Dan Young, owner of DXY Solutions, has been a busy man. The mobile app developer has hired additional staff, opened West Coast and international offices and is expanding his company's breadth of capabilities. “We started off as a mobile company,” explains Young. “Mobile apps are very popular, but we’re looking to put mobile technology in the palm of the user’s hand. We’re looking at design and connectivity to the user’s environment.”

One area where DXY has thrived is in the medical field. For instance, the company designed an interactive iPad application for the Cleveland Clinic to better assess concussions. The app works with sensor devices to provide more accurate and comprehensive information than solely relying on human observation.
 
Young also is developing apps that interact with home automation devices and interactive android-based kiosks to help with way finding on large hospital campuses. “Users can walk up to the kiosk and they are directed where they need to go,” Young says. “We’ll be ready to deliver to clients this summer.”
 
To facilitate all these projects, DYX opened offices in Seattle and Berlin and brought on seven new employees, bringing the total to 23, 20 of whom are in DXY’s new Ohio City offices. Kate Hawk, who was brought on as marketing manager last summer, moved to Seattle to oversee business out west.
 
The Berlin office came out of a group of interactive designers Young employs there. “Berlin is the hot technology scene right now in Europe,” notes Young. “Last year was quite a bit of growth. It’s been stressful, but it’s been a fun ride.”
 
The coming year is shaping up to be just as exciting. DXY will launch an interactive web site for the Akron Public Schools in February, is launching this spring a new version of its virtual historical tour guide Curatescape, and will continue to grow its relationships in the medical community.

 
Source: Dan Young
Writer: Karin Connelly

Running late for a business meeting at the local coffee shop? Not going to make it to happy hour with your friends? Prezto eases the guilt by allowing the user to instantly send a cup of coffee, cocktail or even a cupcake to the person on the other end awaiting your arrival.
 
“The app allows you to give a gift to a friend remotely and immediately,” explains Anne Jiao, founder of Prezto. “It’s a way to share spontaneous moments on a daily basis.”
 
The concept is simple: Users download the app, select a participating establishment and gift to give, and then send it to a friend. The friend simply presents a code for scanning and receives the gift.
 
Jiao came up with the idea for Prezto after working in Los Angeles. “I noticed that most of my bosses hosted meetings outside the office and there was a lot of anxiety around getting to the right place at the right time,” she says. “I thought, what’s an easy way to get a meeting off on the right foot?”
 
She also reluctantly admits that a scene in the Hunger Games movie, in which the character Katniss received medication through a teleport device to win the game, also helped spark the idea. “It’s the idea of people who are not there being able to affect a person’s life,” she says.
 
Jiao went through the LaunchHouse Accelerator program last fall to hash out her idea for Prezto and still keeps an office there (in addition to coffee shops and a rented desk downtown). She employs a CTO and an intern and is looking for a second intern. She also uses five developers on a contract basis.
 
About 40 merchants already have expressed interest in Prezto, mostly in the Coventry, University Circle and Cleveland State areas. The app is in beta testing now and Jiao plans to use her interns to sign on more merchants before the app officially launches this summer.

 
Source: Anne Jiao
Writer: Karin Connelly

Pet owners are beginning to realize the value of quality pet insurance, resulting in rapid growth for Embrace Pet Insurance. With that growth comes new hires, a change in investors and a partnership with a celebrity veterinarian.

While less than one percent of U.S. pet owners insure their pets -- compared to 25 percent in the UK -- founder Laura Bennett is working to change those numbers by going to vets and educating them about the benefits of insurance and encouraging them to recommend Embrace to their clients.
 
Embrace partnered with some comprehensive insurance companies last year. Most recently, Bennett signed on several large, well-known insurance companies to offer Embrace pet insurance to their clients.
 
To keep up with its growth, Embrace hired 17 employees last year. “I was like, holy moly,” says founder Laura Bennett. “And we have a number of positions open too. We’re now at 47 employees from 30. That’s growth of more than 50 percent.” Most of the hiring was in the claims, customer service and tech departments.
 
Amid all the hiring, Beauvest US, a private equity investor from Canada, bought out Embrace's venture investors. “Our prior investors had been in for over five years and were ready to move on per their investment guidelines,” says Bennett. “It’s good for Embrace in that our new investor is prepared to invest more money for us to grow and become more efficient. This person used to work in the insurance industry in Canada and sold his businesses. He understands our business.”
 
Earlier this month Embrace announced that the company has partnered with celebrity veterinarian, Dr. Marty Becker, known as “America’s Veterinarian,” to help spread the word about the importance of pet insurance. “He basically approached us,” Bennett says. “It builds awareness to our product in general and brings a lot of credibility to the Embrace brand.”
 
Later this year Embrace will move offices to accommodate its growth.

 
Source: Laura Bennett
Writer: Karin Connelly

On the heels of a successful merger that brought together under one roof three nonprofit community development organizations, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress (CNP) has made a key hire to lead its policy and advocacy efforts. Alesha Washington, a Glenville native who most recently served as Director of Executive Administration and Government Relations at the Centers for Family and Children, recently joined CNP as its Senior Director of Advocacy, Policy and Research. Washington will lead strategic policy initiatives at the city, county, state and federal levels and identify and use academic research to inform community development strategies.

"Trying to create a shared advocacy platform for the CDC community is what attracted me to the role," says Washington. "There's a need and a longing for a very coordinated and aligned system. The goal is to work together to improve Cleveland's neighborhoods for all people."

"It's about connecting the dots," adds Joel Ratner, President of CNP. "The needs we're identifying at the neighborhood level should be articulated clearly, strongly and strategically to officials who are setting policy and government budgets."

In recent years, Ratner says, no such coordinated effort has existed. Policy priorities might include strategies and funding to address vacant and abandoned properties, maintaining and enhancing tax credit programs that lend to neighborhood development, and influencing the state budget.


Source: Alesha Washington, Joel Ratner
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Tipse Treats founder Autumn Skoczen came up with the brilliant idea for a cupcake that contains a full shot of alcohol after visiting a bakery in another city, purchasing a booze-infused treat, and determining that all of the "good stuff" had burned off in the oven.

At the same time, she noticed cupcake shops on practically every other block. Along with bars, of course. So she hatched a plan to combine the two and create the cupcake equivalent of the Jell-o shot.

Now Tipse Treats, which has been rapidly gaining popularity in the two years since it launched, is opening a production facility in Parma to keep up with demand. Located at 5883 Broadview Road, the bakery will celebrate its grand opening with a party on Saturday, January 25th from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Cake and cupcake samples will be offered at the event, but you can also purchase your tipsy treats online or by calling them at 440-262-5531.

Co-owner Chelsea Scavnicky says Tipse Treats has found success with both commercial clients and individuals. Although she can't discuss the company's patent pending process in detail, she explains that the dessert is served "chilled, like a cocktail."

The Tipse Treats website touts the product as "the first ever cupcake shot." The company also offers alcohol-infused marshmallows, ice spheres and cubes, cocktail bubbles, popsicles and pudding pies. The "pint-sized playthings," say staffers, are perfect for functions ranging from bachelorette parties to adult sleepovers to corporate parties.

The production space in Parma will be used to sell non-alcoholic, prepackaged items, to hold events like cake tastings for weddings, and of course as the company's bakery.

The co-founders say they are searching for a retail space downtown, preferably in PlayhouseSquare. They even have their eye on a space, but it's too early to divulge any details. Co-owner Meghan Ciacchi will own and manage the downtown store.

"Everybody loves the idea," says Scavnicky of her company's growth. "When we go and present it, people are hooked."


Source: Chelsea Scavnicky
Writer: Lee Chilcote

When Addisah Sherwood-Ajiboye and her husband, A. Bolu Ajiboye, wanted to introduce their three-year-old to science and math, they were surprised by the lack of age-appropriate activities.

While parents often concentrate on early reading skills, they often don’t focus on science, technology, engineering and math – or STEM -- skills, Sherwood-Ajiboye says. “Eighty-five percent of brain development happens before the age of five,” she explains. “Too often, math and science instruction is overlooked by parents. Studies show that children introduced to STEM educational resources at a young age perform better in science and math than those who are not.”
 
So Sherwood-Ajiboye, a former teacher, and her husband, a neuroscientist and engineering professor at CWRU, started STEMpowerkids to introduce science and math to kids aged three to seven years old. Sherwood-Ajiboye works with three early childhood education experts to develop a STEM curriculum designed for preschool and kindergarten children.
 
“Our all-inclusive kit is designed to be both fun and educational,” Sherwood-Ajiboye says. “Our mission is to empower children in STEM by promoting their interest and abilities with fun experiential learning activities at home.” The “bite-sized” lesson plans can be tweaked for different ages and include hands-on projects. Activities include making a potato battery and building a film-canister rocket.
 
Right now STEMpowerkids is in beta phase, selling subscriptions at a discount. When the company officially launches at the Science and Engineering Festival in Washington, D.C. in April, subscriptions will sell for $29.95 per month, which includes shipping.
 
STEMpowerkids won a $25,000 loan from Bad Girl Ventures in December and is currently looking for first-round investors. Sherwood-Ajiboye also is searching for a business accelerator or incubator program.

 
Source: Adissah Sherwood-Ajiboye
Writer: Karin Connelly

Amber Pompeii and her husband, Michael George, both Cleveland natives, spent the last couple of years in Seattle. While most people think of Seattle as a coffee hotspot, Pompeii discovered something different: tea. While working for Remedy Teas in Seattle, Pompeii saw that there’s a whole different mind-set in a tea shop than a coffee shop.

“Most of the time people walk into a coffee shop and it’s go, go, go, with a lot of carry out,” Pompeii says. “Tea is about taking time out of your day.”
 
Pompeii and George moved back to Cleveland eight months ago because they missed the city and wanted to bring the tea experience to Hingetown. They are on track to open Cleveland Tea Revival February 1. “It will be exactly like a coffee shop, where you go in and sit down, but we focus on tea, not coffee,” Pompeii says. “I love tea and there are not a lot of great places to buy tea in Cleveland.”
 
Cleveland Tea Revival will feature 50 organic teas, from white to black, as well as pu-erh, a fermented tea. Customers can enjoy a pot of tea in the café, take a cup to go, buy tea leaves or learn about the benefits of drinking tea. “We will focus on pure teas, that way you get a lot of natural flavors – buttery, flowery flavors with enzymes that help with digestion.” Pompeii currently is looking for local sources for pastries and plans to source locally for blending ingredients.
 
Pompeii went through the Bad Girl Ventures Fall 2013 business program and received a $25,000 loan from ECDI to help start Cleveland Tea Revival. While Pompeii and George are the only two employees right now, Pompeii says they plan to hire at least two people this year as the café gets off the ground.

 
Source: Amber Pompeii
Writer: Karin Connelly

The biggest gripe of downtown Cleveland residents (and, really, downtown dwellers in most non-coastal cities) is that their city center lacks the retail and amenities they need. Being a downtown resident often means regular car trips to the 'burbs -- or somewhere that's not within walking distance -- for shopping.

Yet that's slowly beginning to change. As any commercial broker will tell you, retail follows rooftops. As downtown Cleveland gains thousands of new residents, retailers are finding a market here. The 5th Street Arcades are nearly 100 percent full, and Heinen's is planning to open a new grocery store downtown.

The topic of retail and amenities will be in the spotlight this week as Downtown Cleveland Alliance (DCA) and the City Club of Cleveland kick off a new event series. "Civic Drinks: Downtown Dialogues" will bring together developers and nonprofit leaders to discuss what downtown Cleveland needs to thrive. The kickoff takes place on Wednesday, January 8th at 4 p.m. in the former Cleveland Trust Rotunda (future home of Heinen's Fine Foods) at East 9th and Euclid Ave.

The kickoff event will feature a panel discussion with DCA President and CEO Joe Marinucci, developer Fred Geis and Tom Heinen of Heinen's Fine Foods.

“Our Downtown Dialogue events are designed to give people who are invested in the future of downtown Cleveland an opportunity to discuss what’s next for our city," said Marinucci in a release. "Each talk will feature experts in a particular area that is crucial for moving downtown forward, and will offer opportunities for small group dialogue and sharing ideas.”

Future events will tackle green space and connectivity (April 4th), livability (July 2nd) and downtown's vision plan (September 3rd).


Source: Downtown Cleveland Alliance
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Two years ago, after a 17-year career as a communications consultant with some of the area’s larger human resources firms, Denise Reynolds decided she wanted to put a little color in her job. So after she was laid off from her last position, she launched Outside the Lines Creative Group (OTL), a company that uses cartoons to convey company messages.

“I wanted to take all of my knowledge about benefits, wellness, policies and procedures and make it fun,” she says of her newfound venture. “I thought, this stuff is so boring. If only we’d put cartoons with it, people would actually read it.”
 
So she recruited nationally syndicated cartoonist Jenny Campbell to illustrate Reynolds’ HR messages. Reynolds uses humor and illustrations to communicate sometimes not-so-exciting subject matter, like dress codes and employee safety rules. “Companies love it,” she says. “And employees think it’s great.”
 
Currently, OTL has about 20 clients, ranging from Jergens Industrial Supply to the Conservancy for the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. In fact, finding clients hasn’t been too hard, says Reynolds. “You have to find clients who want to do something innovative."
 
Jergens liked Reynolds’ campaign so much they asked that the cartoon characters be painted on the plant’s machinery. “Companies try everything to get the attention of employees, but they haven’t tried cartoons yet,” says Reynolds. The Cuyahoga Valley National Park hired OTL to create a children’s educational activity book featuring a river otter. The book won an international award and the otter has been made into a plush stuffed animal.
 
In fact, OTL won five international awards in two competitions in 2013 for its work on projects for Akron Children’s Hospital, ACRT, Jergens Industrial Supply and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
 
OTL recently was awarded a $5,000 loan from Bad Girl Ventures, which Reynolds plans to use to update her website and post some work samples. She also plans on hiring a second cartoonist.

 
Source: Denise Reynolds
Writer: Karin Connelly

As recently as last year, the Colonial and Euclid Arcades downtown suffered from 40 percent vacancy. But oh, how fortunes have changed. The once-moribund properties, rebranded as 5th Street Arcades, have gone from half-empty to almost full. Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski spent some time in the arcades window shopping with his camera.

What's the big idea behind the South Euclid Idea House? Housing Manager Sally Martin says the goal of the energy-efficient, 1,800-square-foot home, which was completed this fall, is to stimulate new thinking about the future of this built-out, inner ring 'burb.

That future now includes seven new-construction homes scattered throughout the community, five community gardens and three pocket parks. These projects rose like a phoenix from the ashes of the foreclosure crisis -- South Euclid has now demolished 56 homes, with more to come. The city also has inspired at least one private builder, Weathervane Homes, to build homes in the community.

"We built the Idea House to show that you can live big on a small lot," says Martin. "The 'big idea' is that infill development is a great possibility for the private sector, and that houses can be built here in a modern way that modern buyers will like."

In the past, Martin says, many builders looked past South Euclid to the exurbs. The modest silver lining in the housing crisis, which resulted in many vacant homes, is that infill lots are beginning to open up. One South Euclid, a new community development group, now offers these lots for development.

The Idea House features an open floor plan, upscale finishes, first-floor master bedroom or den, and energy-efficient design. The house, which was built using Neighborhood Stabilization Program funding, is under contract for $162,000.

Martin says the new homes, coupled with green space initiatives, aggressive code enforcement, nuisance abatement and offering of lots to private developers, have spurred the beginnings of a renaissance.
 
"We've planted the seeds, and it's taken off from there. We've seen a small increase in the housing market. There's hope."


Source: Sally Martin
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Tomorrow's economy-boosting titans are today's middle and high school students, and there's no good reason to make them wait until college or later to start honing their business acumen. Fortunately, area programs aimed at would-be high school entrepreneurs are providing experience that will serve them well regardless their future paths.

When Craig Lewis, a mechanical science and engineering major at CWRU, was given an extra credit assignment in 2011 to come up with something that would increase household energy efficiency, he started thinking about how much water people use in the shower.

“We did a little preliminary research to see if people could track their water consumption in the shower,” Lewis recalls. “We found that 76 percent of people we surveyed had no idea what their water consumption was.”
 
So Lewis and his partners, Andrew Schad and CJ Valle, set out to create a shower head that tracks water consumption. “How can you be efficient if you don’t know what you’re consuming,” asks Lewis. The result is Sprav, a company that makes a water meter by the same name for the shower. Today’s model is wireless and works with the users’ mobile devices to provide usage data. It takes seconds to install and requires no tools.
 
Sprav entered Case's St. Gobain Design Competition in the fall of 2011 with a prototype and came in second place. Listening to feedback from the judges and the audience, Lewis and his team redesigned the meter, making it sleeker and with more functionality, and proceeded to take top honors at the following year's competition.
 
Sprav ran a Kickstarter campaign earlier this year. While they fell short of their fundraising goal, the company enrolled in Bizdom’s fall class. “It’s been a great opportunity,” Lewis says of Bizdom. “They’ve done a great job of guiding us along the path.” The company has also turned to Blackstone Launchpad for guidance and resources.
 
Lewis has taken a year off from school to work on Sprav full-time. While the device is still in development, the company has an agreement with CWRU to test it in the dorms in 2014. While Lewis calls Sprav a “grass roots effort” right now, he has his sights set on getting Sprav in big box stores like Walmart and Home Depot, “where people expect to buy these types of things.”

 
Source: Craig Lewis
Writer: Karin Connelly

As an investor in Biolectrics, a company that makes a battery-powered mouthpiece – think sports mouth guard -- that treats periodontal diseases with electric stimulation, Paul Ruflin began thinking about the device’s potential in other applications.
 
“The mouthpiece delivers a small amount of current that kills oral bacteria,” Ruflin explains. “In the lab it kills 75 to 100 percent of bacteria in the mouth in five to 10 minutes. The early results are promising in killing oral bacteria.”
 
With human trials completed at the University of Buffalo, Ruflin has created Animal Oralectrics, based out of MAGNET’s offices. The company uses the same technology as Biolectrics but applies it toward dogs, sheep, cows and cats. “Animals are five percent more likely to have periodontal disease than humans,” says Ruflin. “Less than one percent of dog owners brush their dogs’ teeth or takes them to the vet for a cleaning.”
 
Ruflin recently created a prototype on a 3D printer and is working with Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine to test Animal Oralectrics on dogs. So far, the response has been positive. “This device kills oral bacteria, prevents gingivitis and gum loss,” explains Ruflin. “The current is undetectable. The concept here is to make a device that gives treatment but looks like a chew toy or pull toy. You can even put a treat in the end of it. The key is getting them to engage with it for five to 15 minutes.”
 
The Innovation Fund recently awarded Animal Oralectrics a $25,000 grant to further develop its product. Currently, the company consists of just Ruflin and an intern from CWRU. But he plans to hire a marketing and social media person soon. He also plans on running a crowd funding campaign before releasing the product in of 2014.
 
Ultimately, Ruflin predicts he will add seven to 10 direct employees and another 15 to 20 indirect employees over the next two or three years.

 
Source: Paul Ruflin
Writer: Karin Connelly

Developer Rick Foran has made a career out of saving buildings, yet his latest project involves repurposing elements of one structure that was beyond repair.

Foran was hired by the Episcopal Diocese of Northeast Ohio two years ago to evaluate the condition of the long-vacant Emmanuel Church at 8614 Euclid. After discovering that the building needed structural repairs, the diocese marketed the property, but no buyers were willing to reinvest in it. When the Cleveland Clinic bought it, approval for demolition was granted with the condition that some parts be preserved.

Today, Foran's crew is carefully disassembling the stone facade, numbering, photographing and cataloguing each piece, and palletizing, shrink wrapping and storing them for later use. The goal is to reconstruct the narthex facade at another location to be determined. Additionally, the Skinner organ, woodwork, baptismal font, French floor tiles and historic light fixtures also are being salvaged.

"Nobody likes to tear down a landmark church, but if the decision has been made, I'm pleased that we can repurpose artifacts of the church and give them a new life," says Foran. "By the time the demo occurs, many of the more distinctive features will have been salvaged and relocated. There's also been an effort to keep them in a religious environment, or to keep them in the city of Cleveland."

The baptismal font, French floor tiles and stained glass window have been relocated to St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Mentor. Light fixtures are being dispersed among various churches in Cleveland. The hand-carved lectern and bible stand are being added to the Cleveland Museum of Art's collection.

The Clinic plans to build a hotel on the site that will provide families a place to stay while a loved one is in the hospital. The Clinic's previous guest house was displaced by the new medical school building recently developed in partnership with Case Western Reserve University. Groundbreaking on the new hotel is expected to occur next year.


Source: Rick Foran
Writer: Lee Chilcote