Shaker LaunchHouse, the pre-seed investment fund and business accelerator, is hosting a gala on Saturday, February 18 at the Cleveland Skating Club to raise awareness of the more than 200 entrepreneurial activities hosted by LaunchHouse each year.
 
“All of the stuff that we do, a lot of the costs are incurred by LaunchHouse,” explains founder and managing partner Todd Goldstein. “So we decided to put on the gala to raise awareness.” Events include Whiteboard Wednesdays, Job Hunters Coffee and Donuts, and regular seminars and lectures.
 
In addition to the programming LaunchHouse has created more than 20 paid college internships in the past two years.
 
Organizers hope to raise $50,000 at the gala to help meet their goal of $250,000 this year. “Any money raised from the gala is used to support entrepreneurial activities,” says Goldstein. “None of it will be used for salaries.”
 
The event is sponsored by the Shaker Heights Development Corporation and included dinner, dancing and silent auction. The band Shout will play, which Goldstein describes as “one of the hottest bands in Northeast Ohio.” Auction items include lighting from Kichler Lighting, a vault tour of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, dinner at Maxi’s in Little Italy, and a gift certificate to Paysage.
 
Tickets are $125 per person or $1,000 for a table. Contact LaunchHouse for an invitation.

 
Source: Todd Goldstein
Writer: Karin Connelly

Slavic Village, a neighborhood once considered to be the epicenter of the national foreclosure crisis, took another step this week towards remaking itself as a regional hub for urban recreation. A public meeting was held to kick off the design of a new skateboard park that will be located at Broadway and Union Avenue on the site of a former brownfield.

"It all started when a neighborhood resident approached us about creating a skate park," says Jacob Van Sickle, Active Living Coordinator for Slavic Village Development, the nonprofit community development group that serves the neighborhood. "From there, we worked to build awareness of skateboarding by creating the 'East Meets West' competition, offering lessons at Stella Walsh Recreation Center and engaging skateboarders in the neighborhood."

Van Sickle soon found that skateboarders were leaving the city in droves to pursue their sport elsewhere. The reason is that the City of Cleveland lacked a decent, permanent skatepark. "Many of them are artistic and entrepeneurial; they're part of the creative class," he says. "We saw an economic development opportunity to attract people from across the region to our neighborhood."

Slavic Village Development engaged the nonprofit Public Square Group to help create a new park. Both parties saw it as a way to redevelop the blighted Broadway Avenue corridor. "Skateboarding evolved out of an urban environment, and skaters have always reclaimed less developed public spaces," says Vince Frantz, President and Executive Director of the Public Square Group.

Van Sickle and Frantz expect the new park to create amenities for skaters and non-skaters alike, as benches and spectator amenities will be incorporated. The design has been funded by Neighborhood Progress Inc., and additional public meetings are scheduled to take place in the coming months. As the design is completed, project leaders will seek sources of funding to build the park.


Source: Jacob Van Sickle, Vince Frantz
Writer: Lee Chilcote

It's hard not to notice the attractive bike racks that have been popping up around town lately. Much more than simply utilitarian places to hitch your ride, these racks are at once urban sculptures and retail signage for local businesses. Many of them have been designed by Rust Belt Welding, two Cleveland entrepreneurs who are making a living doing what they love.

"We wanted to do creative, bicycle-related projects, and we knew there was a need for more bike racks because we'd ride around town and say, 'I wish there was one here,'" says Grant Smrekar, who created Rust Belt Welding with his friend Lou Erste four years ago in order to build bike frames, something that remains the core of their business. "We wanted there to be an artistic quality to these projects, and for the bike racks to represent the place they're at."

What started out as a small project grew quickly once the bike community and enthusiastic business owners grabbed ahold of it. "The local cycling group Crank-Set Rides offered to help us raise funds to create more bike racks, and that allowed us to make a few of them," says Erste. "Then places like Market Garden Brewery asked us to create custom racks in front of their businesses."

Their most recent creation, which was installed last month in front of Market Garden Brewery in Ohio City, spells out "BIKE" in red, metal letters. Rust Belt Welding has also installed bike racks in front of Phoenix Coffee, Joy Machines bike shop, Blazing Saddles bike shop and other local venues.

"We'll build pretty much anything, but the more that we can build stuff that's fun and creative, that's even better," says Smrekar, who adds that Rust Belt is planning to add more artistic bike racks around town in the near future.


Source: Lou Erste, Grant Smrekar
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Cleveland-based clothing designer iLTHY (I Love the Hype) has opened a new store in the Gordon Square Arts District in Detroit Shoreway. The shop, which is located in a former art gallery at West 54th and Detroit, sells the brand's popular hip hop and sports-themed T-shirts. It's a major move for the start-up apparel company, whose products were previously only available online and at select retailers.

Artist and founder Glen Infante's colorful designs have been worn by up-and-coming rappers such as Machine Gun Kelly, Wale and Mick Boogie. The name iLTHY comes from the notion that the company was built on "hype" and that such grassroots, street-level support helped it to grow rapidly in the first two years. Infante also earned some ink from the media in 2010 after raising funds for a downtown billboard urging LeBron James to re-sign with the Cavs.

iLTHY produced over 50 original T-shirt designs in the past year alone. The company hopes to expand even further in 2012, and to advance its overarching goal of putting Cleveland on the map in the creative apparel industry.


Source: iLTHY
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Rene Polin, president and founder of Balance Product Development in Chagrin Falls, likes to find solutions to problems. The product design house was formed in 2004 and has developed products for a number of other companies. But Polin wanted to create something out of his own ideas.
 
That idea came when Polin watched his seven-year-old daughter playing with his iPad. “Rene would come home and hand over this expensive piece of equipment to his daughter,” recalls Polin's partner Anthony DeMore, Balance vice president of strategy and business development. That’s when the idea hit to make a foam case to protect the iPad from accidental drops and other damage.
 
After seeing his iPad slide off the kitchen table one too many times, Polin and DeMore developed the Fomation iPad2 case -- a soft but durable foam protective case. The foam material, which is often used in commercial applications like airplane seats and roller coasters, protects the iPad from the bumps, bruises, shakes and rattles of everyday life.
 
“We wanted to create an elegant, beautiful, but very protective foam case,” says Polin. “When we started researching, we found that there were foam cases, but they were made overseas and typically were made with unsafe chemicals and processes.” The Fomation is made out of foam manufactured safely by a Lorain County manufacturer.
 
Balance put the Fomation idea on Kickstarter.com to secure funding for the product, and the company is in talks to secure a partnership with a local college that provides iPads to all first-year students. Balance plans to launch Fomation even if they don’t meet their goal on Kickstarter.

 
Source: Rene Polin and Anthony DeMore
Writer: Karin Connelly

It’s not exactly a news flash that tattoos have become decidedly more mainstream. Long the province of drug-addled rock stars, ex-cons and bikers, tats now can be spotted on even the most civilized among us. And as the tattoo market continues to heat up, more talented artists are finding work in Cleveland's new tattoo studios.

Rosetta, an interactive marketing firm, boasts 1,500 team members spread across nine offices in places like New York, Los Angeles and Toronto, among others. But thanks to 450 staffers locally, Cleveland is now Rosetta's largest. That the firm has chosen 2012 to set-up shop in a downtown Cleveland landmark is pure poetry.

ReImagining a More Sustainable Cleveland, a creative land reuse initiative to transform empty city lots into gardens, orchards and farms, has received the American Planning Association's National Planning Excellence Award for Innovation in Sustaining Places.

The program, which is led jointly by Neighborhood Progress (NPI), the City of Cleveland, Kent State University's Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative and LAND Studio, was first launched in 2010. In its first round, the program funded 56 vacant lot reuse projects, including 13 community gardens, 10 market gardens, six pocket parks and three vineyards.

Now in its second round, ReImagining Cleveland will spend $1 million in 2011-2012 to turn city-owned vacant lots into community green spaces and expanded side yards for residents. To date, nearly 60 homeowners have applied for side yard expansions and 16 green space projects are being implemented.

"ReImagining is an incredibly significant and collaborative effort that helps transform neighborhoods into safer and more stable communities," said Joel Ratner, President and CEO of Neighborhood Progress. "We are so proud that the program has received this honor from the American Planning Association."


Source: Neighborhood Progress
Writer: Lee Chilcote

What's the cumulative impact of Cleveland's 200-plus community gardens, 20-plus farmers markets and 60-odd acres of urban land that have been tilled and planted for a future harvest?

That's an as yet unanswered question, says the City of Cleveland's new Sustainability Chief, but one she hopes to glean serious answers to in the coming year. Billed "The Year of Local Food" by Sustainable Cleveland 2019, a grassroots, city-led movement to employ sustainability as an engine to grow the regional economy, 2012 is going to be a momentous year.

"Local food is exciting because it combines entrepreneurship and environmental benefits with making connections in the local community," says Jenita McGowan, who last week succeeded Andrew Watterson as the city's Sustainability Chief. "We're really hoping to better connect Cleveland residents with local food, since many people still don't know what is available and how to access it."

Other plans for 2012 include increasing the number of urban farmers in the city, tying into the West Side Market's centennial celebrations this fall, and garnering commitments from large institutions to buy more food locally.

"The Year of Local Food allows all local groups to co-market their work," says McGowan. "That helps them to tie into a larger movement."

Sustainable Cleveland 2019 will host a kick-off event for the Year of Local Food this Friday, Jan. 20th from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Cleveland City Hall at 601 Lakeside.


Source: Jenita McGowan
Writer: Lee Chilcote

From cable TV shows to busy downtown streets, food trucks are all the rage these days. Yet short of firing up a Winnebago or launching a fleet of food trucks, owners' growth plans are limited by size. "It's such a small space, everything has to be done more frequently," complains Jae Stulock of Umami Moto, which dishes out Asian fusion cuisine to hungry lunch crowds and late night revelers everywhere.

Stulock's solution? First, he found an unused kitchen in the Agora Theatre that could be used for all-important prep work. Once that was secured, he decided to launch a restaurant to complement his fast-moving food truck business.

"It was the right place, the right time, and the right people," says Stulock of his decision. "Opening a restaurant had always been part of the plan, and when the Agora space became available, that moved the plan up a couple of years."

Last month, Agora Theatre owner Hank LoConti donated the complex to the nonprofit MidTown Cleveland Inc. and developer Fred Geis. The partners plan to complete a multimillion dollar makeover of the property that includes preserving the concert hall. MidTown Cleveland officials envision the Agora as the centerpiece of a mixed-use district that serves the growing Health-Tech Corridor. Leaders here are completing a study of the E. 55th and Euclid intersection and hope to spur additional office, retail and apartment development in the area.

Stulock says his restaurant should help. "We're planning to call it the Hipp because we want to draw on nostalgia for the Hippodrome in Cleveland," he says. "It will feature the same Asian-themed food as our truck, but will also introduce other international flavors paired with contemporary American cuisine."

The Hipp, which is slated to open in early February, will initially be open for lunch and happy hour; dinner will be added down the road. At least five more food trucks are set to hit Cleveland streets this spring, and Stulock hopes the synergy between Umami Moto and the Hipp will also help him to stand out from a crowded field.


Source: Jae Stulock
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Two local student-led teams, NanoHarv Technologies and Amplified Wind solutions, have made it to the semifinals of the Clean Energy Trust’s Clean Energy Challenge.
 
NanoHarv Technologies, a group of graduate students in CWRU’s Science & Technology Entrepreneurship Program (STEP), investigates new techniques that could potentially deliver cost efficient methods for the production of algae biofuels and other valuable by-products.
 
Amplified Wind Solutions is a group of CSU students and professors who have developed a wind speed amplification system that, when installed on a cylindrical structure such as a silo or water tower, can provide three times the electricity production of a typical wind turbine in low or marginal wind areas.
 
“The quality of the applications was fantastic,” says Amy Francetic, executive director of the Clean Energy Trust. “We had over 100 applications.” Only 16 teams were chosen to move on to the finals and present their business plans in Chicago on February 29 and March 1.
 
“This is a great opportunity for us to gain insight into the challenges of business plan development and new venture creation,” says Justin Isaacs, co-founder of NanoHarv. The winners in Chicago will go on to the national competition in Washington, DC, this summer to compete for $150,000.

While Niki Zmij, CEO of Amplified Wind Solutions, would like the prize money to help bring her company to commercialization, she is also happy in the lessons she’s learning.
 
“Whether we win or not this competition has been an incredible lesson in entrepreneurship,” says Zmij. “I’m a firm believer that we all learn best by doing -- and this process has allowed me to gain a very clear picture of what it takes to develop a new technology, start up a company, and put forth the dedication and hard work that it takes to make it successful.”

 
Source: Amy Francetic, Justin Isaacs, Niki Zmij
Writer: Karin Connelly

SparkBase, a leading loyalty program and gift card processor, launched a new way for merchants to reach their customers through smart phones. Paycloud allows customers to sign up for loyalty programs on their phones, eliminating the need for plastic cards and key tags to take advantage of special offers.
 
“One of the things we heard repeatedly is the cost of cards -- it’s expensive -- and the time it takes to sign up for a loyalty card,” explains Doug Hardman, SparkBase CEO. “With Paycloud you only need five things: Zip code, email address, first and last name. Then you tap in the merchant’s name and go from there.”
 
Paycloud is designed to improve customer retention and easily attract new customers. “It’s a really great way for merchants to build up customers,” says Hardman. “Merchants can learn more about customers but also give customer discounts.”
 
SparkBase already launched Paycloud in Chicago with more than 100 businesses reaching thousands of customers. This week, Paycloud launched in Cleveland with high expectations. “We have 50 to 100 merchants in Cleveland and would like to have 200 by the time we go to Columbus in three weeks,” says Hardman.
 
The launch of Paycloud only adds to SpakBase’s rapid growth. “We’re going to be hiring like gangbusters in the next six weeks,” says Hardman. SparkBase currently has 36 employees and is interviewing for 30 to 50 open sales reps positions.

 
Source: Doug Hardman
Writer: Karin Connelly

Ian Wong, a medical student at CWRU, found through his studies that there was a real need for access to fresh, quality food in Cleveland’s high-density areas. His theory: If people have fresh produce, nutrition is second nature. So he and co-founder Max Wilberding started Freshbag, a grocery delivery service that debuted in 2010.
 
“The company was essentially started to improve wellness in Cleveland through nutrition,” Wong says. “Our point is if we make it so easy, you have no excuse not to do it. You can live healthier.”
 
The emphasis is on fresh. The food comes from distributors and Wong keeps a close eye on quality. “I never had fresh rye bread or fresh pasta before Freshbag,” he says. “Now I can’t go back.”
 
Customers order their food -- mostly a selection of fruits and vegetables -- through the Freshbag website. They can then pick up their groceries at one of Freshbag’s six pickup locations, primarily the front desks of apartment complexes, businesses or university campuses.
 
Wong is currently asking customers for input on where they should add additional pick-up locations. “All a company has to do is okay us to make deliveries to the front desk,” says Wong.
 
The Freshbag business model is based on an automated ordering system where customers can order exactly what they want with just-in-time ordering. Orders arrive at the pick-up location the next day after an order is placed.
 
Freshbag also is focusing on corporate wellness programs, working with nutritionists and chefs to teach their customers how to eat healthy and cook tasty food.
 
Wong and his partners have dreams to expand. “Hiring will be based on how rapidly we grow,” he says.

 
Source: Ian Wong
Writer: Karin Connelly

Are you militant about your love for Cleveland? A recently launched civic initiative entitled Cleveland Arsenal aims to reward the grassroots boosterism you've been doing -- while also spreading some of that love to far-flung corners of the region and beyond.

Cleveland Arsenal is a competition that will reward five hardcore Cleveland enthusiasts with $1,000 in cold, hard cash. In exchange, they'll be asked to use their connections and creativity to extol the city's virtues far and wide.

"We want people who are good at sharing their love of Cleveland to be rewarded for their efforts," says Brian Friedman, Executive Director of Northeast Shores Development Corporation, a nonprofit that serves North Collinwood.

Cleveland Arsenal is being launched as a part of the Northeast Shores Artists in Residence program, an effort to redevelop the North Collinwood neighborhood and Waterloo Arts District using artist-based development practices. In short, the focused initiative aims to attract more artists to live in North Collinwood, and to help those that are there to be successful and engage with the community.

Friedman says it's not a requirement that Cleveland Arsenal winners blog about North Collinwood, but adds, "We think what we're doing is so cool that they'll want to." Winners will meet with other passionate Clevelanders, develop a plan for sharing Cleveland's story locally and beyond, hear from Cleveland's young leaders and hone their skills at communicating about their beloved city.

Friedman says such grassroots marketing efforts, far from being scattershot, produce results. "We're already getting more inquiries from people outside of Northeast Ohio who are interested in what we're doing to support artists."

Got a sonnet to pen or Youtube video to stream for your Rust Belt paramore? Applications to Cleveland Arsenal are due by 5 p.m., Tuesday, January 31st.


Source: Brian Friedman
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Bad Girl Ventures, a micro-finance organization focused on educating and financing women-owned startup companies, graduated its first Cleveland class on January 3 and announced the winner of a $25,000 low interest loan. Out of 70 applicants, 10 start-up companies  participated in an eight-week program to learn the ins and outs of successfully running a business.
 
Kimberly McCune Gibson and Ann Marie Larrance of Grass Roots LLC, the parent company for ReHive Ale, The 1815 House, and Hungry Bee Catering won the grand prize. Three other prizes were awarded. The Business of Good foundation awarded a $1,000 grant to Michael's Mobile Oil, and the City of Cleveland gave two $1,000 grants to The Brunch Project and Tonja's Tranquility Inn.
 
Of Gibson and Larrance, Candace Klein, Bad Girl Ventures founder and CEO says, “These women have the biggest fire in the belly that I’ve seen. It was a very close vote, but I haven’t seen two people who work harder ever.”
 
About 150 people came to the graduation event, which was held at Rosetta in Cleveland. Food Network filmed the event because Gibson and Larrance are also participating in a reality show for the network. “It was great coverage,” Klein says.
 
Bad Girl Ventures has educated more than 250 business owners in Cleveland and Cincinnati and funded 24 companies with $650,000. Klein is now accepting applications for spring classes in Cleveland.

 
Source: Candace Klein
Writer: Karin Connelly

OnShift, the staffing software developer for the healthcare industry, recently received an overall performance score of 92.6 in a survey conducted by KLAS, a research firm the monitors healthcare vendors. The numbers confirm OnShift’s dedication to customer service and providing a quality product.
 
“We’re very proud to be ranked so highly by our customers,” says Mark Woodka, OnShift CEO. “We put a lot of energy into being responsive to our customers.”
 
OnShift turned over its entire customer list to KLAS. The company then randomly called customers. The research measures OnShift’s performance in a variety of criteria including functionality and upgrades, implementation and training, service and support, and contracting.

“Your customers will always say good things to you, but when they’re telling a third party you know they mean it,” says Woodka.
 
The report will help OnShift in its hiring, as the company is still on track to grow their 36 person staff to 55 or 60 by year's end. They currently have six open positions in everything from sales to customer service to development.
 
“The report helps us from a recruitment standpoint,” says Woodka. “People who want to provide good customer service will want to work for us.”

 
Source: Mark Woodka
Writer: Karin Connelly

Any two-bit picker can wrangle up some cast-offs, display them in a storefront, and call the place an "antiques shop." Walk into Reincarnation Vintage Design, however, and you'll be reaching for your wallet faster than an auctioneer yells, "Sold!" Owners Ron and Cyndy Nicolson don't just clean and sell other people's unwanted items; they grant them a whole new life. "Reincarnation" isn't just a name, you see -- it's a business plan.

PlayhouseSquare's latest string of successes may be a tough act to follow, but a Cleveland real estate developer is willing to try. A newly-consummated deal to convert a prominent office building into 102 apartments will fuel the growth of this arts-rich neighborhood, which in recent years has also welcomed two major theater renovations and new restaurants.

K&D Group, the largest privately-held owner of apartments in Northeast Ohio, has inked a deal with the nonprofit PlayhouseSquare to buy the Hanna Building Annex, which is located at the corner of Prospect Avenue and E. 14th Street. The developer plans to convert it into 1- and 2-bedroom, 600 to 1,200-square-foot apartments that will lease from $725 to $1,500 per month.

PlayhouseSquare plans to relocate existing tenants into the Hanna Building next door. The deal includes leasing back ground-level retail space to PlayhouseSquare. The nonprofit development corporation hopes to fill the space with much-needed amenities such as a dry cleaner, wine shop, small market or pharmacy -- in short, the kinds of services that serve a residential neighborhood.

Art Falco, CEO of PlayhouseSquare, says the project is critical to the future of the neighborhood. “This will allow us to continue to brand PlayhouseSquare as not only an entertainment area but also a residential neighborhood," he says.


Source: Art Falco
Writer: Lee Chilcote