Angel Groups Spread Their Wings-And Raise Their Hands

The Wall Street Journal reports today that angel investors, a group typically associated with providing technology-oriented firms with initial seed capital (before venture and vulture capitalists step in for a second round), are more frequently investing in a wider spectrum of companies, including retail, consumer products, food, and service-oriented companies.

Two striking examples include Wilton-based Artemis Woman a beauty care company, and MGS Soapopular, another CT-based company with WBENC-certification, that, within three months of startup, has since gained a significant market share in the alcohol-free hand sanitizer space--the recent MRSA outbreak has catapulted this company into the limelight, and with initial funding of less than $350k, the company's products will be appearing on 1000+ retail shelves before year end (including select Target stores throughout the country) and is expected to deliver $1million in gross revenue during its first 9 months of operations. Not bad..High Five!

Rocket Racing League-Sponsors Sought at Speed of Light

Only a few weeks ago, I thought that bull riding will prove to be the next great frontier for sponsors seeking to embrace sports enthusiasts! Apparently, the Rocket Racing League is setting to taek off, thanks to league founder Peter Diamandis's deep pockets.

Strategies to Succeed-Its Online!

If you don't subscribe to the NY Times--the link won't work, but yesterday's article in the Small Business section is worth excerpting:

"These days, a Web site may not even be the best place to start promoting your products or services. Instead, you can consider setting up a blog, participating in social-networking communities like Facebook and creating a storefront in virtual worlds like Second Life to get the buzz going.

“We launched our company in May 2006 with a blog, not a Web site,” said Jody DeVere, the president of AskPatty.com, an advice site that helps women find car showrooms and repair shops that are friendly to them. “Our blog has been the driving force of our branding effort and become the way we find our readers and our customers.”

Earlier this year, AskPatty created a virtual coffee shop at the online community site Second Life, where people can swap tips and stories. That move turned out to be a gold mine for the company. “The women in Second Life are the ultimate power Internet users, and are very comfortable doing business online,” Ms. DeVere said. “Plus, it is a very cost-effective way to reach lots of people.”

The Race is on in Hand Sanitizers

A little followed battle is breaking out in the $250 million a year hand sanitizer market place. And we could be wrong about the US market size, it might be as much as $500 million when considering the institutional market.

The battle heating up is about a new technology that could displace the primary ingredient used in 99% of all hand sanitizers...we're talking about the alcohol. The base ingridient in Purell Germx and Ecolab products. These 3 brands own 75% of the marketplace.

Whoever can crack this space will very likely become soapopular.

Ford Advertising-Intelligent??

I just saw a Ford ad on TV promoting the Lincoln Navigator---which included a mention that the car has 'intelligent 4 wheel drive"

I can hear comedian Jack Black now...

"Who came up with the word "intelligent????

Is there such a thing as an "intelligent" 4 wheel drive? And does that mean some 4 wheel drives are stupid?? And are there others that are totally, f--ing moronic??

What's next? Is Mercedes or BMW going to top it with "exceptionally intelligent "4 wheel drive"??? Or, "the smartest 4 wheel drive"?

Thanks Ford! That's what you get for making the former CEO of a airplane manufacturer the head of your turnaround campaign.

Breaking News: Internet Crash Update

Click on the story title for the latest news coverage on this global catastrophe..
:)

How to Use PR and Product Placement Positvely to Promote a new Product

We love these types of product placement human interest stories so much that it makes us pee. Seriously!

Former Minneapolis Fire Chief: A First Responder in I-35W Bridge Collapse;

Coordinates Helping Hand Contribution of Soapopular Hand Sanitizers

Minneapolis, MN, Aug 8, 2007-- Former Minneapolis Fire Department Chief Bonnie Bleskachek, an embattled hero to many in the Minneapolis community, hasn't allowed recent personal controversy to stand in the way of helping Minnesota citizens in times of crisis.

Bleskachek, a career firefighter who, in 2004 was celebrated nationwide for being one of the country’s few women to be appointed Chief of a major US city fire department, only to be demoted two years later after becoming embroiled in a political firestorm, is one of the many heroes emerging in Minneapolis’s I-35W bridge collapse.

Since the August 1 catastrophe first occurred, Bleskachek has been working tirelessly by coordinating volunteer and emergency supply logistics, and she was the first to respond to an unsolicited call from a Connecticut company offering to contribute a shipment of Soapopular, a new, alcohol-free hand sanitizer, for emergency workers at the disaster scene.

Pedro Mata, a partner of Mata Global Solutions, the Connecticut import firm that distributes Soapopular throughout the United States, stated, “Last week’s catastrophe struck a particular chord with us, as we had just returned from a planning session in Minneapolis with executives from Target, Inc., and we were immediately compelled to do whatever we could to help the emergency workers on site.”

According to Bonnie Bleskachek, Former Fire Chief of the Minneapolis Fire Department, and now coordinating disaster relief efforts, “All helping hands are being welcomed by our community, and the hand sanitizers contributed by Soapopular are particularly appreciated.”

Soapopular is one of few, next generation, alcohol-free hand sanitizer products that have been introduced since national news media first began reporting about the side effects of typical hand sanitizer products, including more than 12,000 cases of child-related, alcohol-poisoning cases directly attributed to generic products such as Purell and other brands, which account for more than 95% of the country’s hand

sanitizer market. FDA-approved, Soapopular’s active ingredients provide the same bacteria and germ killing efficacy as more widely-known alcohol-based products, but, unlike most hand sanitizers on the market today, Soapopular is non-toxic, non-flammable, antiseptic, hypoallergenic, kid safe, fragrance fee, and because its alcohol-free, it doesn’t cause hands to dry or become irritated with prolonged use.

* * *

For Additional Information

203.255.0034

http://www.MGSmata.com

http://www.Soapopular-USA.com

How To Qualify a Client

Exactly 8 days ago, my firm received an unsolicited call requesting a sponsorship sales proposal for an event in Las Vegas that would be hosting 2000+ "top gun sales execs" making 250k+ per year.
Despite my being leery as to how many sponsors really want to pay to be in front of sales people--who are notorious for being tough sells themselves, "What do these sales execs sell?", I asked. Reply: "Oh--We're one of the top mortgage sales companies in the US." And they were--NYSE listed American Home Mortgatge

Why would they need sponsors to help underwrite a sales event for their brokers? Gee.. Massive company ringing the cash register with commissions every day..You'd think they could pay for their own party, even if it cost them about $4million a year for this one week seminar/boondoggle in LV....It took a few bangs of my head against the wall to conclude that they were about to go down the tube--just like a bunch of other financial service companies being dragged down by the Real Estate Epidemic thats been cratering the mortgage markets

Mortgage sales company seeking help to defray costs of big party...mmmm...sounds a bit dicey, but....We submitted a comprehensive proposal on Thursday night (thinking that we knew at least 10-12 companies that would want to have the opportunity to be in front of top gun sales people making mid six figures)

Two days later, the company announced they were cutting their dividend, the day after that the stock was halted for trading, and today (one week later), they announced they'd be firing 7000 employees, leaving a skeleton staff of 750 and bankruptcy filing would be taking place shortly.
So much for the boondoggle in Vegas...

As a former trader, the first sign was the most obvious-I should have shorted the stock as soon as I was briefed on the client and what they were hoping to accomplish.

NY Times: VC Investing in Sex-Related Businesses

I love it...always did...I remember back in 1998 when a brilliant friend came up with the idea for a website that was called WallStreetGals.com --It was a Bloomberg Meets Playboy..with double entendre market coverage with live audio streaming, real time prices, mid-day updates from sexy starletts.....The site was profiled in a bunch of newspapers, and it got a fair amount of traffic when it first launched, but it was ahead of its time and soon folded...

But...today's NY Times article...excerpted herein--suggests that VC's are warming up to the idea that sex-related businesses might be a good investment. Duh. Rick's Cabaret (NASDAQ :RICK) shareholders could have told you that.. And what about the literally tens of millions of dollars being generated by professional companies operating online video chatting platforms--little overhead (and still littler underwear)..

Several former Wall Street investors are now specializing in marrying mainstream money with companies that offer such content or products. Separately, a handful of venture capitalists have already financed start-ups that receive a big chunk of revenue from making or distributing sexual content or products, and others are considering such investments.

Jimmyjane, a San Francisco company that sells sex-related consumer products including high-end vibrators (a gold-plated one sells for $250), has six venture capitalists among its investors. The company’s chief executive said he was close to completing a $3 million to $5 million round of financing with one or more funds — not merely individual venture capitalists but marquee funds.

“It will be a watershed,” said Jimmyjane’s chief executive, Ethan Imboden, formerly a design consultant to Nike, Motorola and other mainstream brands. He said the deal could be among the first major venture fund investments in an overtly sexually themed business.

The involvement of mainstream investors in such companies is still very much in its infancy, and even those with a vested interest in developing it say it may not evolve further. There are considerable hurdles, chiefly and simply the discomfort of many in being affiliated with products and services they consider immoral or that they think could tarnish their reputations.

In addition, investors are dubious that these companies can turn a sufficient profit to justify the risk. Pointedly, investors may find it tough to take sex-related companies public, or find big companies to acquire them, limiting their profit-making exit strategies. And the universities and endowments that invest in private equity funds and venture capitalists are not likely to approve deals they see as pornographic, investment bankers said.

But there are also som

Bull Riding=The Next NASCAR

Sounds crazy? Don't bet against it.
As a matter of fact, smart money is betting ON it--including a few hedge fund traders that have proven to be prescient in just about every move they've made.

Amongst all sports categories, bull riding has had the greatest growth i.e. TV viewership in the last four years, and attendance at major tourneys is increasing by mid double digits.

Why? Think David vs. Goliath. Man Meets Animal in Sporting Arena.
Testosterone at its finest--and the sponsors are quickly beginning to appreciate the many different angles at which they can tatoo their logo. Thrilling, exciting, physically stimulating.

This is a sport that doesn't need a Spice Girl's husband to spice up the entertainment..This is no bullshit bull riding and 20 seconds of pure entertainment.

While soccer tries to be the next football, bull riding IS going to be the next NASCAR. You read it here.