Shaker Heights
More than 750 people turned out at the new home of Shaker LaunchHouse last week to welcome the business incubator and celebrate entrepreneurial business in the region.
Speakers included Senator Sherrod Brown, Shaker Heights Mayor Earl Leiken, author and entrepreneur Ratanjit Sondhe, Benoy Joseph and Dick Pogue. Brown is the author of the Business Incubator Promotion Act and has spearheaded efforts to reduce brain drain in Ohio. Sondhe, founder of Poly-Carb in Solon, spoke about the importance of entrepreneurial communities. He mentioned that he wished LaunchHouse was around when he was starting out.
Pogue announced that the first corporate gift from the Shaker Heights Development Corporation for the economic development work at Shaker LaunchHouse is $25,000 from New York Community Bank.
Thirty-five companies exhibited in the 23,000-square-foot renovated car dealership, including LaunchHouse's 12 portfolio companies as well as area entrepreneurs educating visitors on their endeavors. Companies included everything from Wow! Cookies!, a gourmet cookie delivery company, to Sunflower Solutions, which develops and manufactures renewable energy products.
"The huge turnout for this event goes to show that this region is ready to support entrepreneurial efforts," said Todd Goldstein, co-founder of LaunchHouse. "I saw a lot of introductions take place that night so the networking alone is going to produce some real opportunities going forward."
Guests were treated to a buffet of hors d'oevres during the event, and the Umami Moto food truck was also on site. SLH plans to host regular entrepreneurial events in addition to weekly educational meetings.
Source: Todd Goldstein
Writer: Karen Connelly
MedWorks in Shaker Heights was quick to come to the rescue of those ravaged by the tornado in Joplin, Missouri, this week. MedWorks, a non-profit organization that provides free healthcare clinics for the under insured and uninsured in Ohio, sent a truck full of medical supplies to Joplin just 24 hours after the disaster.
The MedWorks team was at WKYC Channel 3 on Tuesday for an unrelated meeting. While there, a Facebook friend of reporter Eric Mansfield volunteered to put them in touch with her brother-in-law, a doctor in Joplin who was working at a triage center.
With that, MedWorks founder Zac Ponsky and his team set to work compiling everything from disposable gloves and bandages to crutches and canes and other medical supplies. The supplies were put on a truck donated by Berman Moving and Storage in Cleveland along with numerous palettes of drinking water donated by Giant Eagle.
"It was just a matter of being in the right place at the right time," says MedWorks office manager Alyson Andrassy. "It was communication, the right resources and the right place. Our goal is to find a need and fill it. We're trying to be that liaison between Joplin and Ohio."
The truck left at 6:30 p.m. Monday, while Ponsky and director of operations Julie Namy were on a plane to Joplin Tuesday to further evaluate what is needed. "They will see who needs what and where," says Andrassy. "When the truck arrives the supplies will be distributed where it's needed most and they will assess what volunteers are needed and if they need other supplies."
Source: Alyson Andrassy
Writer: Karin Connelly
As a law student at CSU's Cleveland Marshall College of Law, Art Geigel noticed a flaw in the way he and his fellow students took notes in class. Almost everybody took notes using their laptops and Microsoft Word, compiling seemingly endless documents with no way of organizing the information.
"I kept thinking to myself, 'There's a better way to do this than to keep taking notes in one constantly growing Word document,'" says Geigel.
That "better way," says Geigel, is GroundBooth, an online program for law students to take notes, share outlines and collaborate. "The whole goal is to make technology work for law school students better than it has been. We're trying to tailor GroundBooth to the habits of law students."
The service is free. GroundBooth plans to earn income from ad revenue, supplemental sales of reference materials and additional website features. The company is currently in talks with Supreme Bar Review about a partnership. The website now supports 13 law schools including Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Marshall, Stanford, and Harvard.
Geigel, who just finished his second year of law school, studied computer science as an undergrad at Hiram College and was a web developer before creating GroundBooth. He officially launched the company with three friends in January, and has partnered with Shaker LaunchHouse, which has matched GroundBooth with several mentors and is providing office space, in addition to a cash investment.
Source: Art Geigel
Writer: Karin Connelly
"I kept thinking to myself, 'There's a better way to do this than to keep taking notes in one constantly growing Word document,'" says Geigel.
That "better way," says Geigel, is GroundBooth, an online program for law students to take notes, share outlines and collaborate. "The whole goal is to make technology work for law school students better than it has been. We're trying to tailor GroundBooth to the habits of law students."
The service is free. GroundBooth plans to earn income from ad revenue, supplemental sales of reference materials and additional website features. The company is currently in talks with Supreme Bar Review about a partnership. The website now supports 13 law schools including Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Marshall, Stanford, and Harvard.
Geigel, who just finished his second year of law school, studied computer science as an undergrad at Hiram College and was a web developer before creating GroundBooth. He officially launched the company with three friends in January, and has partnered with Shaker LaunchHouse, which has matched GroundBooth with several mentors and is providing office space, in addition to a cash investment.
Source: Art Geigel
Writer: Karin Connelly
Clevelanders are having a love affair with locally grown, seasonal food -- and that romance is playing out at numerous farmers markets around town. These days, it's possible to shop at a different neighborhood farmers market practically every day of the week, a far cry from when just a handful existed. What's more: Cleveland-area farmers markets will reap approximately $2.5 million this year, great news for small entrepreneurs and the local economy.
With nearly a dozen different farmers markets setting up around town, it has never been easier to stock our larders with fresh, local food. In this pictorial feature, Fresh Water managing photographer Bob Perkoski takes us on a colorful tour of Cleveland's increasingly popular farmers markets. Bring cash, a cloth bag, and a healthy appetite.
Cleveland State University's Nance College of Business Administration and Shaker LaunchHouse have teamed up to encourage the regions entrepreneurs to follow their dreams.
The agreement was adopted at a special meeting of the Shaker City Council on March 14, after recommendation by the Shaker Heights Economic Development Department.
One of the first endeavors the two have launched is the 2011 Idea Competition. The contest is open to students at any Ohio college or university with an innovative business idea. Ideas should focus on software and Internet technology, low-tech medical devices, and clean energy.
"We really want to get the juices flowing of entrepreneurs in the region," says Shaker LaunchHouse managing partner Todd Goldstein. "We believe it's extremely important to provide an outlet for good ideas."
The winner gets a $2,500 scholarship to the Nance's global AMBA program and $1,000 from LaunchHouse, including incubation space, legal support, accounting support, and business planning assistance. The winner will have the chance to compete for $5,000 in seed funding.
Entry forms are due by noon on Monday, April 25. Finalists will then give a two-minute pitch to a panel of entrepreneurs and venture capitalists at Shaker LaunchHouse on Thursday, May 5. SLH will be offering educational seminars for the contestants to help them with their presentations.
Source: Todd Goldstein
Writer: Karin Connelly
The agreement was adopted at a special meeting of the Shaker City Council on March 14, after recommendation by the Shaker Heights Economic Development Department.
One of the first endeavors the two have launched is the 2011 Idea Competition. The contest is open to students at any Ohio college or university with an innovative business idea. Ideas should focus on software and Internet technology, low-tech medical devices, and clean energy.
"We really want to get the juices flowing of entrepreneurs in the region," says Shaker LaunchHouse managing partner Todd Goldstein. "We believe it's extremely important to provide an outlet for good ideas."
The winner gets a $2,500 scholarship to the Nance's global AMBA program and $1,000 from LaunchHouse, including incubation space, legal support, accounting support, and business planning assistance. The winner will have the chance to compete for $5,000 in seed funding.
Entry forms are due by noon on Monday, April 25. Finalists will then give a two-minute pitch to a panel of entrepreneurs and venture capitalists at Shaker LaunchHouse on Thursday, May 5. SLH will be offering educational seminars for the contestants to help them with their presentations.
Source: Todd Goldstein
Writer: Karin Connelly
Shaker LaunchHouse, a pre-seed investment fund and business accelerator, has raised $250,000 in capital funds. A portion of the money will be used to invest an average of $10,000 in 15 software and disruptive technology companies. "Disruptive technology refers to thinking of things that shake up or dramatically change the market," explains Todd Goldstein, managing partner of SLH.
The investments will be made over the next 12 months. Additionally, SLH will provide office space and back office support to each of the 15 companies. Goldstein and his partner formed Shaker LaunchHouse in 2008 after seeing larger numbers of young entrepreneurs leaving Cleveland for cities that offered greater start-up opportunities.
"We saw a lot of young people moving away because there was a lot of seed money [elsewhere] ," explains Goldstein. "We felt that Cleveland was ripe for an organization that could provide seed money."
SLH's goal is to invest in 15 companies a year, while also providing networking with 100 mentors, cooperative office space and educational programming. SLH provides twice weekly workshops for entrepreneurs led by area business leaders with expertise in everything from how to manage the finances of a startup company to how to write an effective executive summary and make presentations as well as crash courses in website development.
SLH is in the process of moving into a renovated car dealership on Lee Road, which will provide 23,000 square feet of space for entrepreneurs and mentors.
Source: Todd Goldstein
Writer: Karin Connelly
The investments will be made over the next 12 months. Additionally, SLH will provide office space and back office support to each of the 15 companies. Goldstein and his partner formed Shaker LaunchHouse in 2008 after seeing larger numbers of young entrepreneurs leaving Cleveland for cities that offered greater start-up opportunities.
"We saw a lot of young people moving away because there was a lot of seed money [elsewhere] ," explains Goldstein. "We felt that Cleveland was ripe for an organization that could provide seed money."
SLH's goal is to invest in 15 companies a year, while also providing networking with 100 mentors, cooperative office space and educational programming. SLH provides twice weekly workshops for entrepreneurs led by area business leaders with expertise in everything from how to manage the finances of a startup company to how to write an effective executive summary and make presentations as well as crash courses in website development.
SLH is in the process of moving into a renovated car dealership on Lee Road, which will provide 23,000 square feet of space for entrepreneurs and mentors.
Source: Todd Goldstein
Writer: Karin Connelly
Imagine this: A $10,000 solar-energy system powering an entire elementary school in Africa, providing enough juice for laptop computers and overhead lights. Christopher Clark, founder of Sunflower Solutions, has proved that this feat is not only possible, but also is an efficient, cost-effective way to bring power to the Third World.
Recently, Sunflower Solutions moved to Shaker LaunchHouse, a former auto dealership turned business incubator in Shaker Heights. Created with just $60,000 in seed funding, the company is in its first year of producing manually trackable solar power systems. These systems allow users to move panels by hand as the sun moves across the sky, obtaining up to 42 percent more power.
Sunflower has sold its systems to nonprofit organizations in six countries, including India, Kenya and Nigeria, and Clark says the company will achieve profitability this year.
Clark first developed the idea when he was a business major at Miami University of Ohio. "I was helping some engineers develop a water pump for a village without electricity in Mali," he says. "They installed it, and then realized that the water was too deep underground for a hand pump. If they'd used an electric pump, it could have worked, yet there was no electricity for miles around."
The solution was solar power. Yet while trackable solar systems have been around for decades, most of them move automatically and are expensive. Clark's invention is the first manual system. "It's hard to do anything about poverty, health care and education in the Third World without basic electricity, yet two billion people in the world don't have it," says Clark. "This system allows nonprofits and charities to purchase a better, lower-cost system."
Sunflower Solutions' products are made locally by South Shore Controls in Cleveland and Perry, Ohio. As his business grows, Clark hopes to market his products to a wider audience, allowing his system to reach even more people in the developing world.
This summer, Clevelanders will be able to see the power of Clark's invention firsthand. The Cleveland Museum of Natural History is installing a system on its campus; the Metroparks Zoo is also interested.
Clark was selected as one of the speakers for the April 15th TEDxCLE conference, where he will talk about "electricity as a basic right."
Source: Christopher Clark
Writer: Lee Chilcote
Recently, Sunflower Solutions moved to Shaker LaunchHouse, a former auto dealership turned business incubator in Shaker Heights. Created with just $60,000 in seed funding, the company is in its first year of producing manually trackable solar power systems. These systems allow users to move panels by hand as the sun moves across the sky, obtaining up to 42 percent more power.
Sunflower has sold its systems to nonprofit organizations in six countries, including India, Kenya and Nigeria, and Clark says the company will achieve profitability this year.
Clark first developed the idea when he was a business major at Miami University of Ohio. "I was helping some engineers develop a water pump for a village without electricity in Mali," he says. "They installed it, and then realized that the water was too deep underground for a hand pump. If they'd used an electric pump, it could have worked, yet there was no electricity for miles around."
The solution was solar power. Yet while trackable solar systems have been around for decades, most of them move automatically and are expensive. Clark's invention is the first manual system. "It's hard to do anything about poverty, health care and education in the Third World without basic electricity, yet two billion people in the world don't have it," says Clark. "This system allows nonprofits and charities to purchase a better, lower-cost system."
Sunflower Solutions' products are made locally by South Shore Controls in Cleveland and Perry, Ohio. As his business grows, Clark hopes to market his products to a wider audience, allowing his system to reach even more people in the developing world.
This summer, Clevelanders will be able to see the power of Clark's invention firsthand. The Cleveland Museum of Natural History is installing a system on its campus; the Metroparks Zoo is also interested.
Clark was selected as one of the speakers for the April 15th TEDxCLE conference, where he will talk about "electricity as a basic right."
Source: Christopher Clark
Writer: Lee Chilcote
Brian Cook stands in the oval-shaped dining room of an apartment at Ludlow Castle, a signature Tudor-style building off Shaker Square. The distinctive room has hardwood floors and opens up to a sunken living room with wood-burning fireplace and a wall of windows overlooking the street.
"My wife would kill for an oval-shaped dining room like this," Cook says, "and for the closet space in these units."
The neighborhoods of Shaker Square have long been a popular draw for individuals and families that are seeking the conveniences and amenities of apartment living. Now, a Cleveland real estate developer is restoring and rejuvenating many of the apartment buildings on North and South Moreland, a densely populated apartment corridor.
Cook represents Crossroads Property Management, a real estate management and development firm owned by Paul Gabrail. CPM operates 14 buildings on North and South Moreland between Larchmere Boulevard and Buckeye Road -- a concentration of over 300 units, or nearly half of the total units on these two blocks. Over the past few years, the owner has steadily upgraded and improved these apartments.
"We want our buildings to set the tone for the street," says Cook.
Asked why he has chosen the Shaker Square area to focus on, Cook cites the fact that he and his wife are homeowners who are raising a family in nearby Shaker Heights. "I believe that Shaker Square and the surrounding neighborhoods have to stay strong," Cook says. "We have a great city neighborhood -- a dense, walkable community with affordable housing that's close to public transit."
The redevelopment of North and South Moreland apartment buildings is a sound investment, Cook and Gabrail argue, since the neighborhood continues to attract apartment dwellers and maintain relatively low vacancy rates. Tenants range from the "Meds and Eds" of University Circle to downtown-commuting professionals and long-time neighborhood residents seeking a low-maintenance lifestyle.
Cook is confident that his buildings will hold their value and prove successful over time. As the quality of the properties have been improved, he and Gabrail have been able to increase rents and improve resident-retention rates, thus garnering a more professional tenant base while maintaining the economic diversity of the neighborhood.
"These properties were built very well and the improvements we are doing will secure their place in the market for many years to come," Cook says.
Source: Brian Cook
Writer: Lee Chilcote
"My wife would kill for an oval-shaped dining room like this," Cook says, "and for the closet space in these units."
The neighborhoods of Shaker Square have long been a popular draw for individuals and families that are seeking the conveniences and amenities of apartment living. Now, a Cleveland real estate developer is restoring and rejuvenating many of the apartment buildings on North and South Moreland, a densely populated apartment corridor.
Cook represents Crossroads Property Management, a real estate management and development firm owned by Paul Gabrail. CPM operates 14 buildings on North and South Moreland between Larchmere Boulevard and Buckeye Road -- a concentration of over 300 units, or nearly half of the total units on these two blocks. Over the past few years, the owner has steadily upgraded and improved these apartments.
"We want our buildings to set the tone for the street," says Cook.
Asked why he has chosen the Shaker Square area to focus on, Cook cites the fact that he and his wife are homeowners who are raising a family in nearby Shaker Heights. "I believe that Shaker Square and the surrounding neighborhoods have to stay strong," Cook says. "We have a great city neighborhood -- a dense, walkable community with affordable housing that's close to public transit."
The redevelopment of North and South Moreland apartment buildings is a sound investment, Cook and Gabrail argue, since the neighborhood continues to attract apartment dwellers and maintain relatively low vacancy rates. Tenants range from the "Meds and Eds" of University Circle to downtown-commuting professionals and long-time neighborhood residents seeking a low-maintenance lifestyle.
Cook is confident that his buildings will hold their value and prove successful over time. As the quality of the properties have been improved, he and Gabrail have been able to increase rents and improve resident-retention rates, thus garnering a more professional tenant base while maintaining the economic diversity of the neighborhood.
"These properties were built very well and the improvements we are doing will secure their place in the market for many years to come," Cook says.
Source: Brian Cook
Writer: Lee Chilcote
Whether it's an empty nook in their attic or a corner table at the local Starbuck's, home-based businesspeople are constantly searching for the ideal spot to do research, make phone calls or meet with clients. Come June of 2011, East Side entrepreneurs will be able to take advantage of specially designed space at the Shaker Heights Public Library's main branch on Lee Road.
The Community Entrepreneurial Office -- CEO for short -- will be a pilot program featuring workspace and services for home-based business owners. The Shaker Heights Public Library announced this fall that it had received a $37,645 grant from the state to set up the facilities.
An existing computer area on the library's second floor is being redesigned to make way for 10 workstations and a conference area, which will be available free of charge. Entrepreneurs will also have access to business software. Faxing, photocopying and related services will be fee-based.
"We see that people come here to do certain business and then they have to go elsewhere to finish," notes Margaret Simon, who will head up the library's CEO program. "So we said we'll be the finisher." Home-based entrepreneurs can think of the CEO as a one-stop resource for their businesses, Simon adds.
She says she would like to build a staff around the CEO program as it grows. "My hope is that it will become a self-sustaining business that will generate jobs."
The Shaker Heights Library is in proximity to Shaker Launch House, a business incubator also opening in 2011. Simon is set to meet with developers of Launch House to discuss ways each can help local entrepreneurs. "I think we have parallel services and we can make them intersect," she says.
SOURCE: Margaret Simon
WRITER: Diane DiPIero
The Community Entrepreneurial Office -- CEO for short -- will be a pilot program featuring workspace and services for home-based business owners. The Shaker Heights Public Library announced this fall that it had received a $37,645 grant from the state to set up the facilities.
An existing computer area on the library's second floor is being redesigned to make way for 10 workstations and a conference area, which will be available free of charge. Entrepreneurs will also have access to business software. Faxing, photocopying and related services will be fee-based.
"We see that people come here to do certain business and then they have to go elsewhere to finish," notes Margaret Simon, who will head up the library's CEO program. "So we said we'll be the finisher." Home-based entrepreneurs can think of the CEO as a one-stop resource for their businesses, Simon adds.
She says she would like to build a staff around the CEO program as it grows. "My hope is that it will become a self-sustaining business that will generate jobs."
The Shaker Heights Library is in proximity to Shaker Launch House, a business incubator also opening in 2011. Simon is set to meet with developers of Launch House to discuss ways each can help local entrepreneurs. "I think we have parallel services and we can make them intersect," she says.
SOURCE: Margaret Simon
WRITER: Diane DiPIero
When it opens in early February in a renovated car dealership, LaunchHouse will symbolize a new direction for the City of Shaker Heights and the Chagrin-Lee neighborhood. The 22,000-square-foot building will be a headquarters for start-up companies, providing space for offices, collaboration efforts and conferences.
LaunchHouse has already created quite a buzz in and around Shaker Heights. The business incubator and seed capital investment company has to date incubated 12 companies by providing funding, facilities, operational support and networking events. Todd Goldstein, who along with business partner Dar Caldwell, established the venture in 2008 (originally named Goldstein Caldwell & Associates), made the push for a move from Cleveland to Shaker Heights, where he has been a longtime resident.
The City of Shaker Heights saw this as a chance to establish an entrepreneurial hub in an inner-ring suburb. The city and LaunchHouse formed a five-year public-private partnership in which Shaker Heights granted LaunchHouse the use of the building at 3558 Lee Road.
"I really look at this opportunity as the cornerstone of our economic development," says Tania Menesse, director of economic development for Shaker Heights. In addition to the start-ups that Launch House will be nurturing, Menesse says the facility will cater to home-based businesses in the area that crave local resources.
LaunchHouse plans to add as many as 15 start-ups to its existing portfolio of 12 over the next year. Goldstein envisions the Shaker facility to quickly "create a community of innovation and entrepreneurship."
SOURCE: City of Shaker Heights, Launch House
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
LaunchHouse has already created quite a buzz in and around Shaker Heights. The business incubator and seed capital investment company has to date incubated 12 companies by providing funding, facilities, operational support and networking events. Todd Goldstein, who along with business partner Dar Caldwell, established the venture in 2008 (originally named Goldstein Caldwell & Associates), made the push for a move from Cleveland to Shaker Heights, where he has been a longtime resident.
The City of Shaker Heights saw this as a chance to establish an entrepreneurial hub in an inner-ring suburb. The city and LaunchHouse formed a five-year public-private partnership in which Shaker Heights granted LaunchHouse the use of the building at 3558 Lee Road.
"I really look at this opportunity as the cornerstone of our economic development," says Tania Menesse, director of economic development for Shaker Heights. In addition to the start-ups that Launch House will be nurturing, Menesse says the facility will cater to home-based businesses in the area that crave local resources.
LaunchHouse plans to add as many as 15 start-ups to its existing portfolio of 12 over the next year. Goldstein envisions the Shaker facility to quickly "create a community of innovation and entrepreneurship."
SOURCE: City of Shaker Heights, Launch House
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
slashfood says our urban farms take root
Slashfood, a popular online magazine devoted to food and drink, recently touted Cleveland's efforts to combat health, economic and foreclosure problems by launching multiple urban farming projects.
Citing the just-announced $1.1 million pilot program to fund the Cleveland Urban Agriculture Incubator Project, the writer notes that "Cleveland is planting seeds to counter the serious problems of obesity, food deserts and urban blight."
Supported by the USDA, the City of Cleveland, the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the Ohio State University Extension Service, the new six-acre plot in the Kinsman neighborhood will be tended to by 20 local residents.
The farm will be two short miles from chef Doug Katz' Fire Food and Drink, the story points out. "I absolutely would love to use what they grow, and will promote that it's grown here in the City of Cleveland, right in our backyard," says Katz of the program.
Read all the juicy details here.
Citing the just-announced $1.1 million pilot program to fund the Cleveland Urban Agriculture Incubator Project, the writer notes that "Cleveland is planting seeds to counter the serious problems of obesity, food deserts and urban blight."
Supported by the USDA, the City of Cleveland, the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the Ohio State University Extension Service, the new six-acre plot in the Kinsman neighborhood will be tended to by 20 local residents.
The farm will be two short miles from chef Doug Katz' Fire Food and Drink, the story points out. "I absolutely would love to use what they grow, and will promote that it's grown here in the City of Cleveland, right in our backyard," says Katz of the program.
Read all the juicy details here.
The marriage of high-tech design and high-end dining is proving a win-win for diners, local restaurateurs and Epstein Design Partners, a Shaker Square-based design firm.
The Civic Commons is a modern-day marriage of online technology, citizen journalism, and civic collaboration. The mission? To inform, engage and lead local residents to action on any number of weighty topics. Our guides: Dan Moulthrop and Noelle Celeste.
recent college grads-turned-entrepreneurs make a 'CnXn' with student athletes
Brian Verne and Mike Eppich graduated from Oberlin and Rollins colleges,
respectively, in 2009, and found themselves without job prospects. The
two Shaker Heights High School alum decided to take matters into their
own hands: They founded CnXn (short for Connection), an apparel company that seeks to unite people through athletics.
This year, CnXn has produced athletic wear for Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights and Cleveland Central Catholic high schools, as well as youth football and cheerleading teams.
"The branding strategy involves using an area code logo, beginning with 216, to create a shared element for individuals who reside in the same city or geographic region," explains Verne, who was a starter on the Oberlin baseball team. (Eppich was a pitcher at Rollins.)
The idea comes from a trend of professional athletes to display their area code somewhere on their equipment or body. (Professional football player Reggie Bush can often be seen with the numbers 619 written into his eye black.)
Verne and Eppich have made giving back a major part of the CnXn business plan. "We take 15 percent of the profit from each sale and donate it back to student-athletes who reside in the area code that is on the apparel," Verne says. "The consumer will constantly be reminded that his purchase can have a positive impact on a young student athlete in his hometown."
Right now, Verne and Eppich are actively looking for additional seed money to produce all of the performance wear in the CnXn collection.
Source: Brian Verne
Writer: Diane DiPiero
This year, CnXn has produced athletic wear for Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights and Cleveland Central Catholic high schools, as well as youth football and cheerleading teams.
"The branding strategy involves using an area code logo, beginning with 216, to create a shared element for individuals who reside in the same city or geographic region," explains Verne, who was a starter on the Oberlin baseball team. (Eppich was a pitcher at Rollins.)
The idea comes from a trend of professional athletes to display their area code somewhere on their equipment or body. (Professional football player Reggie Bush can often be seen with the numbers 619 written into his eye black.)
Verne and Eppich have made giving back a major part of the CnXn business plan. "We take 15 percent of the profit from each sale and donate it back to student-athletes who reside in the area code that is on the apparel," Verne says. "The consumer will constantly be reminded that his purchase can have a positive impact on a young student athlete in his hometown."
Right now, Verne and Eppich are actively looking for additional seed money to produce all of the performance wear in the CnXn collection.
Source: Brian Verne
Writer: Diane DiPiero
intergenerational school again named 'ohio school of promise', grows employee and student base
The Intergenerational School
(TIS) is doing its best to keep its promise of offering academic
excellence in Cleveland. For the fourth year in a row, the private, free
K-8 school has been named an Ohio School of Promise by the Ohio
Department of Education for excellence in reading and math.
"Identifying schools in this way reinforces the fact that all children can learn when given the opportunity in a quality educational setting," says Brooke King, executive director of TIS.
TIS began in 1998 with a three-person staff in a two-room facility. These days, the school occupies a 20,000-square-foot building on the campus of Fairhill Partners, a nonprofit organization focused on successful aging, located in the Buckeye-Larchmere neighborhood of Cleveland. As of this fall, TIS had 29 employees and more than 200 students.
Each classroom at TIS is composed of 16 students of multiple ages. Mentors and community partners work with the students to provide a multigenerational environment.
In addition to the Ohio School of Promise designation, TIS has received a number of awards from organizations dedicated to the elderly. For example, TIS was the recipient of the National MindAlert Award from the American Society on Aging for its mental fitness programs for older adults.
Source: Brooke King
Writer: Diane DiPiero
"Identifying schools in this way reinforces the fact that all children can learn when given the opportunity in a quality educational setting," says Brooke King, executive director of TIS.
TIS began in 1998 with a three-person staff in a two-room facility. These days, the school occupies a 20,000-square-foot building on the campus of Fairhill Partners, a nonprofit organization focused on successful aging, located in the Buckeye-Larchmere neighborhood of Cleveland. As of this fall, TIS had 29 employees and more than 200 students.
Each classroom at TIS is composed of 16 students of multiple ages. Mentors and community partners work with the students to provide a multigenerational environment.
In addition to the Ohio School of Promise designation, TIS has received a number of awards from organizations dedicated to the elderly. For example, TIS was the recipient of the National MindAlert Award from the American Society on Aging for its mental fitness programs for older adults.
Source: Brooke King
Writer: Diane DiPiero
pittsburgh's pop city spreads the word about fresh water
In last week's issue of Pop City (yes, it's a sister IMG publication), writer Deb Smit reported on our dear publication.
"Fresh Water launches this month with the goods on Cleveland, news as it pertains to innovation, jobs, healthcare, lifestyle, design and arts and culture," she writes." The bubbly, blue homepage comes to life each Thursday with a fresh issue featuring vibrant photography and stories on the people shaking things up and the great places to visit."
Smit even encourages smitten Pittsburghers to subscribe. Thanks, Pop City!
Read all the news that's fit to pop here.
"Fresh Water launches this month with the goods on Cleveland, news as it pertains to innovation, jobs, healthcare, lifestyle, design and arts and culture," she writes." The bubbly, blue homepage comes to life each Thursday with a fresh issue featuring vibrant photography and stories on the people shaking things up and the great places to visit."
Smit even encourages smitten Pittsburghers to subscribe. Thanks, Pop City!
Read all the news that's fit to pop here.
saveur and the sterns gobble up northeast ohio
In the world of road food, Jane and Michael Stern are widely regarded as the First Couple. Through their decades of work for magazines like Gourmet, radio programs like The Splendid Table, and their own catalogue of food travelogues, the Sterns report on all that is delicious and important.
This month, reporting for Saveur magazine, the Sterns turn their tasteful gaze to Northeast Ohio.
In the article titled "The Best Places to Eat in Northeast Ohio," the hired tasters praise the region's "local traditions and ethnic enclaves," which, they lament, are fading away all too fast elsewhere in the country.
Special attention is bestowed upon Shaker Square's Balaton Restaurant, Parma's Little Polish Diner, and Cleveland's West Side Market, about which the Sterns say, "It's a feat to get out of Cleveland with any appetite at all if you spend time grazing around the city's sprawling, century-old West Side Market."
Read the entire mouthwatering article here.
This month, reporting for Saveur magazine, the Sterns turn their tasteful gaze to Northeast Ohio.
In the article titled "The Best Places to Eat in Northeast Ohio," the hired tasters praise the region's "local traditions and ethnic enclaves," which, they lament, are fading away all too fast elsewhere in the country.
Special attention is bestowed upon Shaker Square's Balaton Restaurant, Parma's Little Polish Diner, and Cleveland's West Side Market, about which the Sterns say, "It's a feat to get out of Cleveland with any appetite at all if you spend time grazing around the city's sprawling, century-old West Side Market."
Read the entire mouthwatering article here.
What's it like to be a Cleveland locavore? Spend a day with Dan Scharf, an attorney who smokes meat, cures ham, and raises chickens, and you'll find out. Hint: It involves a lot of shopping.