A British expat living in San Francisco, Ben Metcalfe took a trip back to London and had a discussion about lack of a startup scene in the UK.

Many of the issues there are similar to what I see in Sacramento.

There are two overall aspects to this: creating an interest in startup culture (the spark) and then ensuring the financial backing and support network is there (the fuel).

In the Bay Area, everyone has a startup and there are investors everywhere. I was once discussing an idea with a group of people at a conference and one of the people in the group approached me afterward, offering to fund the idea. The fact that there are startup-centric conferences and parties all the time helps contribute to the support network.

Having seen people with the same skills sets working in both London and San Francisco I had been surprised at how much harder people worked in San Francisco, and how much more hungry they were for success.

As the seat of government for the largest state in the country, Sacramento has a huge number of government workers putting in their 9-5 for 40 years so they can retire. It’s a whole different mindset from the startup culture. You don’t often realize just how ubiquitous state employment is until you hit the freeways at rush hour on one of those holidays that only state workers have off (like President’s day). The freeways are empty.

The concept of working late at night, on weekends, and on holidays is completely foreign to these people.

The more I look into what makes a startup culture thrive, the more I get back to the network.

People in San Francisco and The Valley are happy to meet over a coffee to chat about things openly. I know there’s people in San Francisco I can turn to for advice about VC money, potential hires, etc (all free, no-obligation, etc) and in turn I too give out advice to others to put something back. In the 7 years I really worked at a professional level in the London Internet scene, I cannot think of many people who I knew who would be so available.

When I’ve helped companies and individuals locally, there’s always an underlying question of reciprocation. There’s often genuine surprise that I’m not looking for part of the company, financial consideration, or even a return favor. The idea that I’d just help for nothing often comes as a shock. But that’s what’s needed around here.