Portland, Oregon—March 2, 2012— Today the Portland Seed Fund announced eight promising tech and non-tech startups that will take root in its Class 02 beginning next week.
“The selection process was very competitive this time around,” said Jim Huston, co-managing director and co-founder of Portland Seed Fund with Angela Jackson. “The word is getting out that Portland is a great place to build a company, and entrepreneurs from other cities are applying.”
After graduating its first investment class last November and closing $3 Million in investments, Portland Seed Fund managers met with hundreds of entrepreneurs and screened applications from Oregon and beyond before offering spots to these eight Class 02 companies. Those selected will partake in Portland Seed Fund’s innovative 90-day boot-camp, featuring a small capital injection plus heavy-duty coaching from fund managers, peer entrepreneurs, investors and mentors. The model is loosely based on incubator programs Y Combinator in Silicon Valley and Techstars in Seattle. Class 02 companies will graduate in late May by pitching to an invitation-only audience of West coast angel and venture capital investors looking for their next great deal.
Rob Banagale decided to relocate to Portland with co-founder Nick Asch of Montreal, Canada to launch their privacy and security-focused startup, Gliph, Inc. ”We can’t wait to realize the full potential of the creative and technological talent that already exists right here in Portland,” said Banagale, who is relocating from Seattle. ”It was a natural place for Gliph to put down roots.”
As with the Portland Seed Fund inaugural class, which has already raised a combined $3 million+ since graduation, Class 02 features software and mobile development, with product at varying stages of development. Founding teams range from seasoned entrepreneurs to first-time CEOs. The crop includes a green product company with manufacturing/assembly in North Portland, and two companies initially incubated at Portland Startup Weekend last October. Good Works Now will be headquartered in Hillsboro, while all other Class 02 companies will call Portland home.
Portland Seed Fund Class 02
Beeminder – Track progress toward a goal on your yellow brick road; pay a price if you fall off-track / beeminder.com
Gliph – Connect safely online without having to share personal and private info / gli.ph
Globe Sherpa – Secure, convenient mobile ticketing for transit commuters and more / globesherpa.com
Good Works Now – Cloud-based tools for nonprofits to modernize how they manage fundraising, boards and online reputation / goodworksnow.com
Indow Windows – Thermal window inserts that are quick to install and aesthetically pleasing, without the double pane price tag or hassle /indowwindows.com
SERPs – Cloud-based software tools for businesses to optimize SEO monitoring in-house / serps.com
Showkicker – Crowd-booking platform for live music fans that reduces financial risk for bands and venues / showkicker.com
Tell it in 10 – Quickly gather and sort your photos into one elegant story no matter where on the web they live / tellitin10.com/
About The Portland Seed Fund
www.portlandseedfund.com / @pdxseedfund / facebook: portlandseedfund
Portland Seed Fund is a professionally managed seed investment fund led by co-founders and co-managing directors Angela Jackson and Jim Huston. Portland Seed Fund’s portfolio includes 16 high-growth, capital-efficient companies concentrated heavily, but not exclusively, in software and mobile development. Companies receive an initial $25,000 investment and dive in to a 90-day intensive program of coaching, networking, education and product-building. They are surrounded by mentors, a peer group of entrepreneurs who understand their challenges and share successes, and help sourcing customers and securing future capital. The cycle repeats every six months, resulting in 25-30 investments every two years in highly-scalable job-creating companies. In 2011, Portland Seed Fund’s inaugural investment class created 58 jobs in their first seven months.
Investors in the $3 million Portland Seed Fund include City of Portland, Oregon Growth Account, City of Hillsboro / OEN Catalyst Fund and 24 individual accredited investors. Portland Seed Fund sponsors include White, Summers, Caffee & James, LLP, a premier boutique corporate law firm with offices in Portland and Silicon Valley; Perkins & Co. accounting firm, Bank of the Cascades, Ziba Design and Portland State University Business Accelerator.
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