Venture Capital

New Queen City Angels fund invests $3 million in Ohio Startups

By Newsroom

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December 15, 2009

The http://www.qca.com/about.html Queen City Angels’ new First Fund III hasn’t wasted time investing, putting $3 million into three varied Ohio tech startups this year. The Angels’ First Fund III, and co-investors have put funds into: * http://www.collaborent.org/home.asp Collaborent Group, Ltd., in Cleveland, which creates and manages group purchasing plans for government agencies. It recently expanded to serving private sector customers. * http://www.crunchbase.com/company/transactiv Transactiv, in Cincinnati, which is developing an online business-to-business purchasing solution that leverages social network systems to improve and streamline purchasing decisions. * http://www.crunchbase.com/company/neuros-medical Neuros, in Cleveland, which has developed a pain-blocking therapy targeted to veterans and others who suffer ‘phantom pain’ from amputated limbs. “Companies with innovative technologies and business ideas have the best chance of becoming high-growth companies that will create lots of jobs in Ohio and be good investments for those who get in early,” said John Habbert, co-manager of the QCA Fund. The Angels’ First Fund III, managed by the Queen City Angels investment group, is a $4 million fund. It allows them to expand their technology into the marketplace, finish and test business plans and grow. Queen City Angles is a group of experienced, accredited investors that funds young start up tech companies in the Greater Cincinnati area. Sponsors include Taft, Stettinius & Hollister, BioStart, Hamilton County Business Center and more. “Transactiv is at the forefront of a profound shift in how businesses conduct Internet commerce using leading social networks,” said Karl Perron, CEO of Transactive. “The highly experienced and successful members of the Queen City Angels recognized this opportunity, and have provided their invaluable expertise to our business by helping us refine our vision, realize our business plan, and raise new funds in the Midwest.” The QCA First Funds I, II and III have invested in 22 companies total. Writer: Feoshia HendersonSources: Jim Cunningham, Queen City Angels/C-Cap and Kevin Wilson, Kevin Wilson PR

Latest in Venture Capital

Living Well in Cincinnati

By Val Prevish

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Entrepreneurship

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December 1, 2009

Two of Cincinnati's most innovative organizations, Procter & Gamble and the University of Cincinnati, have formed a unique collaboration that has twenty-something college students researching new ideas and creating products for aging baby boomers and their significant wealth.

What’s green and square and sits on your Web page? ShareThis

By Val Prevish

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Talent

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November 10, 2009

Ever wonder what the little green symbol on the left side of Soapbox's homepage is? If you've been sharing content with your Facebook friends or email contacts then you're probably familiar with the 'ShareThis' symbol - but did you know its the brainchild of a Cincinnati based start-up that hopes to become the big name in online sharing?

Healthwarehouse Just What the Doctor Ordered

By Val Prevish

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Entrepreneurship

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November 3, 2009

Taking on one of the most well-established and powerful industries in the country is no small feat, but two young entrepreneurs have met the challenge and are finding success in online pharmaceutical sales with their Loveland-based company, HealthWarehouse.com.

Cincinnati’s Newest Innovators

By Soapbox

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Talent

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September 22, 2009

Cincinnati Innovates wrapped up its four-month online competition this past Friday by recognizing eight winners in the regional innovation competition. 273 entries, 65,000 votes, and $50,000 in prizes later, our winners include Test-prep Facebook app; pigments for e-books; and fitness system for the disabled.

Dipidee, the region’s newest startup

By Newsroom

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Arts + Culture

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September 1, 2009

"What do you want to do tonight?""I don't know. What do you want to do?"That's the problem that Dipidee, Cincinnati's newest startup, proposes to solve. Dipidee CEO Brian Lecount explains, "Dipidee provides last minute opportunities to people who are open to new and spontaneous experiences. And we'll entice them to take that new experience by offering them a great deal."Dipidee was formed on Sunday as a result of InOneWeekend where 100 entrepreneurs came together last Friday, and over the course of the weekend identified a market opportunity and launched the business.Dipidee sees a market opportunity in exposing the region's arts and entertainment venues to a new consumer base in an interesting and engaging fashion. Most venues hold on to unsold inventory in the form of unsold tickets. To the consumer willing to try something new at the last minute, Dipidee will essentially tap the consumer on the shoulder and say, "You ought to try this. They have some tickets left for this show." Dipidee will provide an opportunity unique to the consumer by introducing them to a new venue.The benefit is two fold. First, the region's arts and entertainment venues have an opportunity to clear unsold time-sensitive inventory. And second, consumers can break out of the rut of rehashing the same familiar haunts.In the race to revenue that all startups face, Dipidee will initially focus on the arts and entertainment sector. But that is where the vision begins. "The long-term opportunity reaches into the services industry," says Lecount. For instance, "If a day spa has unscheduled appointments available later that day for, say, a $100 massage, the spa can make that appointment known on Dipidee at a favorable rate. The spa has an opportunity to fill the appointment, keep the masseuse working, and perhaps draw a customer into the spa that would not have walked in otherwise."Writer: Andy Erickson

Don’t Quit Your Day Job (Yet)

By Andy Erickson

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Entrepreneurship

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August 25, 2009

Do you have what it takes to start a company? InOneWeekend 2009 is the high pressure, resource constrained, blue sky environment that will test your leadership skills – from idea, to plan, to prototype, to pitch. All in plain view of the venture community. And you can keep your day job. If you choose to.

Balanced Insight receives $350K in seed funding, will add jobs

By Newsroom

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General

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June 30, 2009

Balanced Insight, a growing software company in Symmes Township, received $350,000 in seed financing to further develop its software. Balanced Insight, created in 2003, focuses on software that manages business information and business intelligence. Company founder Tom Hammergren said the funding will allow the company to add employees in its sales and engineering areas, and expand sales and distribution. “Balanced Insight has been profitable every year but one since our inception. This has helped us reduce the initial need for capital while still attracting marquee customers such as Fifth Third, Ohio PERS, KeyBank, Nike, and NetJets to name a few. The money we have received in this round will help us expand our sales & distribution to attract additional customers across the globe,” he said. The funders were CinyTech, a public-private funder of startups, and Southwest Ohio Creates Companies (SOCC), a University of Cincinnati-led fund. “Balanced Insight founder Tom Hammergren has made great progress boot-strapping his company over the last five years and building an impressive customer list,” said CincyTech executive-in-residence Mike Venerable. “He’s attracted great interest from the analysts in the business intelligence market over the importance of his technology.” CincyTech provided $250,000, while SOCC invested $100,000. “Balanced Insight is continuing to evolve our product line, Balanced Insight Consensus®, based on our customer’s needs and innovation that we feel will drive further market penetration for us. Consensus is an enterprise software platform that assists our customers in establishing a cost-effective platform for delivering enterprise business intelligence and performance management solutions in popular tools from Microsoft, IBM/Cognos, and SAP/Business Objects to name a few,” Hammergren said. Writer: Feoshia HendersonSources: Balanced Insight founder Tom Hammergren, Bob Coy President CincyTech

Entrepreneur boot camp: get your ideas in gear

By Newsroom

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Entrepreneurship

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June 2, 2009

So you’ve got this great idea for a product or new service. You may even have a partner to help carry it out, and a business plan. Now what? You can learn how to take that next big step, obtaining funding for your plan, at this week’s 2009 Entrepreneur Boot Camp at The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati at Rookwood Tower, 3805 Edwards Road in Norwood. The two-day workshop starts June 3, and is geared toward future entrepreneurs and those looking to grow an existing business. It’s hosted by Queen City Angels investors and C-Cap. Sponsors include Biostart and law firm Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP. “C-Cap is a resource hub designed to link entrepreneurs with Angel investors and the other resources they need to create successful growth companies. Our mission is to increase the number of growth companies that receive seed capital funding from Cincinnati area Angels,” said Connie Wiedemann, with The Circuit, a Cincinnati IT association that operates C-Cap. The Keynote speaker June 3 is Rob Daly, with Silverstone Advisors. His presentation will be “Building a High-Growth Business.” On June 4, boot campers will get to talk with Queen City Angels investors and professional financial advisors, who will offer one-on-one advice on business plans, Wiedemann said. The June 3 session is from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The June 4 session is from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The cost is $279. You can see the entire schedule here. For more information, call Wiedemann at (513) 618-6441. Writer Feoshia HendersonSource: Connie Wiedemann, The Circuit

High-tech start-ups put down roots in new soil

By Newsroom

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Cincy In The News

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June 2, 2009

High-tech start-ups are beginning to look elsewhere for the incentives they desire and as a result are starting to pop up in new places. Many Midwestern cities are taking advantage of the pullback in venture lending and offering incentives and low costs of living to the highly desirable high-tech start-up companies out there. One of the most aggressive states and most successful thus far has been Ohio where they are offering strong incentive packages and funding options. Read full article here.