Ann Arbor has it all: the University of Michigan, great shopping, bars and restaurants and amazing concert venues. It also has a vitality that few college towns across the country can boast. It's the kind of city that draws in undergrads and then keeps them for good.
Toss a rock into the air and it'd be hard not to hit a cafe, bistro, or high-tech startup. From its ever-thriving summer
Art Fair to its venerable
Film Festival, the city consistently tops national quality of life surveys --
Forbes,
Money/CNN,
Sperlings, the list goes on and on. Its school system is first rate, green spaces dominate the landscape and nearly 70% of the population holds a college degree. This small but mighty city is Michigan's leader in innovation.
Jon Zemke
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
When it comes to building a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem, Kurt Riegger, COO of OcuSciences, argues that there's no lack of ideas or innovations in Ann Arbor. Talent with enough experience to execute on those ideas may be another question. Riegger has launched, funded, and advised 26 companies, and chats with Concentrate about what our community needs to succeed.
Jon Zemke
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Ann Arbor-based ForeSee Results has seen growth every quarter of its existence. That's a pretty impressive track record for this U-M spin out. CEO and co-founder Larry Freed talks about his home grown approach to hiring, our area's startup climate, and what we need to keep and attract more young talent.
Natalie Burg
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
The student-run MPowered is U-M's startup for startups. Living up to its name, it has not only prodded the university into offering more classes in entrepreneurship, it has also attracted a community of business-minded students through its 1000 Pitches Summit and annual Career Fair. This year they debut "Startup Weekend," a 54-hour event which seeks to create a web or mobile applications business in a weekend.
Jon Zemke
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
The idea of establishing a pedestrian mall in downtown Ann Arbor has long been discussed but never acted upon. Concentrate's Jon Zemke looks at how some communities have found great success with their people-only plazas, but most have encountered failure. Would Tree Town buck the odds or struggle like the rest?
Jon Zemke
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
One excels at style. The other, substance. But when it comes to nurturing an entrepreneurial ecosystem, both matter. Jon Zemke attends Silicon Valley's quarterly Founder Showcase and our own annual business plan competition, Accelerate Michigan, and finds a clash of both cultures and community.
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