Out to launch: great start-up stories from CIE alumni

In the 14 years that CIE has produced its annual Business Plan Competition, we’ve had 2,768 students (891 teams) participate in the spring event. We’ve awarded $1.08 million in seed funding to 95 winning teams. Many of them have gone on to make us proud. Here are updates on four of them.

Gravity Payments is the largest payment processor in Washington state. Dan Price, founder and CEO of Gravity Payments, started Gravity Payments in 2004 during his freshman year at Seattle Pacific University. The company has grown by focusing on customer service, transparency and low rates. The company won Second Prize and the Best Service/Retail Idea Prize in the 2007 UW Business Plan Competition.

Dan Price named Small Business Administration Young Entrepreneur of the Year for 2010 by President Obama
Increased revenue by 70% in 2010
Has grown from 45 to 65 employees in the first five months of 2011
Serves nearly 10,000 customers around the United States
Donated over $100,000 in 2010 to non-profits focused on alleviating global poverty, local poverty, local disease research and prevention and other local community needs

Cadence Biomedical (formerly Empowering Engineering Technologies) is developing a new class of kinetic orthotic products based on proprietary technologies that utilize long springs and a series of cams to amplify muscular strength for people with disabilities. Cadence’s products provide therapeutic rehabilitation for people who would otherwise require wheelchairs for mobility. The company won Second Prize and the Best Technology Idea Prize in the 2010 UW Business Plan Competition.

Helped a woman with Lou Gehrig’s Disease take her first steps on her own since 2005
Secured $310,000 in equity financing and $280,000 in non-dilutive grants from the US Army
Received regulatory approval to begin a scientific study investigating the benefits of the device and is seeking research subjects with severe mobility impairments in the greater Seattle area to test the prototype device
Changed the company name to better describe its mission and establish the company’s brand as it moves forward to product launch
Was one of six technology start-ups chosen as finalists by the MIT Enterprise Forum of the Northwest and presented the device at the Northwest Start-up DEMO event in May

Krochet Kidz is a non-profit that exists to empower people to rise above poverty. Their slogan is “Buy a Hat, Change a Life.” They won the Best Non-Profit/Socially Responsible Prize in the 2008 UW Business Plan Competition.

Sells its products in Active Ride Shops, Zebra Club Stores and Nordstrom’s department stores across the United States, as well as online
Has grown from employing 10 women to over 100 people in Northern Uganda, enabling more than 600 people to have the food, water, clothing and education necessary to lead healthy, productive lives
Plans to launch a similar program in Peru in 2011
Featured in a Bing commercial

Emergent Detection created a patent-pending optical sensor technology that has a variety of applications within the health space. The company’s initial product, BodyKey, gives weight-loss seekers an immediate reading of how much fat they have burned from their diet and fitness efforts. Additionally, the accompanying web-based application provides useful tools that allow users to track their daily progress, helps them select foods and exercise programs that are ideal for their body and provides accurate forecasting so they know how long it will take to reach their weight loss goal. The company won a Finalist Prize in the 2010 UW Business Plan Competition.

Secured $330,000 in funding, both angel investors and non-dilutive capital from grants and awards
Produced functional engineering prototypes of the BodyKey™ device. Over the last eight months co-founder Eric Fogel, as “Exhibit A” for the company, has lost more than 60 pounds using the device
Working with a product development firm to produce the next generation units, which will deploy into a field beta test with users later this summer
Attended the first Quantified Self Conference in Silicon Valley in May, where technology enthusiasts and early adopters gave the start-up great feedback and opportunities for partnering