Janco Damas

While years of teamwork in the trenches can’t be easily replaced, quick camaraderie can be found by collectively free falling into a competitive run without much warning. We were called to arrive on Charles Street between Boston Common and the Public Garden for a 7:15 p.m. start. The race actually began earlier that morning for us. In the office after receiving shirts and racing tags, there was a heightened sense of imminent exhaustion, but the intensity with which we refused to be bothered by the challenge also increased.

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Scott LaPierre, a multimedia editor and video journalist for the Boston Globe, is busy planning for a future where more news is being consumed in visual formats. Although companies such as Pixability are sprouting up to help companies advertise in videos, video as a vehicle for advertising remains barely tapped producing just, 10 percent of all digital ad revenue according to a 2014 study by the Pew Center.

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Last week, Boston’s newest skyscraper “topped off.” The crew at that time had erected the tallest point of the construction.The feat comes two years since the very day construction broke ground on September 17, 2013. At the ground breaking commencement then-mayor Thomas M. Menino, with developers and a sizable crowd, watched as confetti fell in celebration. Mayor Menino concluded his term on January 6, 2014 after two decades in office. Menino died October 30, 2014 at the age of 71. He had advocated strongly for the construction of the Millennium Towers particularly as the old Filene’s site lay fallow in 2008.

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Jayme Olaughlin had an idea. The idea was to help gym goers maximize their workouts with a premium protein shake. When prompted by a customer the machine adds fresh protein powder atop cold water in a single use cup with lid which then can be shaken to mix.protein powderthe machine adds fresh protein powder atop cold water in a single use cup with lidMany of us have had disruptive ideas of a similar type, but how many of those ideas survive the long haul to implementation?

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Energy has been a hot area for graduates of the last 10 years. Particular areas of interest at the conference were consumer facing technologies and back end software systems for utilities. There was a good mix of nascent technology still under development alongside proven solutions already in the market. Salient themes in the conference were “old” working with “new” and “big” working with “small” towards modern energy systems.

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This year’s Product Design and Development course at Babson College introduced 8 new hardware products to the world within a few short weeks. Students who enrolled in the Fall offering of the course were divided into teams and challenged to come up with a new product innovation that solved a problem in a given industry.

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Last year brought about all sorts of interesting discussion amongst the entrepreneurs at Babson. Ongoing was the discussion of how to better shift desktop platforms for an increasingly mobile audience. That particular discussion has changed the way founders approach new ideas as many are starting with a mobile-first strategy, such was the case with the first company on the list, WineKick. The list of startups to watch in 2015 is primarily looking at those entrepreneurs who are responding to change. It’s important the community pay attention to their progress as they define a response to this year’s market opportunities. As these founders are already traveling down the unbeaten path, look to see what new insights they can offer about responding to perceived needs that will appear in 2015.

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Imagine working in the same garage for 23 years. That’s how long Rahul has worked at the Sunoco gas station at the corner of Washington St and Breck Ave in Brighton. He was hired at a starting salary of $400 a week. Five years later he got a raise and then earned $600 each week. He kept that salary for more than 10 years while raising two sons. When the owner died and left the business to his eldest, again Rahul got a raise and now earns closer to $800 each week. In a push to be more entrepreneurial, he’s offered to rent the shop at a fixed monthly rate so his pay would reflect his efforts to increase sales. The owners however insist their current arrangement is best.

Bill LaPoint is a principal investor in Boston based Aly Holdings and an adjunct professor at Babson College where he has taught “buying a small business”. He says one reason a qualified buyer may not find a business is because the listed businesses are not actually for sale. Owners will often list their businesses in order to gauge what people are willing to pay or the market value of the business. Another problem is that the leading listing websites are loaded with convenience stores, laundry mats, and other ‘mom and pop’ businesses that are heavily dependent on the existing owner working 70 hour work weeks, a schedule out of sync with lifestyle goals of some buyers.

With two months left on his lease, Ali Roozbehani owner of antiques dealer, Dining Room Showcase, in downtown Boston is still hoping to find a buyer for the business. After 35 years of selling fine antiques and furniture throughout greater Boston, rising rents in the Downtown Boston area have cornered Roozbehani between a last minute sale to a new owner and liquidating his business. If Roozbehani does not find a buyer in time his business will close.

The story of Dining Room Showcase is incerasingly common. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counts national business closures in its “Business Death Rate.” The ominous term brings to light a potential crisis for the country. The office of Bureau and Labor Statistics found that the number of business deaths has outpaced the number of business births each year since 2008. Prior to 2008, business births had been greater in number by about 100,000 per year. 

Roozbehani, 65, hired Stoughton based Lee Business Brokers to help find a buyer. The broker soon had him in touch with a painter interested in buying the business. The deal fell through because the buyer “had no experience refinishing” explained Roozbehani. In addition to selling antique furniture, Dining Room Showcase also makes money through repairing, refinishing, appraising, and reupholstering. A new owner would need to learn these jobs and also be passionate about antiques.

Roozbehani takes pride in selling unique treasures, many of them over a century old. The appraised value on his merchandise can be as high as $10,000 for the silk hand woven Persian Rug that is signed by its creator. When the business was listed for sale at Lee Brokers website on January 16, the asking price was $400,000. The price however may be negotiable. Large displays in the store windows inform that everything is on sale 50 to 80 percent off “Going out of Business.”