SquareHub emerges with high-profile backers and a goal to connect families

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Dave Cotter is a divorced father of three girls — a busy guy who struggles to keep up with his family’s hectic schedule. “My ex wife and I were just looking for a better way to stay coordinated,” says Cotter, a well known entrepreneur who previously served as a general manager at Amazon.com. From that personal… Read More…

Proof of concept: Majority of angel investments made in revenue producing startups

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Angel investors historically have placed bets at the earliest stages of a company’s formation, oftentimes when the business is nothing more than an idea on the back of a napkin. But as the venture capital marketplace shifts, so is angel investing. According to a new report out today from The Angel Resource Institute, Silicon Valley Bank and CB Insights,… Read More…

After bootstrapping to $10M in sales, BizX scores real cash for virtual currency

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Why pay cash, when you can just trade for services? That’s the question driving BizX, which is not your traditional startup. Founded in 2002 by Bob Bagga, Chris Haddawy and Raj Kapoor, the Bellevue-based online bartering service last year posted revenue of $10 million after helping to facilitate more than $60 million in transactions. Not bad… Read More…

Relaborate scores cash to help big brands figure out what to write about

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Relaborate has raised more than $500,000 in a first round of funding, money that the Seattle startup will use to continue to developing what it dubs a “smart content marketing engine” for companies. As part of the round, some of the company’s initial users have become angel investors. “We help solve problems businesses face by… Read More…

Welcome to the Northwest (where startups are cheaper than the Valley)

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I got a call last week from a Bay Area venture capitalist who was gathering intel on the Pacific Northwest, wondering what the region was all about and how they might be able to make a mark in this mossy land. Part of the discussion turned to valuations, and we discussed how a VC’s dollar… Read More…

Yes, it really is harder to land that series A round from VCs

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A lot has been made about the so-called “series A crunch” — the idea that it is increasingly challenging for early-stage companies to continue to raise financing as they move beyond the idea stage. That’s always been the case in the startup arena with more carnage in the earliest of stages of development. But a… Read More…

Obituary: Angel investor Bob Arnold helped dozens of entrepreneurs take flight

Robert Arnold. Photo via The New York Times

Seattle lost one of its most prolific angel investors last month when former banking executive Robert Arnold died at the age of 84 after a brief illness. Arnold was one of the most active angel investors in the Pacific Northwest, using his skills as a banker as well as his love of people to discover… Read More…

Find the perfect birthday spot: PlaceFull lands $1M to connect busy parents with hot venues

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Seattle startup PlaceFull has reeled in $1 million in cash to continue building out a service for helping folks find the perfect party spot — whether laser tag, pottery painting or educational day camps. We previously reported on $500,000 of the round, which was provided by Seattle angels last year. At the time, the company… Read More…

PetHub scores cash to make sure Fido, Rover and Spot never go missing again

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Dogs and cats go missing every day, but Seattle startup PetHub wants to help discover those wayward canines and felines via the power of technology. The three-year-old company, maker of a QR code pet-finding tag that attaches to a pet’s collar, just landed $375,000 of $750,000 round. Part of the funding is coming via angel investor… Read More…

Seattle super angels sink cash in shopping app Zoomingo

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Some of Seattle’s top angel investors are tossing their support behind Zoomingo, the mobile shopping application developed by serial entrepreneur Shirish Nadkarni. Investing in the new round are former Facebook general counsel Rudy Gadre, former Smilebox CEO Andrew Wright and former Twango CEO Serena Glover. Total funding in Zoomingo, which raised $1.3 million from Benaroya… Read More…