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• imiummammimmumairiititiVammonnommamiamme SAINT PAUL PIONEER PRESS 25 TH SEPTEMBER 1995 sic-most MONDAY 6 PAGES BUSINESS TWIN CITIES DAVE BEAL lir Local man has stake in helping companies hatch Harlan Jacobs knows the tors around the world that offer the same combs- stints as successful entrepreneurs.who act quiet- mean'ng of creativity,if hisnation. ly on their own to finance promising start-ups. Genesis business incubator in "It's absolutely unique in the Twin Cities,and They have come to play a greater role in recent Columbia rns.And lets is any indi- j a welcome addition to the entrepreneurial world years as the more traditional sources of capital caput the here,"she says. —banks,venture capital firms,variousother emphasis on the word his. : Most often,business incubators are owned and financing institutions—have shied away from Jacobs owns 100 percent of operated by universities or other nonprofits,or the risks of small,early-stage companies. the incubator,Which functions by developers. Jacobs and attorney Brad Lehrman,president as a closed-end venture capi- Typically,the incubators offer shared services of Portage Capital in Bloomington,launched the 401 tel fund in the sense that it STAFF COLUMNIST —communications facilities,secretarial services Minnesota Private Investor Enterprise network owns stakes in all seven of or links to various small-business networks— last year.The group consists of business angels, the privately held companies occupying space designed to help capital-pinched entrepreneurs who have met seven times over the past year in there.And in a related venture,be has plugged batch their companies.Hundreds of them have a banquet room at the top of the IDS Center to two of the seven—Comedicus and Ashints popped up across the country since the late hear presentations from entrepreneurs seeking Technologies--into more than$1 million each 1970s.But Jacobs'personal stake in the comps- capital. of early-stage financing from business angels. nies and his role in connecting them with bus'. 'There's a real need for support by these com- Candace Campbell,a fellow at the University nets angels sets Genesis apart from most of the panies,"says Jacobs."It's being filled by incuba- of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute and a past rest. chair of the National Business Incubator Business angels usually are older investors, Association,knows of only a handful of incuba- often retired from high-paid executive posts or BEAL cowmen*.3E► BEAL/Busing la ess 'angels,els' keyrole play a ■Visual Circuits,which is devel- "It's difficult to put this in a V coniiNJEDcam:E oping hardware and software for bottle and take it on the road,'she personal computers. says."It's not just about being a tors and business angels." a Data Machine International, smart person with money." The Genesis incubator,which is which bolds a patent for speeding Campbell calls Jacobs a good the second-largest tenant in the up data processing transactions by self-promoter,but she says that's Columbia Heights Business Center reconfiguring disk drive operating part of the recipe that got Genesis at 3989 Central Ave.,could be- systems. off the ground. come the largest if it meets Ja- Jacobs,46,is a man who thinks "He's just sort of relentless," cobs'expectations. big thoughts she says."I think he's doing the The 2-year-old incubator has He was appointed by Sen.Rod right thirmg." support from the Anoka County Grams to be one of Minnesota's 34 Dave Beat Is senior business editor.His Economic Development Partner- delegates to the White House Con- column appears Sundays.Mondays and ship and the Anoka County Capital Terence on Small Business this Fes. Fund,a related entity backed by year. the county and a consortium of He began wiring himself into eight banks and a utility.A third the network of Twin Cities inves- group with ties to both of these tors mostly through his experience III two.the Anoka County Investment as chief financial officer at Film- Club,has put money into two Gen- Tee,winch was acquired in 1985 esis companies. by Dow Chemical.He says the big Jacobs estimates that the seven gainsihe rang up from investments Re- companies housed at Genesis now c the stocksry ef Engineering have and n employ 30 people.One Genesis-in- him theuesto given cubated company,SurVivaLink, hem the resources getw the up a has graduated to its own site in teruand the angels'network and Minnetonka and has 25 workers running. and annual sales of$1.5 million. Jacobs gets his pieces of the ac- "It was very helpful for us,"By- non in Genesis companies through 1111.1115 eon Gilman fromtior soul mil": swans.He'll oav the rent heln