March 18, 2019
Launch NY Newsletter – March 2019
Launch NY News & Updates
New $300,000 Award From EDA to Support Investor Network
Launch NY was awarded $300,000 in funding from the EDA as follow up to it’s first Regional Innovation Strategies (RIS) award in 2016 from the EDA. This new award will support Launch NY’s Invest Local Financing Programs through the new Investor Network, as well as a new internship and investor education programs in collaboration with the Western New York Venture Association and Buffalo Angels. Read the press release here.
Launch NY Celebrates International Women’s Day
In observance of International Women’s Day, Launch NY is recognizing its trailblazing women, whether they are staff/board members, entrepreneurs, or mentors, each one has a place in HERstory. Launch NY is particularly proud of the fact that it is among only 9.9% of venture capital firms with a female led fund. Read about one of our trailblazing women and member of our Board of Directors, Maggie Dorn in Buffalo Business First.
Read more about the women leading Launch NY and the inspiring female entrepreneurs we support.
Join us Wednesday, March 20th at Noon for #LaunchHour TwitterChat
This month, Launch NY is celebrating the amazing contributions women have made to the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Do you want to know how you can help support funding more women founders? Join us on Wednesday, March 20, 2019 to hear from our panel of experts including, women led VCs and founders, from across the country. Never joined a TwitterChat before? It’s easy, just follow @Launch_NY on Twitter and use the hashtag #LaunchHour to see the discussion. Enjoy the conversation and jump in with tweets anytime.
Save the Date: ECO Incubator’s Cleantech Regulations & Policy for Cleantech Startups Panel
Join us on April 29, 2019, in Buffalo, NY to kick-off ECO Incubator’s first Innovation Sprint with a public discussion and networking event to learn about how cleantech regulations and policies can create opportunities to grow your business. Register today!
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Startup Spotlight
The Perfect Granola Continues Rapid Expansion Nationwide
Launch NY portfolio company, The Perfect Granola, led by founder and CEO, Michele Liddle, is already off to a breakout year in 2019. You can now find their products in the gluten free section of Walmart nationwide.
Launch NY Portfolio Company Patient Pattern is Hiring
Are you interested in joining a growing Health IT startup in Buffalo, NY? Patient Pattern is a software company founded by a team of medical and IT professionals. Their software helps hospitals, providers, and acute care facilities identify, manage, and communicate patient risk across settings to improve outcomes, optimize documentation, maximize reimbursement, and gain valuable insights. Patient Pattern software tools include frailty-based assessments, live analytics, bedside tools, Minimum Data Sets (MDS) insights, and quality analytics insights.
Patient Pattern is currently hiring for two key positions, a Vice President of Sales, who will lead building their sales team and national growth strategy, and a Director of Customer Success, to lead developing their on-boarding and training programs, and work closely with their product development team. Learn more.
#LaunchHour TwitterChat Tips
LaunchHour TwitterChats are monthly virtual chats featuring important topics for startups, entrepreneurs, investors and ecosystem stakeholders. Join us over your lunch to hear from expert panelists. Check out our archive for past TwitterChats filled with tips like those below.
See you at the next #LaunchHour TwitterChat, Wednesday, March 20th at noon.
February 20, 2019: Investing Local 101: How Can You Get Involved. View the whole chat on Wakelet.
What does investing local mean to you?
It means supporting companies in the 27 westernmost countries of NY, investing in companies that will stay in the region, creating jobs in the region, and supporting the people around you in the region that built you and you call home
— LKS Law (@LKS_Law)
Local high net worth individuals investing in local companies. We can’t rely only on government or out of town money for early-stage investment. We need to grow our own at the early stage.
— Jack McGowan (@insytejack)
Peter: The whole #InvestLocal attitude has to be about HELPING emerging companies stay here, hire here & grow here—while bringing in new life, too.
James: Telling the unique stories of local #entrepreneurs—especially from immigrant & refugee perspectives—is big for me.
— Viaduct (@MyViaduct)
How can others, individuals, or companies get involved in investing local?
At our Inaugural #InvestLocal Summit and Expo we announced our new Investor Network, a digital on demand platform that will will afford accredited investors the opportunity to participate in funding companies they select from Launch NY’s robust pipeline. http://bit.ly/lnyinvestlocal
— Marnie LaVigne (@MarnieLaVigne2)
#LaunchHour We are hoping the #BufHomecoming conference will inspire expats to invest, time, knowledge and money back into their hometown and become part of our area’s renaissance. Our hope is that the #Buffalo WNY community will share with us the names and contact info of expats who they feel have the talent, skills and money to invest in our community’s renaissance. http://buffalohomecoming.com/
– Jack Connors (@Buf_JackConnors)
Want to learn more about how you can Invest Local? View the whole chat on Wakelet!
Join us for our next #LaunchHour TwitterChat, March 20, 2019; Funding Women: The Power of Investing in Female Founders
Want to learn more about Upstate NY business plan competitions? View the whole chat on Wakelet!
Join us for our next #LaunchHour TwitterChat, February 20, 2019; Invest Local 101: How Can You Get Involved?
Meet Launch NY Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIRs)
Ken Rother
Ken Rother is a proven entrepreneur who has built and exited two successful tech/media startup companies. He offers a unique blend of experience leading web and mobile technology teams, as well as in‐depth operations expertise in organizations ranging from a few people to a few hundred. Mr. Rother has held SVP positions at Discovery Communications and was responsible for the business and content strategy, programming, and operations for a number of Discovery’s key web properties including; Animal Planet, TreeHugger, Investigation Discovery, Planet Green, and Military Channel. Mr. Rother was CIO/CTO for Bowne Global Solutions (now part of LionBridge), after Mountain Lake Software, a Toronto-based company he co-founded with two partners, was acquired by New York based Bowne. Mountain Lake helped some of Canada’s largest banks get started on the internet. After his second successful exit, he has developed a deep passion for disruptive technology.
Mr. Rother has provided mentoring services for Launch NY since its inception and currently also serves as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence trainer and client intake screener. He also leads entrepreneurship classes at Cornell University, the hardware accelerator, and National Science Foundation I-Corps technology commercialization programming through the Southern Tier Startup Alliance.
Read more about Ken and our other EIRs on our website.