Graeme Thickins on Tech

Reflections & analysis about innovation, technology, startups, investing, healthcare, and more .... with a focus on Minnesota, Land of 10,000 Lakes. Blogging continuously since 2005.

Tag: Techmeme

Split Rock Coughs Up Big Bucks for Local Firm (Do Tell)

February 23, 2007 / / 2 Comments

But don’t get too excited — it’s just another late-stage deal. Why are we not surprised? Gearworks, as reported by the Pioneer Press, just closed on yet another $21 million in VC, of which our local Split Rock Partners contributed $7.5 million. Pilesofcash The partner on the deal is, of course, Michael Gorman. Yes, that’s a lot of money in a single round for a MN tech firm. And it now means that Gearworks has raised — are you ready? — a total of $59 million since its founding back in 1999. Of course, they blew threw a lot of that cash in a model since adandoned, but they seem to be onto a real market now for location-based services. Gearworkslogo It must be a good market, because for this much money to be invested, and now the conservative late-stage guys coming in, there has to be a big payback seen just over the horizon. [IPO?] Well, less so of a payback for the late-stage money, I guess…

But all this big-bucks stuff has little meaning to people in the early-stage investment world, where I know most of us live. For a strange juxtaposition to the above news, check out this video of the latest panel that Guy Kawasaki moderated. It’s amazing how companies today can get launched with so little capital — at least when the Internet is central to what they do. Many of ’em all but thumb their noses at VCs — I hear it all the time. One guy I heard it from recently was Gabe Rivera, founder of Techmeme, chatting with him last month at CES/Bloghaus. What some of these guys are able to do, with such minimal startup funding, is amazing. More power to ’em!

DEMO, I Miss Ya!

February 9, 2007 / / 4 Comments

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Okay, I especially miss your weather! Palm Desert was sooo nice…I recall fondly as I gaze at some quick photos I took, like this one of the palms and the mountains, while I busily hustled between conference sessions and networking opportunites at DEMO…..

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Then I had the misfortune, late last Friday, of returning to Minnesota — just as the coldest temps in seven years were moving in! I’m talking several days in a row where it never even got above zero, all day long (!!)…and lows overnight all this time have consistently been down between minus 10 and minus 20 F.

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This is insane! I should be in California. I have a place at the beach I can work from for cryin’ out loud! Trouble is, most of my client base is here in the Twin Cities. And yes, friends, I am now officially back out blogging and stirring up trouble consulting, fulltime. Wish me well! [Or should I say: startups beware! Graeme’s on the prowl again… 🙂 ]

But note to self after the past week: “Expand your client base, Graeme. Sign up one or more California-based clients — soon! — before you turn into a block of ice.”

Ideas and leads for those client relationships gladly accepted, o valued blog readers (especially you California ones). Graeme’s for hire! Whether for new-media consulting, marketing strategy, messaging and communications, content development….and, well, you get the idea.

Now, let me get back to thawing out my feet!

[By the way, I have to mention some very cool link-love I got from my DEMO attendance and coverage last week. These two were especially nice: the post Brian Solis, of PR2.0 fame, did on the opening DEMO party….and DEMOletter’s Complete DEMO 07 Coverage, which appeared soon after the event. On the opening day, I even made it onto TechMeme’s home page at one point, thanks either to Katie Fehrenbacher of GigaOm linking to me, or Gabe Rivera doing so — haven’t figured that one out yet.]

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