Ann Arbor SPARK Celebrates 10 Years Of Helping Businesses Grow In Region
By Edward Cardenas
ANN ARBOR (CBS Detroit) - Ann Arbor SPARK celebrated a decade of business acceleration, attraction and retention Monday at its annual meeting.
By marketing the region and meeting with growing businesses, Ann Arbor SPARK was responsible for $238 million in new investment commitments and assisted 253 startups in the past year, according to the organization's annual report.
"Ten years ago, Ann Arbor SPARK's founding board and executive committee had a vision for this region to be a nationally known center for innovation, vibrant business growth, and world class talent," said Tim Marshall, president and CEO of Arbor Bancorp, Inc. and Bank of Ann Arbor, and chair of Ann Arbor SPARK's board of directors, in a release. "The many contributions and hard work that so many people from across the Ann Arbor region have invested to ensure our future success is a model for other communities, and is an example of what collaboration can achieve."
The annual meeting highlighted Ann Arbor SPARK's work in 2014 along with its business leadership awards.
In the past year, the organization attracted and retained 30 projects and 1,279 jobs announced in the region. Ann Arbor SPARK also awarded seven microloans and four pre-seed capital investments to emerging businesses.
Business leadership awards were given to:
- Volunteer of the Year, Albert M. Berriz, who is co-managing member, chief executive officer, board member and co-owner of McKinley. He worked to revitalize Ann Arbor's Liberty Street corridor, which in recent years has become home to leading technology companies such as Barracuda Networks and Pillar Technology, as well as retail and dining.
- Entrepreneurial Company of the Year, Seelio, which partners with universities and colleges to offer software and services that help students connect the dots between their education and career goals. Seelio, an incubator client at SPARK Central since 2011, was the inaugural client of SPARK's expanded space for second-stage companies. To date, Seelio has raised more than $1.5 million, and employs more than 20 people.
- Toyota, which has invested more than $300 million in Ann Arbor and created 600 new jobs since 2006, received the Business Development Project of the Year. Ann Arbor SPARK has provided support to Toyota throughout its expansions, including securing incentives from state and local partners, supporting talent relocating from other locations and recruiting employees.
"It's remarkable to look back 10 years and see how far we've come and how those seeds of economic prosperity planted then are starting to flourish now," said Ann Arbor SPARK president and CEO Paul Krutko in a release. "The Ann Arbor region benefits from having invested in entrepreneurism years ago: Companies are going from startup to market so much faster today than at that time, thanks to the support from Ann Arbor SPARK, LDFA, and other partners in the ecosystem that's grown here. For established businesses, having Ann Arbor SPARK as a central hub for critical resources – talent, incentives, site selection – helps them capitalize on growth opportunities more efficiently than ever before."
