Entrepreneurship

The entrepreneurial spirit of InOneWeekend lives on with InOneAfternoon

The collaborative spirit of entrepreneurship generated by the InOneWeekend event in Cincinnati in September is still going strong.  InOneWeekend, where about 100 people came together over three days to design and launch a new company, has given birth to InOneAfternoon, a "brainstorming party" where existing start-ups can tap into the expertise and creativity of the network of participants.  "One of our goals was to connect people and create this social fabric of entrepreneurship and innovation," says Elizabeth Edwards of Neyer Holdings, one of InOneWeekend's organizers.The first start-up to take advantage of this social network was WallStick, a company founded by Meredith Holthaus (no relation) that sells life-size removable wall decals that display things like iconic Cincinnati images, flowers, and photos of people.  In a few hours at the offices of CincyTech, the group came up with about five new potential sales channels and about a dozen recommendations for boosting the business.Two more such events are scheduled this fall; one on the ins and outs of getting a Web site and another on the legal issues surrounding intellectual property and patents.Writer: David HolthausSource: Elizabeth Edwards

Who’s got IT? We got IT.

Moving to the heartland from India in the late '80s, Mahendra Vora became a one-person information technology hub, starting and successfully exiting about a half-dozen high-tech firms. His latest venture is his most expensive and ambitious yet, and he's done it all without ever once thinking about moving to Silicon Valley.

Two women-owned small businesses win Ohio’s Key to Success awards

Ameridian Specialty Services is a women-owned general contractor and construction manager whose projects have included the clubhouse at Sharon Woods Golf course.  The firm, whose president is Betty Owens, was one of two Cincinnati women-owned small businesses to win a 2008 Key to Success Award from the Ohio Department of Development. The other was Dr. Kimberly Wells, an owner and practitioner at Wells Chiropractic. The department's Division of Entrepreneurship and Small Business and the state's Small Business Development Centers sponsor the awards and winners are chosen in the areas of manufacturing/technology; service; real estate/construction; health care; marketing/advertising/public relations; and a "rising star" who is in business less than five years. Recipients must be female majority owners of companies with annual revenue of more than $500,000 (except for the Rising Star, who must top $200,000.) Ron Carlson of the Cincinnati branch of the U.S. Small Business Administration, says the award and ceremony (held tonight) "recognize the successes of women in business and create an opportunity to get face-to-face with experts that can assist women entrepreneurs in growing their businesses, get government contracts, and move up to the next level." Writer: David HolthausSource: Eileen Turner, Ohio Dept. of Development

Xavier’s ‘most sweeping project in 177 years’ breaks ground

UC Entrepreneur Center director named president of international council

Charles Matthews, professor of management and founder of the University of Cincinnati Center for Entrepreneurship Education and Research, has been elected president of the International Council for Small Business (ICSB).Matthews was installed during the 53rd annual ICSB World Conference in Nova Scotia, a three-day conference bringing together more than 500 delegates.A pioneer in the field of experience-based education, Matthews is an internationally recognized scholar who has organized internal and intercollegiate venture competitions, student venture start-ups, and business incubators.ICSB, with more than 2,000 members worldwide, is the world's largest non-profit professional association for entrepreneurial and family business researchers, educators, policy makers and practitioners.Read the full article here.

AssureRx teams with Diamond Healthcare in cutting-edge genetic technology

Cincinnati-based AssureRx is developing a genetic test that will allow doctors to customize medications for people who suffer from neuro-psychiatric disorders. The startup just entered into a strategic relationship with Diamond Healthcare Corp. of Richmond, Va., the nation’s largest privately-held behavioral health and management consulting firm.  It's expected that Diamond's expertise and understanding of the behavioral health marketplace will help AssureRx get its product into the commercial marketplace. George White, Diamond’s CEO, will take a seat on the AssureRx board. AssureRx was founded in 2006 and its personalized medicine concept is based on technology from the Mayo Clinic and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. AssureRx plays in a cutting-edge field called pharmacogenetics, and its uses genetic tests and sophisticated algorithms to provide doctors reports within 48 hours on how patients will respond to medicines. "Personalized medicine is the future of health care," says Mark Byrne, CEO of AssureRx. Cincinnati-based investors in AssureRx include include Queen City Angels, CincyTech, the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati, Blue Chip Venture Co. and CincinnatiChildren's Tomorrow Fund.

Slice of Stainless adds nine jobs in $1 million expansion

Todd Reed and Robin Tackett founded Slice of Stainless in 1992 to seize an opportunity they saw to offer small quantities of stainless steel sheared to exact specs and shipped on demand without expensive minimum charges. The firm began in a small two-bedroom home in Cincinnati, with Reed delivering pizza at night to help pay the bills (hence the "Slice"). The first expansion was into Reed's mother's garage and laundry room, then sharing space in a small converted supermarket. In 2000, Slice built a 15,000 square foot facility on 2.5 acres and it just celebrated the completion of a 21,000 square foot expansion at its headquarters in Union Township. The firm invested about $1 million in an expansion that will create nine new jobs in a business that serves the aerospace, medical, pharmaceutical markets and others.  Customers will now be able to store large quantities of steel on site, and place orders for rapid turnaround. Writer: David HolthausSource: Andy Kuchta, Clermont County Economic Development

University of Cincinnati launches major in entrepreneurship and family business

A new entrepreneurship/family business major at the University of Cincinnati will get students prepared to start their own ventures or work for small, entrepreneurial, or closely-held firms.  The entrepreneurship major will drill into the process of ideation, conceptualization, formulation and implementation of new ventures. It also includes detailed information on business organization models, accounting, finance, information systems, tax and legal issues for new venture start-ups and family firms. A senior capstone field experience working with a small, entrepreneurial, closely held firm, larger organization, or non-profit to apply the curriculum will be required. "While we anticipate that entrepreneurship majors are interested in starting their own ventures, majors are also well prepared to work for businesses and organizations that interact with small, entrepreneurial and family venture on a regular basis," says Chuck Matthews, executive director of Center for Entrepreneurship Education and Research in UC’s College of Business. Writer: David HolthausSource: Wendy Beckman, UC

Three area universities touted for entrepreneurship

Three local universities are among the top schools for entrepreneurship, according to Entrepreneur magazine and the Princeton Review.Of the top 25 undergraduate programs, Miami University ranked 16th, the University of Cincinnati was 21st, and Xavier University was 24th.The publications contacted 2,300 colleges for information and made their rankings based on criteria like academics, program enrollment, faculty members who have started companies, and out-of-classroom opportunities.Only one other Ohio school, the University of Dayton, made the undergraduate list, and no local schools made the list of top 25 graduate programs.Read the full article here.