“Great difficulties may be surmounted by patience and perseverance.” -Abigail Adams
Since I started the hydroponic tower project in 2017 with the SBIR Phase I award, there have been many challenges. I believe that this is mainly due to my inexperience in developing a new product. I am not an engineer, artist, accountant, or scientist – all skills that would be helpful to me as an entrepreneur. I had an idea what would be required to develop a new product, and I am perseverant. One of the biggest challenges that I have been facing is the lack of adequate research greenhouse space. During Phase I, I was able to rent space from a small college in Harrison, Arkansas. There, I shared space with the professors doing research and students participating in class projects. It worked, but there were issues. The facility needed maintenance, no one knew how to use the control system, and soilless methods were mixed with soil methods that resulted in pest and disease outbreaks in more sensitive seasons (winter and summer). I was not in a situation to complain. There was nowhere else to go, so I was grateful for the ability to use the space as it was. It was a struggle to get accurate specimen data from the hydroponic tower prototype because I was constantly battling the environment and disease. Overall, I did manage to collect enough data to prove my concept and secure Phase II funding.
SBIR Phase II does not allow funds to be spent on purchasing facilities of any kind. I was awarded $650,000 for which I am most grateful but I could not spend any of it on the one thing I needed most. In response, I did what I have always done, I kept going and looking for other ways to solve this problem. The Arkansas Economic Development Commission offers an SBIR Matching Grant of up to $100,000 for Phase II awardees. In October 2020, I applied but was denied. My heart broke. That was my shot. Farmers are extremely risk-averse customers. If I could not show them that my HydroFresh™ Hydroponic Tower System worked and that it could co-exist with their current hydroponic system, they would never adopt it. The news was devastating - I failed.
This part is where my faith comes in, a miracle from God. The AEDC emailed me and gave me a second chance! In addition, they willingly met with me, asked specific questions and gave me guidance on how to reapply with more success. I was so grateful. The second application was due in late January. I worked really hard to answer their questions, re-created the power-point, and submitted it. It was the middle of March and I still had not heard any word of AEDC SBIR Matching Grant winners. It was one of my worst weeks. Monday, my aunt who was fighting cancer took a turn for the worst and was in a coma at the hospital. Tuesday, my project manager, who has never complained since she started, came in with tears pouring down her face because she unexpectedly had to put her dog of ten years down the night before. Wednesday, a good friend, and my content developer got emitted to the hospital for mental illness. Thursday, my brother was in the hospital with a broken back from a car crash the night before. Friday, I made a quick decision to drive to Jonesboro Arkansas hours away to see my mother after learning that she had multiple cysts on her liver and still had not seen a specialist. My heart and my head were heavy with grief and worry.
I kept asking myself, “When will the AEDC reach out?” I hoped for a win but expected a rejection. I thought about my competitors. They were high-tech scientists with many employees and support from agencies like the Department of Defense and the National Institution of Health. They were going to bring in high-paying jobs and tech innovation to Arkansas. My HydroFresh™ Hydroponic Tower System is an innovative technology, but it’s not like circuit boards or software. Eating lettuce from my system may help prevent cancer but it’s not going to cure it or send rockets to space. Because that week was filled with such chaos, and I did not get much work done, I made a vow of silence to myself. I vowed that the next week I would just focus on work and not talk about the world or take any personal phone calls. After a very productive Monday, I was feeling satisfied with my vow and with the accomplishments that day. As I was walking out the door, my project manager Kelsey was checking her emails and let out a yelp. “Is this? What is this? Is this? Yes! Danielle, we won!”
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