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The Stars of Gazelle Lab Demo Day

On November 1, 2011, in Education, Entrepreneurship, Research & Development, Hillsborough County, Pinellas County, by Sustainable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Alliance at USF St. Petersburg

Gray Robinson and the Sustainable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Alliance at USFSP present Gazelle Lab Demo Day, 9am, Thursday, November 17, 2011 at the Mahaffey Theater as part of St. Petersburg Entrepreneurship Month and Global Entrepreneurship Week. During the morning, each of the six Gazelle Lab companies will pitch for investment. In the afternoon, students from the region’s universities will pitch for investment from a distinguished panel of entrepreneurs.

Your Hostess: Rachel Fine

In addition to working as a TV Host for the Howard Stern Show, Rachel Fine is regularly seen reporting from the red carpets of New York Fashion Week and celebrity charity events. Outside of television, Rachel has built a global fan base who know her best as a singer/songwriter from Brooklyn, New York. She recently released her debut album, “Own Your Own”; a neo-soul/trip-hop blend that pulsates with dark confessions and haunting melodies. Rachel also writes for The Huffington Post and owns Next Big Thing, LLC, a social media marketing company. More info at www.rachelfine.com.

Your Student Pitch Judges: Kevin Harrington, Gerry Hogan & Tom Wallace

Kevin Harrington, chairman and founder of TVGoods, Inc., is widely acknowledged as a pioneer and principal architect of the infomercial industry, having been involved with over 500 product launches that resulted in sales of over $4 billion worldwide with 20 products that reached individual sales of over $100 million. Prior to starring as an investor “Shark” on the ABC series Shark Tank, Kevin founded Quantum International, Ltd., led HSN Direct (a joint venture with Home Shopping Network), was CEO of Reliant International Media, and established both EO and the Electronic Retailing Association.

Gerry Hogan serves as the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Cygnus Publishing Company. From May 1997 to June 2000, Mr. Hogan served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Cygnus Business Media, Inc. He served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Home Shopping Network from February 1993 to September 1995. Prior thereto, he served as Vice Chairman of Whittle Communications, LP from October 1990 to February 1993. From October 1971 to September 1987, he held various positions at Turner Entertainment Networks and most recently, served as its President. Mr. Hogan co-founded Endurance Business Media, Inc., in 2001 and has been its Chairman since September 2003. He has been a Director of Sportsline.com, Inc. since November 1996. He is a Private Investor. He serves as a Trustee at Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, Inc.

Tom Wallace is the CEO of Red Vector. Tom spent two years on Microsoft’s Partner Advisory Council, has served as a judge for Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, serves on the board of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tampa Bay, is a past Trustee of the University of Tampa, and is the co-founder and former president of the Tampa Bay Technology Forum (TBTF).

The Gazelle Guys: Brent Britton, Bill Jackson, John Morrow, Marvin Scaff and Daniel James Scott

Brent Britton is the only graduate of the MIT Media Laboratory who is a lawyer. Recently described by 83 Degrees magazine as “arguably the most sought after one-man think tank for entrepreneurs across Central Florida,” Brent Britton has been helping companies for more than 20 years in Boston, San Francisco & the Silicon Valley, New York, and Florida. His forthcoming book, “Ideas2Money – Start Up Your Startup” answers the question, “I’ve got a great idea for a startup. What do I do next?” Alongside his position as chair of the Emerging Business and Technology practice group at GrayRobinson in Tampa, Brent has started a bunch of his own companies. He writes and speaks constantly. He lives in South Tampa with his wife and two children. He is admitted to practice law in California, New York, and Florida. Learn more about him at brentbritton.com.

Bill Jackson is the Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and Director of the Sustainable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Alliance at USF St. Petersburg’s College of Business. He also serves as the Managing Editor of the Journal of Business & Entrepreneurship and Vice President of Member Services for the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE). Bill received his masters degree in Management at Troy University, and doctoral degree in Strategic Management from the University of Memphis.

Over the past 30+ years, John Morrow has started and grown a number of technology companies in the areas of software, instrumentation, automation, and digital media. Currently, he provides strategic management consulting services to clients in technology-based industries. John also serves as the Entrepreneur-In-Residence with the Sustainable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Alliance at USF St. Petersburg’s College of Business.

Marvin Scaff is a software entrepreneur and technology innovator, lead developer of multiple 1.0 products. Played a significant role in many successful companies that were later acquired. Former founder, CEO, CTO and EIR for a venture capital fund that had a successful portfolio company IPO and later acquisition for $1.5B. Have filed over 12 patent applications for inventions in the last 3 years.

Daniel James Scott has been recognized as “an accomplished entrepreneur” by the Tampa Bay Business Journal, one of “10 who make Tampa Bay area’s economic outlook brighter” by the St. Petersburg Times and one of “Florida’s economic impact players” by Florida Trend for his work with the Sustainable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Alliance at USF St. Petersburg’s College of Business. Previously having founded technology companies in the consulting and entertainment industries, he has most recently developed backend web solutions for Alorum, Maddux Business Report, the University of South Florida, and a number of others. Daniel holds two graduate degrees in Entrepreneurship, is Tampa Bay chapter head for Entrepreneur Commons, and co-author of Building the Ultimate Business Plan, used to train entrepreneurs at Small Business Development Centers around the country.

The Gazelle Lab Companies

AutoIQ – Ever get that grumbly feeling in your stomach when the “Check Engine” light comes on? AutoIQ will tell you what’s what. It’s like FitBit for your car and auto expenses.
Kngroo – What activities are there to do around St. Petersburg (American Style’s 2011 #1 Mid-Sized City for Art) during my Demo Day visit? Build an adventure using Kngroo’s mobile app. To start you off, we’ll give you the St. Petersburg Chamber’s Kngroo when you arrive.
Dropost.it – What’s the best way to show your significant other that you care? Be there. Second best? Be there virtually by dropping them a gift where they are at. Imagine your spouse walking into a Starbucks, when they check their phone to find that you have left a Dropost.it a gift of free coffee. Nice!
Leads Direct – Tampa Bay is known for real estate. We have a lot of it. Ever wondered how all the property owners and managers meet? The Leads Direct team has studied this for years, and has chased the inefficiencies out of the market.
Red Hawk Interactive – All we are legally allowed to say is that Demo Day will mark the end of the DVD.
Teburu – Why is online food ordering such a hassle? Why do all online restaurant ordering systems look like they were developed in the late nineties? Teburu is about to change that, from the restaurant capital of the world.