Mini City ← Netcapital

Introduction

Mini City provides identification, employment opportunities and other vital services for homeless citizens and streamlines the admin process for organizations, municipalities and enterprise corporations that serve the homeless. Using an onsite SaaS housed in an accessible and mobile tablet, the homeless citizen is able to access services that enable cities, clinics, shelters, and homeless care providers in their efforts to more efficiently assist, track and innovate for those they serve.

Deal Highlights

Compassionate tech hub utilizes smart tech to alleviate homelessness
Smart Tech to Eradicate Homelessness
Mini City aims to create more connected cities with smart tech for those in need
Aggregator of “rare data” on the homeless, enabling enterprise corporations to expand business-driven outreach and connecting the indigent to services so they can thrive rather than just survive

Problem

Chronic homelessness is a major problem in the US. A US study determined that over 50% of homeless citizens were denied specific benefits because they were unable to produce identification. This issue is detrimental to both the citizen and homeless care providers, clinics, and cities. Atlanta alone spends over $68 million a year on costs related to unhoused individuals, from ER visits to jail stays. The United States spends over $10 billion on public costs related to homelessness (Forbes).

Sources:

Burt, M.R., Carpenter, J., Denton, A.V., Hall, S.G., Henderson, K.A., Hornik, J.A., . . . Rog, D.J.(2010).Strategies for Improving Homeless People's Access to Mainstream Benefits and Services. U.S. Department of HUD Office of Policy Development and Research. doi:10.2139/ssrn.1581462
Tompkins, S.S.(2004, April).Photo Identification Barriers Faced by Homeless Persons: The Impact of September 11. Retrieved 2020, from https://nlchp.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/ID_Barriers.pdf
Oxford Analytica.(August 25, 2006). United States: Plan to aid homeless may save billions.Retrieved May 1, 2008 from http://www.oxan.com/display.aspx?ItemID=DB128559

Main Issues:

Atlanta is the poorest city in the U.S. for children, with more children in Atlanta living in poverty than in any other city
500,000 individuals experience homelessness on any given night in the United States
Over 40 percent of those people are women and children
Over 85% of homeless families are headed by single mothers
Lack of ID among the homeless puts a major drain on public costs in cities
Homelessness poses a huge lack of sustainability to our nation: In counties like Santa Clara “the cost of all public services averaged $83,000 per person experiencing homelessness per year”.

In regard to lack of ID, a US based study found a major lack of access to benefits that aide in the eradication of chronic homeless in people experiencing homelessness without ID:

51.1% were denied Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits
30.6% were denied Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF) benefits
53.1% were denied food stamps
54.1% were denied access to shelters or housing services
45.1% were denied access to Medicaid or medical services
Lacking photo ID can also lead to problems with law enforcement, with 59.8% of respondents reporting that they experienced harassment or arrest when they could not produce an ID. Another 8% said that police confiscated their ID. (Source: National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty) While ID alone is not a single barrier to housing, the above stats show it can be major contributing factor.)

Solution

Mini City is a compassionate tech, Android based software solution that alleviates homelessness and lack of access to legal forms of identification through a tablet, Android-based software. These measures include Identification Services, Vital Record Services, and Employment Forms. With our core focus being obtaining legal forms of identification, and lack of ID preventing the homeless from obtaining services such as TANF, SSI, Medicaid, housing, and more, we are solving a much-needed obstacle on the path out of homelessness. All of our services are housed within our security encrypted database admin portal and tablet kiosk, which is HIPPA compliant to the National Institute of Science + Technology Cyber Security Framework.

We offer:

ID Services: Obtaining a legal form of identification or a copy of your vital records can be a daunting task for anyone, but especially when you are facing homelessness. A citizen is unable to gain access to housing, employment, health benefits and government assistance without a legal form of identification. Mini City has a secure process for obtaining legal forms of ID and vital records for the homeless, at no cost to them.
Employment Services + Referrals: After our homeless citizens have obtained two legal forms of identification, we offer them assistance with employment placement by capturing their employment history. We can auto-generate resumes, to then be auto emailed to vocational officers

The data we capture with our in-app surveys can be used for: Existing HMIS (Homeless Management Information Systems ) Validating Yearly Goals for Grants + Public Initiatives Centralize Services Alleviate Cost + Production Strain for Homeless Care Providers

Post API Development:

Health System Integrations: With the logistics of our platform being used in shelters nationwide, and established user identity data we are in prime position to plug-in to the existing health marketplace and insurance providers. Our new features can help health systems with getting newly insured members and effective cost management tools for hospitals.

Health Insurance Enrollments: Utilizing user profiles and our API extension the Mini City platform can facilitate Medicaid enrollments, and divert users to brokerages for free health marketplace assistance.
Hospital Bed - Housing/Shelter integrations: Research shows homeless hospital patients many times will stay in a hospital several days longer due to a lack of housing, incurring cost up to “$3,700 a day”. Mini City’s shelter bed feature can give homeless users and hospitals the ability to select a neighboring partner shelter or housing initiative that can provide immediate assistance and available shelter beds.
Analytics Module: Mini City’s rare data and planned analytic tool are primed for health informatics. We can give health systems and insurers insights on user engagement, employee staffing needs, locations to better provide services and other analysis to increase ROI.

Food and Wellness: Superstores like Walmart, local farmers markets, large grocers and homeless meal providers redeemed over $52 Billion in SNAP benefits in 2019. As the majority of our users utilize SNAP benefits, we offer retailers novel opportunities to engage with their customers.

EBT and WIC Vouchers: Local farmers markets, superstores like Walmart, large grocers and homeless meal providers redeemed over $52 Billion in SNAP benefits in 2019. As the majority of our users utilize SNAP benefits, we offer retailers the ability to provide coupons and other marketing opportunities through our network. Driving new and continued customer growth to local economies and addressing food scarcity.
EBT Retailer Locator: Users on the Mini Platform can utilize location services and find retailers in the area that accept EBT. Emphasizing our partnered retailers and healthy food providers like farmers markets.

Customer Feedback

Business Model

The innovative service offerings on the Mini City platform give way to several revenue generating facets. Mini City charges Nationwide CBOs (Community Based Organizations) Customers an annual software subscription ($2000 - $5000/year) and a fee per generated user. The fee ranges due to the cost of birth records varying by state and includes the birth record fee, mail/delivery fees, as well as an admin fee of $10 per user.

With the development of our APIs and service integrations, Mini City plans to become a multi-sided platform, varying our pricing and revenue streams by business segment. For our enterprise customers and potential advertisers, we are exploring value based pricing mechanisms.

Organizations and municipalities wanting to utilize our data and analytics module through a REST API would pay based on the amount of calls to our database or the amount of time the API is enabled.

Partners pay a nominal fee to have platform integrations where users are directed to their particular service. For example, Licensing and usage agreements that allow FinTech banks and healthcare providers specialized enrollment integrations through the Mini City platform.

Pricing for these integrations are negotiated based on each individual case. We are also developing pricing structures for partners that want to offer coupons and advertisements on our platform.

Local farmers markets, superstores like Walmart, large grocers and homeless meal providers redeemed over $52 Billion in SNAP benefits in 2019. As the majority of our users utilize SNAP benefits, we offer retailers the ability to provide coupons and other marketing opportunities through our network.

Market

CBOs (Community Based Orgs) are setting aside $2.03B/year and Enterprise Corporations are setting aside $60B/year for homelessness prevention.

Bloomberg indicates, “The global RegTech market size is expected to reach USD 55.28 billion by 2025” and “the global healthcare analytics market size to grow to USD 40.781 Billion by 2025.” Our rare data provides a valuable pool of resources for these solution providers to improve their analytical measures and cost saving developments.

By developing our API and data sharing integrations, Mini City can begin penetrating several different markets; regulatory tech, health analytics, real estate development and grocery advertising. These data driven markets are projected to reach a value of around $38 billion by 2025.

Mini City amplifies and supports progressive change within the communities we work. We are seeing the toil of COVID-19 already and will continue being committed to the population we serve. In addition to facing great obstacles prior to COVID-19, the homeless and homeless care providers are now experiencing even more strained resources due to the pandemic. Our ability to continue our work during this time will not only help the homeless population stay healthy and safe, but continue to propel them to self-sufficiency before AND after this pandemic.

As COVID-19-related quarantines were being implemented across America, homelessness researchers were estimating the immediate needs of people experiencing homelessness. They concluded that $11.5 billion is necessary for 400,000 new shelter beds needed to accommodate everyone who is unsheltered and to ensure appropriate social distancing and the creation of quarantine locations for the sick and exposed.

Progress

Mini City has 19 paid customer sites and 1,000 homeless citizen users from Jan - Sept 2020. Our sites range from the Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson Airport to homeless care providers downtown and youth counseling centers. For the first time in 2020, we have a prospective deal with our first Enterprise Customer.

Press

Affiliations/Accelerators

Awards

Team

The Mini City team truly operates like a tight knit family, and some of the core team members are actual family members. Through our core team and advisors, we have decades of experience in tech, design, advocacy, startup patents, startup exiting and, most importantly, social impact. India Hayes (Co-Founder, CEO) is the older sister of Herold Raymond (Business Development VP). Community based efforts and social enterprise were introduced to them by their parents, who worked with organizations around the world to close disparities in food access, education, women's rights and more. When India launched Mini City after completing a hackathon hacking gentrification (hosted by Google for Startups + Goodie Nation), Herold joined the team.

India Hayes

Co-Founder, CEO, Full-Time

India Hayes has volunteered domestically and internationally for more than a decade. Assisting the homeless resonates personally with her because she has seen first hand the effect of homelessness on citizens of Atlanta. She founded Mini City (2018 Startup Awards Nominee for Best Social Good Startup, 2019 Startup Runway Winner, 2020 NBC Comcast Universal BoomTown Cohort, TedX Mini City Speaker) to directly assist the homeless using her skill set as a tech designer. Hayes knows the importance of clear, effective communication and sustainable efforts. That is why she utilizes her design skills whenever she can for social good and sustainability. She works directly with homeless shelters in Atlanta to further their mission and also find innovative ways to empower all people, particularly women, in shelters. Hayes feels that when you empower women, whether it be within the US or overseas, an entire community is transformed. Mothers, daughters, and female leaders carry on traditions and educating, aiding and informing women is something that Hayes believes will make a community more sustainable and holistically sound. Hayes is a firm believer in volunteer efforts being feasible, viable and, most importantly, desired by communities in need. LinkedIn

Herold Raymond

VP of Business Development and Engineering, Full-Time

Herold has worked in a variety of development roles, from creating sustainable, green business initiatives to assisting in multimillion dollar IT networking and data management projects. He has a penchant for creating, collaborating with others and connecting different industries to provide innovative business solutions. Ultimately his passion lies in helping marginalized communities, his greatest goal being to use his skills to provide economic and social initiatives that support these communities. With a background in computer science and business, he has more recently focused on honing his skills in project management, SDLC methodologies and database management. His work with the Conservation Fund led to his creation of a shark tank for small communities in food deserts. He currently assists Mini City with refining processes and validating additional customer segment markets, utilizing his background in social impact to heighten company goals.

Sourabh Jha

Co-Founder, CFO

Sourabh Jha has experience in directly launching tech start ups, pitching to investors and patenting technology for startups (most current patent: Serial Number 62/904,314 ) which is invaluable to our team. Sourabh Jha is a current PhD candidate and past Center for Civic Innovation Fellow, with a major in Mechanical Engineering and minor in Engineering Entrepreneurship at the Georgia Institute of Technology. His work focuses on creating novel and efficient air cooling solutions for electrical applications, including power plant condensers and electronic applications like Data Centers. Sourabh’s research has been funded by the Airforce Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Electrical Power Research Institute (EPRI), Apple, Google and Intel, to name a few. Sourabh has presented his work at several conferences across the world, including the U.S, Europe and Asia. However, he is not limiting himself to the world of engineering and actively engages in assisting community ventures like Mini City, creating meaningful partnerships and utilizing his problem solving skills for social impact.

Advisors and Investors

Kevin Carlson

Partner, Fractional CTO, CISO TechCXO

Lauren Kane

Former Director of Operations, Golden Seeds Angel Investor

David Lightburn

President & Co-founder at Atlanta Tech Village Venture Partner at Atlanta Ventures

Use of Proceeds

If the offering's maximum amount of $250,000 is raised:

Use	Value	% of Proceeds
API Development	$60,950	24.4%
Compensation for managers	$110,000	44.0%
Customer Acquisition/Scale	$20,950	8.4%
Capacity Building + Marketing	$45,850	18.3%
Intermediary fees	$12,250	4.9%

Terms

This number includes all funds raised by the Company in this round on Netcapital. This is an offering of Common Stock, under registration exemption 4(a)(6), in Mini City, Inc. This offering must reach its target of at least $10,000 by its offering deadline of March 4, 2021 at 11:59pm ET. If this offering does not reach its target by the offering deadline, then your money will be refunded.

If the offering is successful at raising the maximum amount, then the company’s implied valuation after the offering (sometimes called its post-money valuation) will be:

1,125,000 shares

$2 per share

$2,250,000implied valuation

Financials

Income statement Balance sheet Cash flow statement Change in equity statement Executive certification

SEC Filings

The Offering Statement is a formal description of the company and this transaction. It’s filed with the SEC to comply with the requirements of exemption 4(a)(6) of the Securities Act of 1933.

We’re also required to share links to each of the SEC filings related to this offering with investors.

Form C/A on December 28, 2020

Understand the Risks

Be sure to understand the risks of this type of investment. No regulatory body (not the SEC, not any state regulator) has passed upon the merits of or given its approval to the securities, the terms of the offering, or the accuracy or completeness of any offering materials or information posted herein. That’s typical for Regulation CF offerings like this one.

Neither Netcapital nor any of its directors, officers, employees, representatives, affiliates, or agents shall have any liability whatsoever arising from any error or incompleteness of fact or opinion in, or lack of care in the preparation or publication of, the materials and communication herein or the terms or valuation of any securities offering.

The information contained herein includes forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or to future financial performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, that may cause actual results to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, which are, in some cases, beyond the company’s control and which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements. Any forward-looking statement reflects the current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties, and assumptions relating to operations, results of operations, growth strategy, and liquidity. No obligation exists to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

More Info

Updates

Mar 26, 2024
Hello Netcapital Investors! The Mini City team...
Hello Netcapital Investors! The Mini City team sends regular updates on the Paperstreet.vc platform; to make sure you are not missing out on our updates please follow us at https://www.paperstreet.vc/mini-city. Read on to learn more about Mini City’s most recent impact; from being awarded funding as a LIFT 2.0 Provider in the City of Atlanta, to assisting over 150 households in becoming document ready on the path to housing this year. We have raised over $650,000 since you last heard from us and we were recently contracted by the Atlanta CoC for a nearly quarter million dollar impact project. Again, please follow us at https://www.paperstreet.vc/mini-city to hear more regularly from the team!
https://www.paperstreet.vc/mini-city
Apr 21, 2022
Mini City is officially a Techstars venture...
Mini City is officially a Techstars venture backed startup! The phenomenal 2022 Cox Enterprises Social Impact Accelerator Powered by Techstars includes nine other innovative, compassionate startups changing the world. You can tune into our live Day at 5pm EST via the link below https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxPgJ91Ix9U

If you would like to receive regular updates, please follow Mini City at . All of our weekly and monthly updates are posted there for supporters, mentors, advisors and potential investors. Thank you again for supporting our journey!
View Demo Day Live Stream 5pm EST
Apr 21, 2022
Hello Mini City supporters and early...
Hello Mini City supporters and early investors!

Many of you have inquired about updates- you can view all Mini City updates at https://www.paperstreet.vc/mini-city. We do not receive the contact information or email addresses of our supporters on Netcapital, so the best way to stay up to date on our major milestones is through this platform. Some of our major milestones since our Netcapital raise are there, including two Enterprise Corporate partnerships and funding updates. Thank you again for being invested in our journey!
Sign up for Updates Here
May 4, 2021
Annual Report posted to website
Mar 18, 2021
Mini City would like to extend a thank you to...
Mini City would like to extend a thank you to all of the family, friends and investors that supported Mini City during our Netcapital campaign. We are truly thankful for you all. During this campaign we:

-Assisted 1400 homeless citizens obtain ID during this global pandemic ❤️

-Launched with 19 Customer Sites
Mar 5, 2021
Primary offering finalized, selling 14,209 shares
Sold 14,209 shares at $2 for a total of $28,418
Mar 4, 2021
There are only 14 HOURS left in the Mini City...
There are only 14 HOURS left in the Mini City NetCapital Campaign! Join our community of investors + friends that are supporting social impact through smart tech. During this campaign Mini City has:

Assisted 1400 homeless citizens obtain ID during this global pandemic ❤️ Launched with 19 Customer Sites
CampaignLaunch4.jpg
Mar 4, 2021
We’re excited to join the next...
We’re excited to join the next @GoogleforStartups Founders Academy class! Over the next six months, we’ll join other Black, Latinx, and veteran-led #startups to learn from @Google mentors and experts. It’s a big time for us — stay tuned to hear more! You can view the full press release below. https://www.minicityatl.com/google-for-startups
Read More
Mar 1, 2021
The Mini City team won the Coalition of Black...
The Mini City team won the Coalition of Black Excellence 2021 Competition! With a $10,000 cash award and invaluable connections to potential partners, investors and supporters, the Mini City team is honored to have captured this prize.

Every year during Black History Month, the Coalition for Black Excellence hosts CBE Week – a premier event that unites industry leaders, Black professionals, and Black entrepreneurs. This empowering week draws talented Black professionals from across different industries by offering access to distinguished speakers and panelists, as well as a trusted environment to network, explore recruitment opportunities, celebrate excellence among our peers, and share innovative practices to advance the Black community.
Read more
Feb 17, 2021
Mini City CEO and Co-Founder India Hayes is a ...
Mini City CEO and Co-Founder India Hayes is a panel speaker for the ATL Airport Chamber Top CEOs of Technology Symposium. We hope to see you there. Via the ATL Airport Chamber: “The virtual panel is an assemblage of Atlanta’s tech luminaries, the panel discussion will profile top officials of notable tech companies in Atlanta on issues of importance and provide tips on what it takes to stay ahead.” Register here: http://bit.ly/atlchamberpanel
RSVP Here
Feb 17, 2021
Mini City is a finalist for the Coalition for...
Mini City is a finalist for the Coalition for Black Excellence Week 2021: Thrive Together. We invite you to RSVP to the virtual event at bit.ly/blackExcellence ✊
RSVP Here
Feb 3, 2021
In case you missed it: Here is a clip of Mini...
In case you missed it: Here is a clip of Mini City’s pitch during Netcapital’s Virtual Demo Day on Social Impact. The Mini City Inc. team pitched alongside some phenomenal founders working in the sustainability, social impact, financial freedom + inclusion space. Thank you again Netcapital for including the Mini City team in this inspiring round up with fellow Netcapital founders! http://bit.ly/miniSocialDemo
View Mini City's Netcapital Social Impact Demo Day
Jan 13, 2021
The Mini City will be pitching alongside...
The Mini City will be pitching alongside Melanence, Transparent Path and Defynance for Netcapital’s Virtual Demo Day on Social Impact this January 26th at 7pm EST. We hope to see you there! RSVP at http://bit.ly/netcapital_demoday. Thank you again Netcapital for including the Mini City team in this inspiring round up.
RSVP here
Dec 28, 2020
Happy Holidays, Everyone! Mini City will be...
Happy Holidays, Everyone! Mini City will be extending our offering to March, 2021. We look forward to all of the milestones 2021 will bring! Best, The Mini City Team
Dec 28, 2020
Filed Form C/A
Dec 10, 2020
The outpouring of alumni support continues...
The outpouring of alumni support continues with Georgia’s Tech CREATE X program welcoming Mini City to the 2021 Cohort, along with a cash grant. Mini City’s current CFO and Co-Founder Sourabh Jha is a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from GA Tech. Startups that have gone through the CREATE-X initiative have created dozens of new jobs, generated tens of millions of dollars in revenue, secured institutional financing, and run successful crowdfunding campaigns. These startups serve both large corporate customers and hundreds and thousands of consumers.
Dec 10, 2020
Mini City received our first institutional...
Mini City received our first institutional investment from the SCADpro Fund! We are beyond honored and this pivotal moment reminds our team why intentional relationships matter. The SCADpro Fund invests in new ventures by SCAD alumni, helping them scale fast and solve business challenges through innovation by design. Co-Founder and CEO India Hayes is a graduate from Savannah Collage of Art and Design
Dec 4, 2020
Join Mini City for a Live Investor Q/A Session...
Join Mini City for a Live Investor Q/A Session with Netcapital! RSVP here: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/8116070909629/WN_4V3FtYAaQy249P4GNxValA

Tune in for a live discussion with Mini City, currently raising on Netcapital. We will start with some prepared questions, then allow potential investors to ask questions of the founders.

More info: https://netcapital.com/companies/minicity Questions? Email: lily.macomber@netcapital.com Time: Dec 8, 2020 01:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)
RSVP Here
Nov 17, 2020
Mini City Tech for Social Good Webinar Join...
Mini City Tech for Social Good Webinar

Join Mini City for one of our weekly webinars. This week’s topic is Tech for Social Good: Mini City’s Vision for Eradicating Homelessness Through Tech. Join us as we discuss vision the Mini City team has for eradication homelessness through tech, and creating sustainable cities for all. You can access the webinar information by heading to www.minicityatl.com/webinars. We will begin each webinar by giving a brief overview of Mini City, for any newcomers, followed by an open discussion and information on our new campaign launch with NetCapital.

RSVP here: https://minisocialgood.eventbrite.com
RSVP here
Nov 17, 2020
Mini City VP of Business Development Herold...
Mini City VP of Business Development Herold Raymond placed Mini City in The Top 5 for the New Ventures Demo Days, taking home second place amongst over 60 domestic and international startups.

Over 60 of the Southeast’s best technology startups exhibited and presented live demos during the virtual conference floor for two days before the New Ventures Accelerator cohort presentations. Thank you again Flywheel Co-work team for inviting Mini City to the digital stage
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Nov 17, 2020
Mini City Co-Founders speaks on ‘Diverse...
Mini City Co-Founders speaks on ‘Diverse Entrepreneurship Support Program Operators’ and “Championing your MVP as a Female CEO”

Mini City’s India Hayes spoke at Techstars Startup Week, along with panelists from the United Negro College Fund, Mailchimp and Resilia. Techstars Startup Week Atlanta is a celebration of the region’s innovation and startup ecosystem, with five days of events, all free of charge.

Mini City spoke during an All-Star lineup for Women’s Entrepreneurship Day on Friday, November 13th. Jenna Kurath, VP of Startup Partner Development at Comcast, and Farm Alumna India Hayes were joined by a dynamic group of women entrepreneurs to celebrate female business leadership and success.
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Nov 17, 2020
Mini City Announced as REVOLT TV Winner with...
Mini City Announced as REVOLT TV Winner with $10k Non Dilutive Cash Award Mini City was announced as the REVOLT TV Return on Culture Pitch Winner! We are extremely grateful for this opportunity and to share the virtual stage with so many phenomenal founders.

via REVOLT TV: “REVOLT TV was looking for the top entrepreneur of color that impacts black and brown communities. The winner received a non dilutive cash grant of $10,000 and a 30 minute meeting with REVOLT TV and/or Combs Enterprises”

See more here: https://www.revoltsummitpitch.com
REVOLT2020Winner.png
Oct 29, 2020
Primary offering of 125,000 shares at $2

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