Uploaded by DogFromSPACE
Three months ago I wrote a post called "New York or the Valley?" about whether I should move to the west coast to start my next business.
I put it this way: given that my wife and I could live anywhere in the US right now (we have recently returned from a long trip and all our things are in storage), and that I am planning to start a new technology company, are there any advantages to starting it in New York?
Phrased a little differently each time, I put that question to dozens of friends and colleagues in the last few months. But apart from the obvious cases - businesses related to financial services, real estate, or marketing - no one could make a strong case for NY.
Yes, I heard many pleas in mitigation, many
examples of how you can succeed here, presuming that you have
already decided that this is where you want to live. But we haven’t. Though we love this city, we’re also attracted to the Bay Area - the climate, the scenery, being a little closer to my wife’s family in Oregon, TechShop. Call it a wash. My wife and I decided to make our decision on purely professional grounds; to go wherever we thought we could maximize our chances of success.
So Summer and I are moving to San Francisco at the beginning of February. To old friends, bye for now - my new business will bring me back to NY quite often. To new, we can’t wait to meet you.
And if you think I’ve missed some very important advantage of New York … sigh. Too late.
