Ferndale : Innovation & Job News

Pleasant Ridge-based ePrize is adding clients and employees these days, and now it has added a competitor, acquiring Chicago-based mobile marketing agency Cellit.

ePrize is an agency specializing in interactive, online marketing campaigns. The acquisition of Cellit will give ePrize a foothold in the mobile marketing field, allowing the company to avoid building up its own presence while still engaging mobile customers.

"In the last 18 months we have moved the business into more social and mobile markets," says Matt Wise, CEO of ePrize.

ePrize has been on a growth streak over the last year. Its revenue has gone from $42 million in 2010 to $50 million last year. It expects to cross the $70 million mark in 2012. A year ago, ePrize employed 257 people. That number is at 363 today, about 275 of which work at the Pleasant Ridge headquarters. It expects to reach 420 employees by the end of this year.

"The drive of that growth is we have been shifting our company into higher growth areas," Wise says. He adds that ePrize hires "most of our folks from the local area" and expects to continue doing that in 2012.

Source: Matt Wise, CEO of ePrize
Writer: Jon Zemke

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

Michigan is cementing its reputation as the Great Beer State but Metro Detroit is expanding that reputation with growing companies that make vodka and meade. Ferndale-based B. Nektar Meadery and Valentine Vodka are expanding their distribution across the U.S. Arbor Brewing Company (from Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti) is spreading its brand to India and craft brewing continues to grow exponentially. Cheers!

Making The Jump: A Q&A with Brad Dahlhofer and Paul Zimmerman of B. Nektar Meadery

What Does It Mean To Be Business Friendly? A Conversation with Valentine Vodka's Rifino Valentine

Beer's Better Half

Strange Brew: A Q&A with Rene and Matt Greff

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

The numbers of entrepreneurs in Metro Detroit continue to climb, but the youngpreneurs are making some of the biggest strides. DeNovo Sciences, founded by a small group of 20 somethings, won the top $500,000 prize at the Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition. Are You a Human, started by recent University of Michigan graduates, rakes in seven figure seed capital round. Livio Radio, run by youngpreneur poster boy Jake Sigal, is attracting investment from Silicon Valley VCs. It all adds up to a promising future for Metro Detroit's entrepreneurial class.

Silicon Valley VC invests in Ferndale's Livio Radio

From Scratch: Denovo Sciences

Are You a Human moves to downtown

Garbage In, Energy Out: A Q&A with the Founders of ReGenerate

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

Ferndale-based ardentCause L3C has scored a microloan from the Detroit First Step Fund, financing that should allow the start-up to grow and add people.

The two-year-old firm creates software which helps nonprofits measure their results and maximize their impact, while illustrating their successes graphically. It has grown from its two co-founders, Kathleen Norton-Schock and Rosemary Bayer, to 12 employees and the occasional intern. It plans to hire another 2-4 people over the next year.

“Non-profits always need to tell their story about why they’re doing and what they’re doing,” Norton-Schock says. “But they also need to measure what they’re doing in this world of shrinking funding.”

The software from ardentCause L3C also helps non-profits cut down on time spent on administrative work. So far it has met with success at more than 60 nonprofit sites. Norton-Schock expects that number to grow exponentially in the next year.

“It’s a huge field,” Norton-Schock says. “The non-profit field has been growing and there is a great need crying out to be met.”

Source: Kathleen Norton-Schock, co-founder of ardentCause L3C
Writer: Jon Zemke

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

Brothers Zachary and Josh Ball have a vision for changing the mobile advertising game, and they're working to make that happen with their new mobile app, MOBIBO.

The brothers started Gravy Network in January, with the idea of launching MOBIBO later this year. The Pleasant Ridge-based company is made up of the Ball duo and draws upon the half-dozen employees of Zachary's other firm, web developer Mercury Studio.

MOBIBO is a free, downloadable smartphone app that serves as a mobile billboard that advertisers can rent for a small fee. Advertisers only pay for the ads consumers see. The consumer is paid 25 cents through PayPal for viewing each ad. The app alerts/ads come up when the consumer is near the advertiser's place of business, telling them to view a special discount or promotional offer at a store close-by.

"I'd like to see MOBIBO being used throughout the nation," says Zachary, president and co-owner of Gravy Network. "We think we can shift the advertising paradigm to this model."

The Ball brothers are working to establish the MOBIBO brand this year, with an aim of broad adoption within the next year. They expect to significantly add to Gravy Network's staff when that happens.

"We'd like to keep the team as lean as possible," Zachary says. "What does that mean? Hopefully, less than 25 people."

Source: Zachary Ball, president and co-owner of MOBIBO
Writer: Jon Zemke

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

Livio Radio can now put its name up with some of tech's heaviest hitters now that it has received an investment from Western Technology Investment, which has companies like Google and Facebook in its portfolio.

"To get that kind of recognition from the west coast does more for the state than us," says Jake Sigal, CEO of Livio Radio. "It validates Michigan and what's going on here."

The Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm made an undisclosed investment in the start-up that calls Ferndale home. Livio Radio plans to use that cash to support the development of the firm's automotive Internet radio products, such as the Livio Car Internet Radio app, its Bluetooth Internet Radio Car Kit and Livio Connect API.

The 3-year-old firm has been on a growth spike as of late. It has expanded its staff to 15 employees, two independent contractors and two interns. It has one job opening right now and plans to raise its number of interns to five. Livio Radio received an undisclosed amount of seed capital from Beringea, Michigan's largest venture capital firm.

Sigal started Livio Radio by making Internet radios so people could listen to websites like Pandora without draining their computer battery. It has steadily expanded its product lineup to include Internet radios and similar products for automobiles.

Source: Jake Sigal, CEO of Livio Radio
Writer: Jon Zemke

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

Level One Bank is making a pool of $100 million worth of loans available to local small businesses.

The Farmington Hills-based bank will consider working capital loans and owner-occupied real estate mortgages of up to $10 million. Real-estate investment loans are not included. It considers businesses with less than $50 million in revenues to be small businesses and eligible for this new pool of money.

"The lending will be focused on the businesses in our area," says Patrick Fehring, president & CEO of Level One Bank.

The three-year-old bank has been growing at an exponential rate in its first few years. It now has branches in Ferndale, Birmingham, Northville, Clinton Township, and two in Farmington Hills. It employs 86 people after adding 32 positions year-to-date.

"We're hiring fast and furious," Fehring says.

For information on the loans, please contact Jeff Taliscka at (248) 737-3154 or jtalicska@levelonebank.com.

Source: Patrick Fehring, president & CEO of Level One Bank
Writer: Jon Zemke

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

Livio Radio is growing its business by taking Internet radio to new places, namely your car.

The Ferndale-based company got its start when Jake Sigal turned his electronic tinkering into a hot-selling Internet radio in 2008. That attracted a venture capital investment and an expansion into the automotive realm.

"We've been focusing on car/Internet radio," says Nicole Yelland, brand manager for Livio Radio. "We'll be launching the Kit later this month, which allows you to manipulate the Livio car radio applications."

Livio Radio has leveraged the revenues and outside investment into a significant growth spurt. The business has recently hired two new engineers, bringing its staff to 15 em[;oyees and four interns. It plans to continue hiring as it expands.

Livio Radio has also been reaching out into activities indirectly tied to Internet radio. It recently host Social Media Day Detroit at Motor City Casino. It also has been able to place its products into the FCC's Open Technology Center for Employees in Washington, D.C.

"It allows them (federal FCC employees) to really interface with these products," Yelland says. "It's a museum for employees so they can tinker."

Source: Nicole Yelland, brand manager for Livio Radio
Writer: Jon Zemke

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

A change of venue has worked wonders for Loudbaby.com, a website and media development company based in Ferndale.

The 11-year-old company moved to the Paper Street Motors small business incubator a year ago. Since then it has watched its revenue spike by double digits thanks to an average of 2-3 new clients per month. That has allowed the firm to add two jobs, expanding its staff to four employees and two independent contractors.

"Things are really growing fast now," says Tommy Onyx, president of Loudbaby.com. "We have been steadily growing since the beginning. Since we moved to Paper Street Motors, things have gotten really, really busy."

The move has helped facilitate the company's diversification of its customer base beyond the music world. It has added clients in non-profits, large corporations and out-of-state businesses.

Loudbaby.com got its start when Boston-native Onyx moved to Detroit in the early 1990s to play with a band called Charm Farm and then as a part of Inner City, a techno-collective headed by electronic music legend Kevin Saunderson. Onyx started Loudbaby.com by developing websites, video and multimedia projects for bands. That launchpad for the company still serves as its base.

"About 70 percent of Loudbaby.com's client base is music industry people," Onyx says.

Source: Tommy Onyx, president of Loudbaby.com
Writer: Jon Zemke

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

Janelle Rogers worked in the marketing and artist development end of the music industry for years and watched a number of the negative stereotypes come to life, such as labels taking advantage of musicians. That prompted her to start her own company in 2002, Green Light Go Publicity, based around a nice-girl approach.

"I really wanted to be that company that was based on honesty, integrity and compassion," says Rogers, owner of Green Light Go Publicity. "I wanted to set up a safe haven for bands. Sort of a beacon of hope that shows you can trust people in this industry."

Green Light Go Publicity's integrity-based business model has borne fruit since then. The Ferndale-based firm (it calls Paper Street Motors home) has grown to five people, including four hires over the last year. Business has grown 25-50 percent each year, and Rogers expects that to continue. She plans to hire two more publicists by the end of the year.

The firm represents a number of national acts, including The Handsome Family and Detroit-based Almost Free. Rogers says she has purposely kept her client roster small so her business doesn't over extend itself and makes sure the staff loves the music of the bands it represents. The company has also recently launched an Internet-based marketing campaign based around a fresh website, social media, blogs, and integrating the client bands with all of these facets.

Source: Janelle Rogers, owner of Green Light Go Publicity
Writer: Jon Zemke

Metro Detroit's new economy can often be found in aged shells of the old economy. Case in point: Paper Street Motors.

Paper Street Motors began when Andy Didorosi stumbled upon an old, empty warehouse a year ago in Ferndale, just southeast of its downtown. The 20-something didn't see the tattered relic of an old automotive industry, but a place for small businesses to take root and grow, where they'd have the flexibility to get their feet under them financially without breaking the bank.

The Russell Industrial Center-style small business incubator at 1151 Jarvis filled up with a number of emerging businesses almost immediately. The 14 tenants in the 22,000-square-foot space include Green Light Go Music Publicity, a national band promoter. A year later, Didorosi is sprucing the place up both through its aesthetics and service offerings.

"Basically this place was a depressing battleship grey," Didorosi says. "Now we're completely redoing it."

Part of the Paper Street Motors (Paper Street is a reference to Fight Club) redesign is the installation of cubicles and a dynamic office environment. He is also looking at setting up additional locations in downtown Ferndale, Royal Oak, and Detroit, where members could utilize all of the spaces like a gym membership.

"So if you're a member of one then you're a member of all of them," he says.

Source: Andy Didorosi, president of Paper Street Motors
Writer: Jon Zemke