Entrepreneurship : In The News

One of entrepreneurs' most difficult but oft-taken for granted duties is actually collecting money for the work they've performed, and Paul Downs of Paul Downs Cabinetmakers in Bridgeport, Montgomery County writes about his challenges for the New York Times.

Let's take a moment to consider the U.S. Postal Service, our best example of 19th century technology in all of its glory. Now, I understand it's trying to catch up, that it has big problems, and that it's stuck with a legacy operating model. But I don't care. (On) Friday, Oct. 15, I received a check that was postmarked Oct. 8, mailed from Houston to Philadelphia--seven days from Houston to Philadelphia! Are we still using mules? I've found that mail coming from Chicago is the worst; it can take 10 days or more.

I now use United Parcel Service for anything of any importance. UPS collects up to 6:45 p.m., its Web site tells me exactly how long it will take for the package to arrive, and the information is accurate. Many of the samples we send can go via U.P.S. ground, and they still get there overnight.

Original source: New York Times
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Philadelphia designer and printmaker Jack Zylkin, a regular in the Hive76 community of makers and crafters, has created and made available a USB Typewriter that Geek With Laptop just loves.

The USB Typewriter describes itself as a "groundbreaking innovation in the field of obsolescence", and frankly, I couldn't have put it better myself. To be serious for a minute though, some people do still prefer the touch and feel of a manual typewriter over a computer keyboard, and many people have old models that they are still very attached to.

In true open source tradition, Jack Zylkin, the man behind this project, even provides instructions to people who want to build their own USB Typewriter from scratch. So that makes a total of three different options available; making one from scratch yourself, buying a DIY kit to install yourself, and buying a completed typewriter from the website. Oh, I almost forgot, you can also send in your existing typewriter for Jack to convert.

The USBTypewriter is based on Arduino, and works with three main components. There is a sensor board made from metal contacts, a USB interface board with a Atemega Arduino chip, and Reed switches to detect any keys that don't strike the crossbar. Amazingly, the entire project only needs 11 wires to operate, nine of which lie underneath the chassis.

Original source: Geek With Laptop
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Wharton School marketing professor David Reibstein lends his expertise in helping recognize all-star students and how they become wildly successful in this report by Forbes.

"There are always students that are very intriguing that you get engaged with and you want to follow them," said Reibstein. "I'm always willing to meet with people and give advice, but I try to resist getting too involved aside from giving advice. A lot of the ideas are OK and not beyond that, but every now and then you hear a really good idea coming from students who need some help."

Professors often get unique insight into how budding entrepreneurs work and strategize and sometimes they'll also get a preliminary glimpse of an idea with great potential. Many business schools have entrepreneurial programs geared to those students, but sometimes a student who makes a mark might get personal attention from the professor outside of school.

Students who are visionaries, are passionate about their business idea and have a good pulse in the marketplace have a good chance to succeed, says Reibstein.

Original source: Forbes
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It's a little bit cool, a little bit weird, but the varied polling places of Greater Philadelphia inspired photographer Ryan Donnell to create Behind the Curtain: The Philadelphia Polling Project, reports Wired.

The idea to record these unusual polling stations cropped up in 2006 in conversations between Donnell and his wife, who is the City Hall Reporter for the Philadelphia Daily News. They put the idea on ice for a couple of years while Donnell was getting out of the freelance game and building a commercial editorial photography business. When 2008 came around with its momentous sense of history, Donnell knew it was the right time.

"The Philadelphia Elections Board actually posts a list of all the polling stations and every place has a small description next to the address, such as 'Residence' or 'Storefront' or 'Water Department Laboratory,' says Donnell. "So I made a list of the weirdest sounding places, packed-up my Hassy, tripod and film in my car and basically just drove all over the city of Philadelphia for about 10 hours on Election Day. I've done that every election since November 2008."

Original source: Wired
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Fairmount-based Facebook app developer Stuzo was acquired by Dachis Group, an Austin, Texas social business consultancy, reports Technically Philly.

We're looking to bring on board more technical, project management, and account talent," said Pfau.

Stuzo started in 2005 as a platform for college students to trade textbooks and other goods at Temple University before pivoting to become one of the first developers on the Facebook Application platform.

The company began building apps like MyHeritage before focusing more on promotions for other brands like Coca-Cola and Proctor and Gamble, quickly becoming one of the largest Facebook development shops in the country.

Original source: Technically Philly
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Philly theater guru Thaddeus Phillips brings Nikola Tesla to life in one-man show called Capsule 33, meant to spark ideas about sustainability, reports The (Colorado Springs) Gazette.

Few performers on the international theater circuit light up with the kind of alternative current that Phillips does. The '94 Colorado College graduate approaches each theatrical challenge like an off-center inventor.

Take "Capsule 33," a one-man show (created with his wife, Tatiana Mallarino) about a Serbian astrophysicist who becomes the last holdout in an odd Tokyo tower targeted for demolition. The play is about sustainability and the things, people and ideas we throw away.

"The whole show's sustainable," Phillips, 38, says with a mad glint in his eye, stalking around his set wearing a towel, a pipe wedged in his mouth. "We don't plug into the power grid at all. Everything is powered on those two little generators."

Original source: The (Colorado Springs) Gazette
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Richard Woodward, currently working on University City Science Center startup Vascular Magnetics, Inc., and a veteran of 16 other startups, has been named Rowan University's VenturePreneur in Residence, reports the Courier-Post.

Bringing in mentors with hands-on experience makes education more meaningful, says Niranjan Pati, dean of the Rohrer College of Business at Rowan.

"His (Woodward's) interaction will immensely benefit our students in terms of gaining practical insights to make great business plans even better."

Woodward holds a Ph.D. in molecular cell biology. His father worked for the phone company and his mother studied nursing while yearning to be a flight attendant.

Original source: The Courier-Post
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Temple University junior engineering student Hasan Malik, founder of Northeast Tree Tenders, is helping restore tree cover in his native Northeast Philadelphia, reports Temple University News.

Once every spring and fall, Malik and his loyal crew of trained volunteers--including a core group of fellow Temple students--dig holes (removing concrete, if necessary) and plant trees along streets and in yards at the request of homeowners throughout Northeast Philadelphia. The group's first planting was 23 trees. Now, groups of about 60 volunteers plant 50 to 70 trees at a time. Since 2007, the group has planted a total of 270 trees, offering hope for a greener, shadier and healthier future in the Northeast.

"There's too much concrete and not enough greenery in the city," Malik said. "Rather than complain about it, let's do something about it."

Why plant trees? Malik cites increased property values, reduced incidence of asthma and childhood obesity among residents, shelter from the sun and wind, a reduction of greenhouse gases, more homes for wildlife and the absorption of storm water runoff.

Original source: Temple University News
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Philadelphia-based rapper/producer Dice Raw, a member of The Roots, has launched a new music company called R&S Music Group, reports All Hip Hop.

"We are all about the preservation of good music and culture while also trying to be innovative with technology and the web," Dice Raw told AllHipHop.com. "We want to open the doors to up and coming artists and provide a credible platform of digital distribution without them having to sell their life to a record company."

R&S is currently working with local producers Khari Mateen and Rick Friedrich, who have produced tracks for a variety of local artists, including The Roots and Jill Scott.

Dice Raw will be performing new material next weekend near the campus of the University of Delaware in Newark, Delaware, when he hits the Mojo On Main for an exclusive performance on Thursday (October 28th).

Original source: All Hip Hop
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Our sister publication Keystone Edge writes about Malvern biopharmacetucial startup Recro Pharma, among the new breed of companies presenting at the annual Biotech 2010 conference in Philadelphia.

There's no denying that the down economy has been rough for the life sciences sector. When industry news website FiercePharma listed the 10 companies that laid off the most workers in 2009, seven firms on the list had a presence in the Keystone State. But Chris Molineaux, president of the statewide advocacy group Pennsylvania Bio that is hosting its annual Biotech 2010 event next week, says the upheaval of Big Pharma represents a new model for the industry.

No longer will huge companies try to do every task under one corporate banner, Molineaux says. Already, it's increasingly common to outsource tasks like information technology, financing and the administrative aspects of clinical drug trials. Researchers remain in-house or come to a company through an acquisition.

"It's going to be more of a patchwork. We're not going to have 15 large pharmaceutical companies," Molineaux says. "We'll probably have 50 medium-sized pharmaceutical companies and dozens of these smaller contractors."

Original source: Keystone Edge
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Havertown-based military history publisher Casemate expects its first mobile applications, courtesy of Philadelphia firm Ebooq, to be available in both the Apple App Store and Google's Android Market, reports Publisher's Weekly.

The creation of its own apps is an outgrowth of Casemate's digital strategy, which it began implementing at the beginning of 2010. Farnsworth said that when he decided to enter the e-book market, he wanted Casemate to do its own e-books, and he put together an in-house staff. During the recruiting process, Farnsworth heard about a Philadelphia startup (Casemate is based in nearby Havertown, Pa.) and, after doing his due diligence, decided not only to give his app business to the company but also to make an investment in the firm, called Ebooq. The first 10 apps will be low priced--probably $2.99  and will be a straight conversion of text, but Farnsworth said he expects to develop more sophisticated apps later in 2011.

While Farnsworth is exploring the best ways Casemate can grow its digital business, he has also started using one of publishing's oldest marketing techniques to sell its 4,000 print books--a mail-order catalog. The first edition of "The Warrior" went to 50,000 customers in May, and the second is planned for around Thanksgiving. Farnsworth said response to the first mailing was "not bad," but added he is hoping for improvement from the next one.

Original source: Publisher's Weekly
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The Washington Post caught up with suburban Philadelphia philanthropist Gene Epstein, who is promoting his $250,000 effort to donate $1,000 to charity for each unemployed person hired.

Epstein, who amassed a personal fortune through car sales and real estate investments, has set aside his money for the first 250 hires - and thinks thousands more jobs could be created if others took on his idea, too.

"It's an encouragement to businesses to not wait," said Epstein, who thinks the incentive may be just enough to get small businesses over the hump to make a hire in tough economic times. "This becomes like an incredible stimulus program."

The idea came to Epstein at his sprawling home in suburban Bucks County last month. He said he hopes his program will encourage businesses in the region and beyond to make hundreds of thousands of new hires they wouldn't have otherwise made.

Original source: Washington Post
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The Wall Street Journal breaks down the movie madness in Philadelphia, where the 19th annual Philadelphia Film Festival kicked off last week with a visit from Black Swan director Darren Aronofsky.

Festival organizers were clearly hoping to open the festival with a bang and overshadow the confusion over Philly's cinematic scene that sprouted two years ago. Originally, TLA Entertainment and the Philadelphia Film Society (PFS) sponsored the Festival. In late 2008, creative differences arose between PFS founder Ray Murray and PFS members. There were also arguments over how to approach fundraising.

According to Claire Kohler, the director of production of Philadelphia Cinema Alliance, when the "personality clashes" and differences became "pronounced," Murray and TLA formed the Philadelphia Cinema Alliance (PCA), a competing organization that would also produce its own film festival called CineFest. In short, PFS puts on the Philadelphia Film Festival, which runs in the fall, and PCA puts on CineFest, which took a break in 2010 but which will run in spring 2011.

Original source: Wall Street Journal
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The Associated Press profiles David Borgenicht and the indie publishing outfit he founded, Quirk Books, which is expanding its niche with a hybrid mashup genre combining classics with horror and kitsch.

Quirk, an independent publisher that started with a series of tongue-in-cheek guides for surviving highly unlikely misfortunes, has established the hybrid "mashup" genre bending of out-of-copyright classics and horror-fied kitsch.

"It has in a way become kind of a modern, or a postmodern, classic," said Quirk president and founder David Borgenicht, whose 15-person staff works in an inconspicuous building on a cobblestone-paved side street in Philadelphia's Old City neighborhood. "That wasn't at all our intent. It was simply too crazy not to publish."
 
Original source: Associated Press
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Founder of the startup accelerator DreamIt Ventures, Michael Levinson talked to Inc. magazine about best practices for pitching angel investors.

An angel investor or early stage venture capitalist will look at 1) is the business idea simple enough for me to understand and buy into, 2) does it solve a problem or meet a need, 3) is it a big enough market and customer base for the idea, and 4) does the entrepreneur have the right people on the team to pull it off, Levinson explains.

A PowerPoint presentation using about 12 slides is standard, particularly with a tech product. If you have a working prototype, show it to investors so they can see how it could actually work. If you can demonstrate your product or hand out product samples that's a plus. Discuss actual sales or anticipated orders. Also, this is where your research on testing or proving your business concept comes into play, says Levinson.

Include results from surveys, focus groups, and product tests to show any customer insight you have gained.

Original source: Inc.
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