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Biography app Tellmystory takes top prize at Startup Weekend Iowa City

4845_c69ec54e74_small October 8, 2012 by Macy Koch

Iowa City Tellmystory walked away as the winner of Startup Weekend Iowa City on Sunday night. The team's app, which is designed to preserve memories through text, audio and video, resonated with judges and audience members alike. Three teams participated in Sunday night's final pitch session at the John Pappajohn Business Building on the campus of the University of Iowa. The pitches marked the conclusion of a weekend-long effort by those teams to build the … read more

NEWS

Meet the teams of Startup Weekend Iowa City

4834_851b1bc781_small October 6, 2012 by Michael Stacy

Iowa City The second Startup Weekend Iowa City is nearing the conclusion of its second day, and three teams are plugging away inside the University of Iowa's Pappajohn Business Building in preparation for a Sunday night finale. About 15 of the event's 25 participants gave one-minute pitches during Friday night's opening pitch session, event co-organizer Shannon Younger said in a phone call today. Teams formed around four of those ideas, and three teams remain … read more

NEWS

Iowa City to host second Startup Weekend Oct. 5-7

4756_f33924abbe_small September 20, 2012 by Michael Stacy

Iowa City Startup Weekend Iowa City is back for a second go-around Oct. 5-7, and tickets are still available for developers, designers and businesspeople. The weekend-long event, which is designed to help participants learn the basics of founding startups and launching successful ventures, will take place inside the John Pappajohn Business Building (21 East Market St.) on the campus of the University of Iowa. Like at other Startup Weekend events, participants … read more

SERIES

Add a bonus to your boring employee benefits plan

4651_a364e8484c_small August 24, 2012 by Guest Contributor

Iowa City (Guest post by Josh Cramer.) Before you gouge your eyes out thinking I'm going to launch into a seminar on 401Ks or a rant on how screwed up our health care system is, let's step back and consider another side of employee benefits. Sure, we offer a health care plan and IRA plan to our to our employees, but that's not what I want to talk about today. I've always felt that if this company is successful, the whole team should share in the success and be rewarded. Stock options are one traditional way to reward key employees after they meet certain benchmarks with the company. A stock option plan does a couple things for the company and the members of the team: (1) it creates an incentive for each team member to stick it out at the company; and (2) once exercised … read more

NEWS

Seedlauncher set to help small businesses crowdfund

4490_cb5d74603d_small July 24, 2012 by Sarah Binder

Iowa City If crowdfunding sites weren't already on the rise, the passage of the JOBS Act earlier this year propelled more to jump into the sphere dominated by platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo. Seedlauncher, which went live from its Iowa City offices July 8, hopes to bring a homegrown crowdfunding choice to Iowa's small businesses. "We're hyperlocal. …  read more

SERIES

Prairie Portrait: Wesley Beary of Heroku

4500_2082b50a4f_small July 23, 2012 by Michael Stacy

Iowa City Silicon Prairie News: What drove your decision late last year to join Heroku? | Wesley Beary: By that time I had been working almost entirely on fog for over a year. I was quite happy with where that took the project, but the challenge of it and the rate at which I was learning had greatly declined. So I decided to try something new and jumped in the deep end at Heroku so that I could get my growth and learning back on the right track. | SPN: You've spoken before on "how you learned to stop worrying and love the cloud." What was the source of your initial trepidation about the cloud, and what caused you to come around? | WB: Before I started working on fog it already seemed that the writing was on the wall; cloud services were going … read more

SERIES

Prairie Portrait: Sophie Milord, senior at the University of Iowa

4447_03caf9caff_small July 12, 2012 by Michael Stacy

Iowa City Silicon Prairie News: You're working on a project tentatively called "Shakespeare in the Kitchen." Can you explain what the project is and what your goals are for it? | Sophie Milord: “Shakespeare in the Kitchen” is a fun project that appeals to my creative side. It is a cheerful product line of kitchen apparel and décor. Playing on the passionate nature of Shakespeare’s expression of love in his work, all the pieces in the collection will feature a slightly modified quotation on the topic of love. This variation is where the uniqueness of the product manifests itself. The quotations will be humorous yet recognizable, hopefully generating appeal across a wide market. My plan is currently to start showing prototypes at craft shows. All products will be sustainably produced, featuring organic … read more

NEWS

FarmHack: Iowa hopes to open source a small-farming movement

4300_a99ade69ff_small June 13, 2012 by Sarah Binder

Iowa City The entrepreneurial spirit of a Startup Weekend is coming soon to a farm in Iowa. FarmHack: Iowa, a project of the National Young Farmers' Coalition, will bring small farmers together to connect and solve problems. They'll convene in Mechanicsville and Iowa City, June 20-21. "I've always been an entrepreneur," presenter Grant Schultz said. "I think a lot of people … read more

NEWS

Busy Coworking carves out shared workspace in downtown Iowa City

4021_8f2ebc53d6_small April 23, 2012 by Michael Stacy

Iowa City A new coworking spot in Iowa City is open for business. And for busyness. Busy Coworking earlier this month officially opened the doors to its third-floor space at 218 East Washington St. It's starting small but has plenty of room to grow as it aims to provide affordable, comfortable workspace to independent professionals in downtown Iowa City. The opening was the culmination of a year worth of work by co-founders Sheila Samuelson and Jordan Running. Samuelson, a sustainable business … read more

SERIES

Prairie Portrait: Fredrick Galoso, senior at the University of Iowa

4001_0eae1bebf0_small April 19, 2012 by Michael Stacy

Iowa City Silicon Prairie News: What does your typical schedule look like when you're juggling school, Stackd, KRUI, Bridgestone and — if there's any time left — enjoying your waning time as a college student? | Fredrick Galoso: Believe it or not, it's not too bad. I schedule my classes to be as one big block as much as possible, and usually I get done with class each day before 1 p.m. Then from 1 to about 5 every day I devote time to day-job type activities. After that, I split time with homework, extracurriculars, Stackd and hanging out with friends until I go to sleep. It can take a lot of focus and discipline, but it's amazing how much you can get done. I'm all about … read more

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