat down our guests for reviews or videos, but we know they have been effusive with their praise. So why not ask them yourself? CLICK HERE TO ASK PUBLICALLY ON THE LIVE FACEBOOK PAGE

Summary

Thank you so much for taking your valuable time to research this opportunity. If you feel there is a fit please don't hesitate to apply. If not, don't sweat it. We're still cheering for all entrepreneurs and we want you to succeed beyond your wildest dreams!!!

An entrepreneurial MasterMind can be one of the most powerful ways to add inspiration, ideation and even accountability to your business. But like any business tool the success and ultimate ROI for this investment will come down to your willingness to implement and drive the ideas and solutions you learn. You are the key to making your business succeed and that will never change.

My name is Steve Simonson and I will provide experience, guidance, world-class resources and anything else I can to help other entrepreneurs achieve their goals. My passion is to help fellow entrepreneurs succeed beyond their wildest dreams. I will not bore you with my entrepreneurial background or numerous business accolades, but instead I will make you a simple promise:

If you apply and are accepted to Catalyst88 and you attend a Catalyst event that you are disappointed in; you can provide your constructive feedback and I will personally refund your most recent past event investment (pro-rated based on the 25K annual fee) and help you cancel your remaining membership including any refunds for remaining time in your mastermind. The point is that we want to have people that find this experience invigorating and motivating and if we fail to achieve the right fit, we’ll make it right. HOWEVER, PLEASE NOTE: A NO-SHOW IS NON-REFUNDABLE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE INCLUDING ADVANCE NOTICE. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ATTENDING EVENTS.

In fairness and full disclosure if we determine that your membership is incompatible with the group for whatever reason we will refund the most recent event on a pro-rated basis and also refund any remaining term of your membership as well.

Our financial objective is to give you the chance to make an unparalleled ROI for your business investment, but in addition we also seek to elevate your strategic and systemic thinking. This combination can be your catalyst to achieving your full potential for the benefit of you and your family.

** Over the years we have had the distinct pleasure to participate in a number of MasterMind concepts from 10K all the way up to 125K. This is a new mastermind concept oriented towards the strategic, systemic and scaled growth of your company. There are a number of other superlative mastermind resources and our offering is meant to complement other resources. We hope that none of our ideas or concepts will be perceived as any sort of negative reflection of other mastermind offerings which is not our intention. We remain members in other masterminds and can provide other referrals to other amazing resources as needed. We do not self promote while attending other mastermind events.

To learn more about Catalyst 88 Master Mind please visit Catalyst88.com.