The Lansing Economic Area Partnership (LEAP) has accepted seven business start-ups into its new SpringBoard program, a program designed to guide the entrepreneurs to launch and build sustainable, globally competitive companies.
Each is to receive assistancefrom as many as eight SpringBoard partners, offering services ranging from accounting and marketing, to legal issues and information technology advice.
The new companies include:
Inventure Enterprises, led by Robert Fulk, has developed a background check tool called idView. Fulk says the process and software will be useful for screening international students, firearm applicants and the criminal justice system.
Enerfusion, led by Joe Kobus, has devleoped a portable station to allow people to plug in laptops and other electronic devices and get a power boost for a small fee. A prototype station, called Power Dok, is in beta testing at the Capital Region International Airport.
Vince Villegas, co-founder of Charlie Bucks, has created a Web site that combines social networking site assets with bluetooth technology, the iPhone, global positioning systems (GPS) and text messaging—all aimed at spending money, as in Charlie Bucks.
Mahmood Mousa, president of HoneyDerm, aims to add a honey-based, natural hair loss product to his line of skin treatments.
CareCk, led by Rae Claire Johnson, is marketing patient-centered digital health record system. Johnson estimates the savings in Lansing alone would be over $300 million per year.
George Garrity, Michigan State University professor, leads Names for Life. It is a system that registers names of everything biological. He says 74 bacteria are discovered daily and each has to have a name. Heseeks a company president, as well as $500,000.
Bunmi Akinyemiju, president of Enliven Software, says it is his fourth start-up. The software creates a paperless purchase process, from the order and invoice to the bank payment. The City of Aspen is already using his product. He expects to take it global this year.
Source: LEAP
Gretchen Cochran, Innovation & Jobs editor, may be reached here.
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