"It's in our DNA to do amazing things," says Harvey Ovshinsky. Metromode's Jon Zemke sits down with the veteran video producer and screenwriter to talk about Michigan's Film Incentives and their potential impact on the state's investment opportunities, job growth, and brain drain.
Welcome to Hollywood on the Huron! With Michigan's ambitious film incentive package bringing movie sets to Ann Arbor, both U-M and the city have had to develop strategies for accommodating (and capitalizing) on their presence.
Pixel Velocity is prepped and ready for some growth after waiting out the recent recession.The Ann Arbor-based firm expects its revenue to more than double this year and add a few more people to its staff of 19 (and few independent contractors). The company just hired a new COO to help usher in that growth."This is a pretty important break-out year for Pixel Velocity," says Eric Sieczka, president and CEO of Pixel Velocity.The company, located on the city's south side, creates high-speed digital image processing products for the surveillance and medical imaging markets. These products are used for everything from the surveillance market to the medical-imaging market, where Pixel Velocity's technology specializes in creating images of the heart.One of its big project includes installing its products at the Port of Detroit Cargo Terminals. It also has several projects going in the Washington, D.C., area. Sieczka says he can't reveal a lot of his customers because if security concerns, but says his company doesn't lack for them right now."This year we have quite a bit in the pipeline," Sieczka says.Source: Eric Sieczka, president and CEO of Pixel VelocityWriter: Jon Zemke
The venture capital continues to pile up at Lycera now that the Ann Arbor-based firm has taken in another $11 million in financing, bringing its total to $47 million over its three and a half years of existence.All of that money has allowed Lycera to hire five people this year, expanding its staff to 15 employees and 10 independent contractors, including a number of former Pfizer employees. That's up from nine employees when we last checked in with the firm a year ago."We're still in the pre-clinical phase," says Bill Sibold, CEO of Lycera. "We hope to be in trials with people next year. This money will help us get there."That will mean another 20-25 percent increase in staff over the next year. Most of that expansion will go toward researches and development personnel. It's just the next step in what is expected to be a eight-year process to commercialization.The pharmaceutical company is developing small molecule drugs for treating autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. The company got its start from research by University of Michigan Chemistry Prof Gary Glick. Source: Bill Sibold, CEO of LyceraWriter: Jon Zemke
Want to rub elbows with the people most likely to play a critical part in reinventing Michigan's economy from brawn to brains? Then the Michigan Growth Capital Symposium is the place to be on May 11-12 at the Marriott Resort in Ypsilanti.The event, in its 29th year, is widely regarded as one of the premier places in the Midwest for deals to get done and financiers to meet the cream of the crop in new businesses and emerging technologies. The symposium will feature more than 65 investment firms, 32 top Midwestern companies seeking funding and number of movers and shakers when it comes to the Midwestern entrepreneurial ecosystem.David J. Brophy, the director of the Center for Venture Capital and Private Equity Finance at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, is one of the main organizers behind the Michigan Growth Capital Symposium. He agreed to answer some questions about the event and the entrepreneurial investment scene in Michigan over email. Could you sum up The Michigan Growth Capital Symposium's importance to a state like Michigan that is fighting to diversify and reinvent its economy?Since its founding in 1980, MGCS has served as the focal point for the diversification of the State's economy, providing a venue for entrepreneurs and venture capitalists to meet for the purpose of building innovative businesses through which to capitalize on Michigan's productive capabilities. MGCS has brought Michigan entrepreneurs together with guest speakers and investors from around the US and has heightened the nation-wide awareness of Michigan's economic opportunities.A recent MoneyTree Report by PriceWaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association showed that nearly 90 percent of all the venture capital investment funds in Michigan during the first quarter of 2010 went to Ann Arbor-based companies. Ann Arbor is arguably the strongest center of Michigan's new economy but is it realistic to expect this kind of dominance on a consistent basis when it comes to venture capital investment?Ann Arbor/ UM has been the natural leader in technological innovation in Michigan since the 1950's, especially in the days when UM's Willow Run Labs were world-class producers of new technology. This background has helped make Ann Arbor/UM continue as the leader today. Recently, as the auto industry has declined, other communities have partnered with the universities they host to develop entrepreneurial activity locally. As the start-up firms created in those communities become "venture capital ready" in quality, they are attracting VC and we are now seeing a productive dispersion of venture capital around the state.Several micro loan funds have begun to pop up across Michigan over the last year. They seem to be serving a need of providing much-needed financing (loans between $1,000-$35,000) to small businesses for expansion and product development at a time when traditional lending sources have dried up. What sort of role, if any, do you think these funds will have a few years from now when financial markets have returned to a semblance of normal?Micro loan firms play a different role than do VC firms, but both are important for the growth of small businesses in general and both should be encouraged. The recent shortage of bank credit has encouraged the development/expansion of many alternative sources of business credit, including private-equity funds. When bank credit becomes accessible for small business once again, these micro lenders will need to have business models that enable them to compete with banks if they wish to maintain their market edge. The current debate about federal regulation of financial institutions will have an influence on this issue.Michigan is in the process of reforming its angel investor incentives so they provide an income-tax credit equal to 25 percent of an investment. What sort of impact, if any, could such a change make on the local angel investing community?Because Michigan's hopes for a significant role in the national market for entrepreneurial firms hinges on our ability to form and fund new companies, the encouragement of angel finance is vital. A significant tax credit would accelerate angel investment especially by those who have been reluctant to invest in such projects during the strong automotive years, as well as those who are still on the sidelines with respect to risk capital investment.Name an idea, policy or mindset from elsewhere that you would like to see this region adopt?A mindset in which innovative, knowledge-based industry is recognized as a core opportunity for Michigan, toward which all aspects of our economy should bend their energies and strategic planning.Source: David J. Brophy, the director of the Center for Venture Capital and Private Equity Finance at the University of Michigan's Ross School of BusinessWriter: Jon Zemke
Delivering a short speech to win a big investment is not as easy as it looks in the entrepreneurial world, however, such behavior promises to be fun to watch when Ann Arbor SPARK hosts an Elevator Pitch competition in downtown Ypsilanti in early June. Think of it as a poetry slam for entrepreneurs. Minus the poetry.An elevator pitch is a short, persuasive speech an entrepreneur gives about their company or product to an investor preferably in the average time (a few minutes) of an elevator ride. The idea is to convince potential investors or customers to take interest. An elevator pitch is seen as a key part of a start-up culture in the Silicon Valleys of the world."We really view the elevator pitch as the opportunity for the entrepreneur to explain their idea succinctly," says Elizabeth Parkinson, vice president of marketing and communications for Ann Arbor SPARK.The pitch competition will showcase five innovation-based entrepreneurs giving their best argument for their start-ups. Ann Arbor SPARK is taking applications for the competition now through May 14. The five finalists will be chosen by May 21 so they can compete on the afternoon of June 4.The winner will receive a free year at the Ann Arbor SPARK East incubator in downtown Ypsilanti and up to $50,000 in business accelerator services. That includes everything from mentoring to legal services to a membership in the Ann Arbor Ypsilanti Chamber of Commerce. The winner will also be chosen by a small panel of local funding and business experts.Ann Arbor SPARK choose to hold the event in downtown Ypsilanti to highlight the entrepreneurial resources it offers not only at the SPARK East Incubator but at the Eastside Innovation Campus and the entire east side of Wahstenaw County. The competition is also meant to help keep the pipeline of start-ups and entrepreneurs full at the business acceleration agency."The pitch competition is just one more effort to keep the pipeline robust and full of entrepreneurs," Parkinson says.Source: Elizabeth Parkinson, vice president of marketing and communications for Ann Arbor SPARKWriter: Jon Zemke
A former University of Michigan Football player is returning to his alma mater and expects to begin creating jobs in Ann Arbor.Gerald White has relocated his media firm, Gerald White International, from Miami to downtown Ann Arbor. The move brings two employees right away and four internship openings that will be filled by this fall. The company hopes to expand its staff to eight people and a few interns within 18 months, growth that could include promoting some of those interns into full-time employees."That's one of the main reasons I wanted to get back to Ann Arbor is because of the talent," White says. "The more kids we keep in Michigan the better off we are."Gerald White International provides marketing, public relations, digital and social network marketing media services. It has strategic relationships with Sourcebits of Atlanta and Bangalore, India, a leader in mobile/social and gaming apps and digital solutions, and Eiler Communications of Ann Arbor, a public relations firm. Some of its clients include the National Athletic Association, The Ludacris Foundation, Melange Bistro and Don Modesto Tequila.White, who played fullback for U-M between 1983-7, plans to take advantage of the opportunities created in the current Michigan economy to grow his 8-year-old company.Source: Gerald White, CEO of Gerald White InternationalWriter: Jon Zemke
RiserCam is taking out a little loan to help it achieve a little growth this year.The downtown Ann Arbor-based start-up is part of the latest round of financing from the Michigan Micro Loan Fund, that gave $XXX to two companies in southeast Michigan. RiserCam plans to use its loan (the amount of the individual loans are not released) for continual product development that could lead to a new hire later this year.The 3-year-old firm makes video cameras that attach to both the bows and guns of hunters. The idea is to provide capture the unique perspective of the hunter. Think of it as the cost-effective next generation of POV video, going beyond what a video cameraman in a hunting blind or tree stand can capture."There is a whole lot more in the weeds than that fraction of a second you spend pulling the trigger," says Richard Millunchick, CEO and managing partner of RiserCam. He further explains there is the everyday nature that a hunter sizes up through his or her sights, such as wildlife that is let pass by.The company started by putting these mini cameras on the riser section of hunting bows (hence the name) before expanding to shotguns. That product expansion has allowed the company to grow to two employees and a handful of independent contractors. Millunchick hopes to hire one more person later this year as the market, still in its infancy, continues to grow."The video market for hunting is very small but is growing rapidly," Millunchick says.Ann Arbor SPARK runs the micro loan fund. That $1.5 million program provides funding for start-ups so they can either commercialize their product or accelerate their business growth. The idea is to help fill the financing void left in the wake of the financial crisis. The fund had been so popular that numerous other municipalities and business accelerator agencies are scrambling to create their own, including Oakland County and the OU INCubator.The Michigan Micro Loan Fund makes anywhere from 2-4 loans of a few thousand dollars each per month for 2010. That expectation is to provide much-needed financing for 24 to 48 fledgling local businesses at a time when loans for small businesses are almost non-existent.Source: Richard Millunchick, CEO and managing partner of RiserCamWriter: Jon Zemke
President Obama is used to wowing big crowds but he wowed tens of thousands at one of the country's biggest venues in Ann Arbor. Here is a round up of coverage on the event.Excerpt:Ann Arbor--President Barack Obama took aim at the mean-spirited political rhetoric circulating the country during his commencement address Saturday to graduates of the University of Michigan."We can't expect to solve our problems by tearing each other down," Obama said, using his speech to respond to some of his critics who depict the U.S. government as repressive. "It may grab headlines but it puts us on a level of murderous regimes."Obama appealed to the 80,000 in attendance at Michigan Stadium to hear him speak, calling for more civil discourse even though history suggests politics have never been a "nice business ... even during times of great change.""Despite all its flaws, our democracy has worked better than any form of government on earth," he said.Read the rest of the story here, more here and a whole lot more here.
The University of Michigan Credit Union is looking for bigger and better space, and its considering The Ann Arbor News building. However, downtown Ann Arbor isn't the only place it's looking.Excerpt:The University of Michigan Credit Union is real-estate shopping and is looking at the now-vacant Ann Arbor News building on the southwest corner of Huron and Division streets.However, the three-story News building is only one of several properties being considered as a potential home for the credit union’s administrative offices, says Jeff Schillag, the institution’s vice president of marketing and community relations.Not all the potential sites are downtown, Schillag says. And any acquired space would replace leased office space.Read the rest of the story here.
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