Innovation & Job News

AQABA Technologies is enjoying double-digit growth because of its growing relationship with one of the biggest names in tech, Google.

The Sterling Heights-based firm began working with the Google Engage Agency Program last year, which required months of training and flying back and forth between Detroit and Silicon Valley.

"We have been landing large contracts and more intricate work because of our relationship with Google," says Ramsey Sweis, president of AQABA Technologies.

The 9-year-old tech firm's revenue has been on a steady trajectory since the economic downturn. It went from clocking single-digit revenue gains in 2010 to 40-percent growth in 2011 and 62-percent growth last year. The firm has watched its client list expand to more than 200, which includes not only work from new clients but expanding existing work with old customers.

"The key to our longevity is the loyalty of our customers," says Ramsey Sweis, president of AQABA Technologies.

That allowed the company to hire three people, expanding its staff to nine employees and two interns. It is currently looking for an account executive and expects to make one more hire later this summer.

Source: Ramsey Sweis, president of AQABA Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Patti Kay is turning nostalgia into moolah with her art-based business, Detroit Scroll.

The Grosse Pointe-based company got its start when Kay was traveling and saw prints of bus stops stacked on one another. It inspired her to start Detroit Scroll and create the Detroit version of that.

"They were really cool but I didn't want one from another city," Kay says. "I wanted one from Detroit."

Those scrolls show the streets from Detroit-based bus routes in the 20th Century. Street names only Detroiters would recognize, like Fenkell, Fort and Fullerton, are listed in black and white and framed as wall art.

"The resonate with everybody because of Detroit pride," Kay says. "Everybody recognizes their street or their bus route."

The 2-year-old business became Kay's full-time job in December. She just hired an administrative assistant and steadily gives work to an independent contractor. Detroit Scroll's business has steadily grown to the point that it is now offering t-shirts, glassware, stationary and apparel.

"I have been told if you do something you love you will never work another day in your life," Kay says. "That's so true for me."

Source: Patti Kay, owner of Detroit Scroll
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Mary Miodowski knows the difficulties of juggling motherhood and a job at the same time. So much so that she decided to create a business out of it, Dashing Elements.

The Fraser resident works in accounts payable and has two young daughters. Between her normal 9-5 and doing everything she can to help her kids succeed, she came to realize "we're never home. We're always busy."

Dashing Elements helps make that juggling easier by providing an Internet platform to crowd source creative ways to save time, money and stress. It tries to serve as both a resource for parents looking to maximize their time and a digital gathering place to share ideas.

Miodowski launched this site a little more than a year ago but initially struggled to gain an audience. She enlisted the help of the Blackstone LaunchPad entrepreneurial program at Walsh College in Troy, which helped her boost her website traffic and social media following through better search engine optimization.

"It has been great," Miodowski says. "It has been really helpful to me."

Miodowski is currently working the equivalent of two full-time positions now between her day job and running Dashing Elements. She would like to turn her side business into her main focus and thinks it possible now because of the help Blackstone LaunchPad provided.

"It would be nice to have a job where it didn't matter where I was but could still work," Miodowski says.

Source: Mary Miodowski, founder of Dashing Elements
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Six is a popular number at Clayton & McKervey this year. The Southfield-based accounting and business advisory firm has hired six people over the last year, bringing its staff to 60 employees and three interns. It is also looking to hire another six people right now.

"We expect to continue to grow," says Kevin McKervey, president of Clayton & McKervey. "We see a lot of activity that our clients are partnering in."

The 60-year-old firm has watched its workload increase over the last year from new business in a variety of sectors of the economy. However, the rise of the automotive industry has helped drive that growth more than any other industry.

Clayton & McKervey's accounting business also has an international flair, helping its clients deal with conforming to the intricacies of the global marketplace. It recently brought on Alex Martin as a principal in charge of transfer pricing. Martin will focus on providing highly specialized accounting, auditing, and tax expertise to for clients who aim to expand internationally.

In fact, many of Clayton & McKervey's new hires have backgrounds in international business or speak multiple languages. The firm is currently looking for accounting professionals with experience in auditing, U.S. tax, and international tax. Speaking a second language also is highly desired.

"It's not a prerequisite but it's a bonus," McKervey says.

Source: Kevin McKervey, president of Clayton & McKervey
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Munetrix is starting to gain traction in its market. The 3-year-old tech firm has tripled its sales over the last year and is on track to double its revenue again this year.

The Auburn Hills-based start-up is developing a software platform that focuses on making local municipalities (think school districts and cities) more transparent and accessible. The platform incorporates social media, web-based financial tools and database management. The idea is to enable local government to network more effectively and build long-range fiscal roadmaps in a fraction of the time legacy systems require.

"It's not just a business intelligence tool that a client installs," says Bob Kittle, president of Munetrix. "It's an open forum that is available to the world."

Kittle adds that the software is "built from a citizen's perspective," making it more accessible to everyday people. The price for each customer is set by its population base, so smaller municipalities like Ferndale (a customer) don't pay as much as Wayne County (also a customer). Munetrix now has approximately 750 jurisdictions at low-level subscriptions and more than 140 at premium subscriptions.

"It works out well for everybody," Kittle says.

Munetrix, which is a client of the Sterling Heights-based Macomb-OU INCubator, currently employs a team of nine staffers and an intern. It recently hired a marketing coordinator and is looking to hire an office manager.

Source: Bob Kittle, president of Munetrix
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

First came Great Wall Custom Coverings. Next came the Detroit Wallpaper Co, which has accelerated the growth of the Ferndale-based company.

Josh Young and Andi Kubacki started Great Wall Custom Coverings nearly a decade ago, providing custom wall paper projects that were as eclectic as their imaginations and those of their customers. They began scaling that sort of creativity last fall with the Detroit Wallpaper Co, which sells the pair's popular avant-garde wallpaper designs utilizing non-toxic and environmentally friendly supplies.

Some of those designs include patterns they are labeling as "Botanicals" (think flowers and plant patterns), "Wallgazer" (self-described as a "marriage between high concept and functional design") and "Wander Walls" (images that bring far-away locales to mind). All 63 different designs are colorful, contemporary and probably like nothing you have seen on a wall before.

"It's really a commentary on our society," Young says. "What we're really interested in is technology, music. We have a lot of pop-culture references in our designs."

The two companies employ eight people between them after hiring one person over the last year. The rising demand for Detroit Wallpaper Co's products are driving the growth in the company right now.

"It's quickly growing," Young says. "It's beginning to eclipse Great Wall already."

Source: Josh Young, co-owner of Detroit Wallpaper Co
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

LevelSet Solutions has watched its revenue jump 30 percent over the last year, allowing the Internet marketing firm to expand its staff to 14 people and a few interns.

The 4-year-old firm based in Royal Oak has hired two people (a technical business analyst and a project manager) in recent weeks. The company has hired four people over the last year and has an opening for a software engineer right now.

LevelSet Solutions has seen its workload with existing clients grow as it has added more work from new clients. One of its biggest recent projects has been the reworking of Crittenton Hospital's website.

"We rebuilt the whole website," says Steve Swanson, president of LevelSet Solutions. "We slimmed it down from 500 pages to 250-300 pages and put it in a traditional content management system."

LevelSet Solutions won an "Outstanding Website" award for that project from the Interactive Advertising Competition. Those awards are produced by the Web Marketing Association to "honor excellence in online advertising as well as recognize the individuals and organizations responsible."

Source: Steve Swanson, president of LevelSet Solutions
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Cool is not one of the words that comes to mind when people think about the mini-scooters that seniors and people with disabilities use to get around. A Rochester Hills-based start-up thinks it has come up with the cool version of that scooter.

Berylline and its team of about a half-dozen people have created a new vehicle that looks like a scooter but with three wheels. Think of a modern scooter but with two wheels in the front with a wide wheel base and tires that don't lack for tread.

"The concept is proven," says Steve Sandstedt, a business advisor for Berylline. "It's really a cool product that provides more mobility for seniors."

The 1-year-old company has created a concept vehicle and is looking to start production by the end of this year. It is also looking to raise a seed capital round worth between $500,000 and $1 million this year to move the company forward. It recently received five figures' worth of financing from the Michigan Microloan Fund to help push its development forward and get it ready for an urban environment.

"This product provides an opportunity to have an alternative urban form of transportation," Sandstedt says.

Source: Steve Sandstedt, a business advisor for Berylline
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Daniel Reilly isn't a stranger to running a business that implements Enterprise Resource Planning platforms, commonly known as ERP software.

The Metro Detroit serial entrepreneur sold his old ERP software company, Reilly & Associates, a few years ago and is making another foray into the business with his new company, AppliedProgress. This time, he is focusing more on branding to build his company.

The Troy-based company works with automotive suppliers and manufacturers to implement new ERP software systems. Reilly sees the key to building a successful business as not only doing a good job executing implementation of its product but making sure the customer has a comprehensive understanding of what's going on.

"There is a lot of education," Reilly says. "Companies only do this once every couple of decades. They don't know where to go to."

AppliedProgress currently employs three people. That small team has been focusing on building out its core product and creating a marketing plan for it. Reilly expects to launch that marketing plan later this year.

Source: Daniel Reilly, CEO of Applied Progress
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Michigan First Credit Union is looking for a few good employees, 14 right now to be exact.

The Lathrup Village-based financial institution is looking for everything from tellers to human resources professionals to add to its staff of 225 people. However, technology pros are in especially high demand for the credit union. About a third of its new positions have some sort of tech angle, such as software developer or IT professional.

The 87-year-old credit union tries quite hard not to act its nearly century-old age, employing the latest and greatest technology into its systems. A large part of its business plan is to stay ahead of tech trends to attract younger clientele who value the ease and access to their finances that such technology can provide.

"We're in the process of testing mobile debit cards," says Linda Douglas, vice president of marketing for Michigan First Credit Union. "We are always looking to stay ahead of the curve in our mobile and online banking options."

Michigan First Credit Union has 90,000 members and $640 million in assets. It adds more than 1,000 new members each month. It has also hired 70 people so far this year.

Source: Linda Douglas, vice president of marketing for Michigan First Credit Union
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Online fantasy sports (think fantasy baseball or football leagues) is a relatively new yet proven industry in the few years it has been around. A downtown Mt. Clemens-based start-up hopes to take that industry to the next level by focusing on improving the user experience.

StatClash is developing an online gaming system that provides new ways for millions of fantasy sports fans to play. For instance, they can elect to join on a daily basis mid-season instead of making a season-long commitment that includes tens of hours of work in drafts, trades, etc.

"The industry is huge but there are only a handful of players that are doing the fantasy games well," says Dan Wimpari, marketing director for StatClash. "We want to wed ourselves into them by distinguishing ourselves through user interface and a better user experience."

The daily fantasy sports site was launched a year ago by Anoop Patel and John Pelak. It now employs a team of eight people and offers fantasy league options from traditional favorites like Major League Baseball and the National Football League. It also offers some new options, such as U.S. Major League Soccer and the English Premier League.

"We see room to bring other in other sports, like NASCAR and tennis," Patel says. "We want to bring in more sports pretty soon."

Source: Anoop Patel and John Pelak, co-founders of StatClash, and Dan Wimpari, marketing director for StatClash
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

When local leaders talk about retaining talent, they probably have someone like Adam Leeb in mind.

The Metro Detroit native graduated from MIT with a degree in mechanical engineering and went to work for a private equity firm in New York City in the late 2000s. After watching a number of his colleagues lose their jobs in the economic downturn and a few other not-so-flattering things about the finance industry, he decided he wanted to move back home.

"I knew it wasn't something I wanted to make my career," Leeb says.

That was last year, roughly the same time he started working on his own company, SunDaily. The Royal Oak-based start-up is working to create a premium brand of vitamins and supplements. It's a hole in what Leeb sees as a crowded market.

"I saw a lot of different formulas and a lot of confusion on the consumers' end," Leeb says.

SunDaily and its team of four people began its soft Beta launch earlier this month and plans to go public with it this week. The new brand of vitamins offers traditional staples like a multi-vitamin, Vitamin D and a fish oil supplement. As many as a dozen different products are expected to be launched this year. Leeb plans to create some market separation with high-quality products that are easy to understand and come in aesthetically pleasing packaging.

Source: Adam Leeb, founder of SunDaily
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Expetec Technology Services' Troy office has experienced some double-digit growth in both its revenue and staff over the last year.

The IT company has nearly doubled its staff with three new hires in the last 12 months. Those new jobs were in the IT and technical fields. It is now looking to add two sales professionals to its staff of eight employees and one intern to keep up with its revenue growth. The firm experienced 20-percent growth last year and is on track for another double-digit gain in 2013.

"A lot of it has been organic, word-of-mouth advertising, taking care of clients growth," says Michael St. John, vice president of marketing & sales for Expetec Technology Services. "Our clients have also grown so we were able to grow and hire."

St. John explains it takes a "holistic approach" to handling its clients' IT needs. For instance, it tries to stop IT breakdowns before they happen instead of just responding to them. The firm also works with its customers to keep its technology as up to date as feasible. That approach has allowed it to ride the wave of improved business from automotive suppliers and other industries in recent months.

"We're looking at 40-percent growth this year as well," St. John says.

Source: Michael St. John, vice president of marketing & sales for Expetec Technology Services
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

When Swaminathan Ramesh sees people throwing away plastic he sees waste of a different kind. Wasted energy and resources. It's a big reason he started EcoFuel Technologies last year.

"I wanted to do something with waste plastics because I see them everywhere," Ramesh says. "And I have a background in the polymer chemistry."

The Troy-based start-up is working on technology that turns garbage plastic into diesel fuel. It currently has a prototype that can handle 100 pounds of plastic, turning every 10 pounds of plastic into one gallon of diesel fuel. Ramesh claims that his company's technology produces three times more energy than its competitors.

"We are unique because we can actually make money," Ramesh says.

EcoFuel Technologies and its team of five people recently landed five figures' worth of financing from the Michigan Microloan Fund Program to help push forward the development of its prototype. The company hopes to land $500,000 in seed capital this year to build a machine that can handle 2,000 pounds of plastic a day and then $1.5 million in a second round of seed capital to build a machine that handles 10,000 pounds of plastic each day.

"They (investors) want to see us perform the same way at a larger scale," Ramesh says.

Source: Swaminathan Ramesh, founder & president of EcoFuel Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Three Metro Detroit firms have landed a couple of pieces in the latest round of financing disbursed by the Michigan Microloan Fund Program.

Ann Arbor SPARK manages the Michigan Microloan Fund Program, which makes loans in the low five figures (organizers often decline to specify the size of each loan) to young start-ups looking for seed capital that are based in Michigan. That money is often used for things like prototype development or marketing. Eligible firms are often so new they are unlikely candidates for bank loans or angel investment or even steady revenues.

"These funds are reserved for pre-seed organizations," says Joe Licavoli, manager of capital programs for Ann Arbor SPARK.

The Michigan Microloan Fund Program recently made nine microloans worth $397,000. Most of those loans went to Ann Arbor-based firms because the program also has sub categories that are funded by the city of Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County to invest in local firms in their municipalities. The three Metro Detroit start-ups to receive microloans include:

- Berylline, a Rochester Hills-based company, that is commercializing a specialized, three-wheeled hybrid scooter

- ENT Biotech Solutions, based in Grosse Pointe, is developing a handheld device used to simultaneously clean cut, cauterize and remove larger adenoid tissue portions

- EcoFuel Technologies, of Troy, which is working on technology that turns garbage plastic into diesel fuel

"We'll need a lot more money but (the microloan) did give us some help," says Swaminathan Ramesh, founder & president of EcoFuel Technologies.

Source: Joe Licavoli, manager of capital programs for Ann Arbor SPARK and Swaminathan Ramesh, founder & president of EcoFuel Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.