OtherNew Regional Angel Conference in Roseburg
Contributed by Alex Campbell,The Partnership for Economic Development in Douglas County
RAIN (Roseburg area Angel Investment Network) is an effort to foster a better environment for entrepreneurship in Douglas County. The primary vehicle is a private company (an LLC), through which local investors are coming together to invest in one early stage company. The larger effort, being organized by The Partnership for Economic Development in Douglas County and the Umpqua Business Center, includes a business plan competition, a series of training events, and a conference in November (November 13 at the Danny Lang Center at Umpqua Community College).
The primary goals are:
- Increase seed capital availability for regional early stage companies.
- Build awareness and knowledge of local entrepreneurs and investors about direct equity investment.
RAIN is a community effort of investors and local resources. Entrepreneurs will receive hands-on experience in developing a business plan, pitching an equity investor, and understanding deal structure. Our local investor community will be trained on how to evaluate potential direct equity investments and how to structure such investments. RAIN is calling for the best and brightest early stage companies to compete for an estimated $125,000 to $150,000 seed capital investment. The RAIN LLC invites applications from the following types of businesses:
- Companies with a potential for growth/scalability.
- Companies with some evidence of a market in terms of revenues are preferred, but exceptional pre-revenue companies with a high degree of advancement in the development of products and intellectual property are also welcome to apply.
- At a minimum, companies should have proof of concept or prototypes.
- Successful applicants are likely seeking a round of funding from $150,000 to half a million dollars.
- Oregon businesses only.
Investors have a strong preference for local or regional companies. Firms must be willing to give up a portion of their equity in return for this investment.
Application instructions are available through www.rainangel.org .The deadline for submission will be September 9, 2013.
The RAIN effort is supplementing – and building upon – a variety of other resources available in the area that are also working to support small business growth and entrepreneurship in Douglas County. These resources include:
The Umpqua Business Center (UBC): a business incubator located in downtown Roseburg.
UmpquaCommunity College’s Small Business Development Center, housed at UBC.
NeighborWorks Umpqua: a regional community development corporation supporting micro-enterprise development through several programs.
Young Entrepreneur Society of Umpqua: individuals meeting and networking to support the climate of entrepreneurship.
