Each month, TiE Oregon presents a member or member company to spotlight.
January & April 2019 –
Kitotech Medical is a medical device company from Seattle, WA, that created the microMend wound closure bandage. microMend combines the flexibility of adhesive bandages with the durability and strength of microstaples to provide long-lasting support for wound healing, particularly lacerations associated with surgery and minor cuts.
TiE Oregon and Elevate Capital originally invested in Kitotech Medical in August 2018. Since then, the company shifted its business model from individual doctors and clinics to larger hospitals and healthcare networks. Although this led to an initial slowdown in revenue, they have made impressive progress signing up several hospitals and securing distribution in the Middle East to complement their domestic US distribution. They are also making inroads into the military market, with a $750k order from their military distributor for Q1 2019. In addition to operational progress, Kitotech Medical is also filing two new patents, based on customer feedback, that could significantly increase its market opportunity.
KitoTech is expanding its team, having hired a VP of Operations late last year. And they are implementing semi-automated production processes and moving to a larger space to accommodate increased manufacturing demands. We are excited to continue supporting KitoTech as they take on the opportunities ahead of them in 2019.
December 2018 –
In August, a couple of Tie members invested in Strive Tech. This was an exciting time for us as it provided us with two types of help, financial and advisory/networking. There is not much that needs to be said about the financial investment. What we appreciated though was the opportunity to get feedback from experienced TiE members on our strategy and growth.
As we are preparing for the full market launch, it was great to get the feedback on how to manage funnel growth, while at the same time building a healthy support organization. When it comes to progress, since TiE members invested in Strive, we completed a validation and beta study with customers around NFL, NBA, and NCAA. This allowed us to step back, address opportunities for improvement and get the product to a market-ready state. We have also worked on organically growing our funnel through word-of-mouth. Strive products are going to be open for sales in January 2019, and the partnership and supports that we got from TiE has been a valuable piece towards that goal.
Strive is a technology-enabled athletic apparel company whose mission is to improve athlete performance while minimizing injury rate and downtime. TiE Oregon invested in Strive in August 2018. When Strive first pitched to TiE Oregon, they had a working product and paying customers. Their plan was to run as fast as possible, acquiring customers quickly to establish a brand presence. Unfortunately, they had not set up the necessary infrastructure to support their existing customers and were at risk of losing them should their support fail.
One TiE Oregon investor was very intrigued with the product and believed strongly in the founding team’s abilities – they just needed some sound business guidance to get on the right track. As a result of several difficult but constructive conversations and a deep dive into business operations, the team refined their strategy and approach to growth. Now, as Strive prepares for a full market launch, they understand how to manage growth of their sales funnel while simultaneously building a healthy organization with strong customer support.
Since receiving investment from TiE Oregon, Strive completed a validation and beta study with customers across the NFL, NBA, and NCAA. With feedback from these customers, Strive now has their flagship product to a market-ready state and will begin scaling sales in January 2019.
November 2018 –
Garden Bar is a fast-casual restaurant chain in Portland providing fresh, healthy lunch options made from local ingredients. TiE Oregon and Elevate Capital originally invested in Garden Bar in 2017. Since then, the company has continued its growth and is planning further expansion both in Portland and to a second, unselected market.
Garden Bar added 2 new stores to the portfolio in early summer – Progress Ridge and Lake Oswego – bringing the total to 9 stores in the Portland metro. The tenth store, at the Pac West building in downtown Portland, is planned to open in early spring.
They expanded their catering services to encompass a wholesale division, a subscription model, and Corporate Express service, which focuses on delivering salads to offices on dedicated days of the week. This newest service allows office tenants to order through their phones and have their salads delivered fresh, without any additional fees.
Garden Bar is committed to continuous improvement in sustainability, and earlier this year introduced ReBox, a reusable container program. Guests can swap out containers when they come into the store, or order online, which reduces the use of disposable bowls. This effort has proven to increase the visits of repeat customers who are conscious about the waste that disposable containers impose on our planet.
October 2018 –
Hubb is a B2B SaaS platform providing a suite of event management solutions: “event technology by event planners for event planners.” Event management is ranked in the top 5 most stressful jobs but, with Hubb, event planners now have the means to communicate effectively with their clients, presenters, attendees, and more.
TiE Oregon and Elevate Capital originally invested in Hubb in 2016. Since then, the company has created its own success. Hubb is on a consistent upward trajectory with 134% year over year growth and nearly $600,000 in new business booked in Q2 2018. Notably, Hubb recently expanded on its existing enterprise accounts with Microsoft and brought on new large clients, including the Consumer Electronics Show (CES).
Hubb achieved profitability in 2017 and continues to outperform projections. Hubb was ranked in the top 100 fastest growing companies by both Portland and Vancouver Business Journals and took first place in Technology Association of Oregon’s Emerging Technology category. Founder & CEO, Allie Magyar, and her team have also created an inclusive, supportive culture at Hubb and have been named a top 10 healthiest employer two years running.
September 2018 –
Poached is a marketplace platform serving the restaurant and hospitality verticals. They provide a forum for employers to find employees and vice versa in these fast moving and often high-turnover industries. TiE Oregon originally invested in Poached in 2015. Since then, the company has grown substantially, achieving product-market fit and good traction.
Poached had a strong performance in Q2 2018, achieving profitability and its best quarter ever with $671k in revenue (up 44% from Q2 2017). The company continues to grow its subscription service, which now accounts for 70% of monthly recurring revenue. And they have demonstrated scalability by supporting all this growth with less than 3% increase in operating expenses year over year.
As a result of this sustained success, Poached continues to be the #1 jobs platform in its target vertical (hospitality) both in traffic and geographic reach. The company now has over 500k registered job seekers and 8500 active restaurants posting with the site. They have integrated with larger corporate applicant tracking systems to automate job feeds for enterprises like Starbucks, who use the Poached platform to post both internal and external positions.
August 2018 –
Wild is a cloud-based, real-time collaboration platform for designers (interior and exterior) to create and share spatial design in virtual and augmented reality environments. The Wild isn’t just for one or two users at a time. With their innovative platform running on the cloud, designers anywhere in the world can collaborate in real-time to create stunning design ideas for clients.
Led by Gabe Paez, The Wild has raised nearly $3,000,000 including $850,000 combined from TiE Oregon and Elevate Capital earlier this year. Gabe and his team have soft-launched their website and expect to release version 1 of their platform to the public very soon. They are receiving strong industry interest and have onboarded nearly 10 customers for their Early Access period. The company’s VR experience is truly impressive and we are excited to see what new designs are created in The Wild.
July 2018 –
Onboard Dynamics is a clean energy company that developed and manufactures GoFlo®, an integrated natural gas engine and compressor. GoFlo® is an affordable and effective mobile solution for fleet vehicle owners that require the flexibility to refuel compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles without the headache of commuting to and from CNG refueling stations.
Led by CEO Rita Hansen, an energy industry veteran, Onboard Dynamics has raised nearly $1,750,000, including $100,000 from TiE Oregon earlier this year. Rita and her team shipped their first compressor system to Mountain View school in California, where GoFlo® has saved the school over $20,000 in associated refueling costs since January. Due to the novelty and impressive performance of the GoFlo® system, Onboard Dynamics is experiencing considerable demand for more compressors. We are excited to see Onboard Dynamics grow!