SproutBox Gets Noticed

Mike Trotzke of SproutBox has been busy these past few months, traveling around Bloomington and across the nation to recruit talent and projects for his new startup company. This week, Trotzke is at the fifth Web 2.0 Summit, a high-profile conference that includes the likes of Tim O’Reilly, Dion Hinchliffe, Mark Zuckerberg and Jerry Yang. All the rubbing of elbows paid off with a first-day appearance in and article about the event in The Industry Standard:

The event, of course, will also touch on the Internet business and serve as a place for attendees to network and seek customers and providers. That’s what motivated Mike Trotzke to make the trip from Bloomington, Indiana.

Trotzke and his partners sold their company, Resite Information Technology, about 18 months ago, and in recent months have started building a new one called SproutBox, which is expected to launch in February or March of next year.

SproutBox will invest in technology startups, but with a twist: Instead of investing just cash, it will provide a slate of services, such as software development, accounting and human resources, in exchange for stakes in the companies. “Most of our investments will be in the Web-based, software-as-a-service [SaaS] space,” Trotzke said.

During his “scouting mission” to Web 2.0 Summit, Trotzke hopes to contact entrepreneurs who might be interested in SproutBox’s help; learn about the latest trends in venture capital and Web startups; and identify possible marketing and public relations consultants to represent his company.
Source: “Event will view Web 2.0 solutions for global problems,” IDG News Service (Nov. 4, 2008)

SproutBox is prepping for a first-quarter launch in 2009 that will start a cycle of 3-month projects generating viable local businesses.