“Angels” do have wings ”“ only more reluctant to take a chance on a fledgling company in this age of economic uncertainty.
Assessing Capital in the Hudson Valley was the networking event several Hudson Valley hopefuls came to Jan. 11 at Homewood Suites in Stewart International Airport, hoping to come away with good news from angel investors.
Among the panel of venture capitalists from Upstate Venture Associates of New York-Hudson Valley were Michael Petri, vice president of Summer Streets Capital Partners; Richard Schneider, managing director, Easton Capital Investment Group; Charles DiComo, vice president of operations and COO for Aureon Biosciences; and James Taylor, president, Taylor Biomass L.L.C. Sam Tichnor, vice president of Corporate Fuel Advisors, acted as moderator for the panel.
Businesses looking for funding had an opportunity to learn how to prepare for an upcoming round, what investors look for and what pitfalls to avoid,” said UVANY president Michael Lasch of Pine Street Capital Partners.
“It was a great opportunity to partner with UVANY for the second year in a row, along with the Orange County Business Accelerator and others who helped sponsor the event,” said Michael Oates, president and CEO of the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp. in New Windsor. “The purpose is to give local entrepreneurs an opportunity to get in front of potential investors and let the investors who might be interested follow up.
“This year, we had two specific local companies, Taylor Biomass and Aureon Biosciences on the panel. Dr. DiComo is one of the founding members of Bio-Hud Valley and presented his own ”˜angel capital”™ investment story to the panel and to the entrepreneurs. Ditto for James Taylor, who presented the history of his biomass project, winning investors who believed in his vision and raising the necessary capital for the business,” Oates said. “He detailed raising the capital for his 13-year quest to get this biomass facility built, including the pitfalls and challenges he faced as he moved forward. It was great to have two local companies be part of the ”˜angel investing board.”™”
Oates said the evening also helped potential businesses by giving them the opportunity to hone their speaking skills and prepare to be more concise in their presentations to angel investors, telling them who and what they can do succinctly, but with gusto.
Among the Orange County Business Accelerator tenants who participated were Array Optronix and Continental Organics. “It was really a cross-section of some of the counties currently here in the mid-Hudson, some that have taken root, and others who have unique and innovative ideas for products or services,” he said.
With an unstable economy, Oates said regional cooperation and coordination is critical for economic development. Angel capital is out there, but those looking to back startups are being more cautious and want to be a little more than 99 44/100 percent sure they are making a decision that will produce a return on their investment.
“At HVEDC, we are very excited about what Governor Cuomo is proposing. He is right on target when he says economic development programs need to grow from the ground up. He”™s echoing what we have said for years, but he understands how vital it is. We”™ve reached out to Lieutenant Governor Duffy to offer a briefing on the strengths of our own HVEDC and our strategic partners. We are in an excellent position to compete for those dollars Gov. Cuomo will be offering.
“I don”™t think full scope of these councils have been fully developed. When you talk about the amount of money in pool and competitive bases, we are well-positioned by growing Bio-Hud Valley for the lower Hudson Valley and solar and renewable energy projects in the upper portion of the region. Including SUNY to play a role in economic development is an excellent idea. Bringing together the state”™s resources and strengths will help us to maximize structuring of deals. The lack of communication between state agencies may well become a thing of he past; Cuomo has made it clear he views jobs and job creation as the most important role of the new administration. It”™s music to our ears, and we are thrilled to have a governor committed and focused on improving the economy. , he”™s made it clear he views jobs as the most important. It”™s music to our ears, since, up to now, we”™ve had to scratch and claw to get any kind of attention from Albany.”
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