NCET

John Toth needed something more than his home office, but not the expense of a professional, standalone location for his business, TEAM Consulting.

What he found was a collaborative work space that let him have a commercial address shared with a community of fellow tenants dedicated to each others successes.

“The biggest benefit has been the entrepreneurial community that we have created here,” he said.

Toth’s business focuses on technology, energy and marketing services, and several of his clients also are tenants at the Reno-Sparks Local Business Co-op at the Vassar Cordone Nonprofit Center.

An evolving office concept of a collaborative work environment, or coworking space, has taken a foothold in Reno and Sparks.

Several business buildings, including the Reno Collective, Local Business Co-op and Bosma Business Center, are geared toward promoting a cooperative working relationship among tenants to help each other succeed.

Dave Asher, business co-op executive director and buy-local advocate, opened his space a year ago. Now, eight of 10 spots are filled on his floor at center near the airport, and he is looking to expand.

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Angie Fairbanks is co-VP of Membership for NCET.

Background:  As a Coach developer for ActionCOACH, my work experiences come from being a hard core athlete, coaching gymnastics, basketball and 15 years in the “corporate world.” My experience in being a multi-sport high school/college athlete and coaching has taught me the fundamentals and skills to hold others accountable for success. Being in corporate world has broadened my skills and talents by being a sales director and trainer, marketing coordinator for an architectural firm, director of HR and training and VP of customer service. By having these roles has led me to work with others to achieve a level of success.

Why do I do what I do:  It’s simple: I do what I do because helping others is my passion and I absolutely love developing people and seeing them succeed. When I see firsthand a business owner go on vacation for the first time, see their son play baseball for the first time, take their spouse out on a date every week, that puts a smile on my face and that itself is rewarding.

What brought me to Reno:  I have been on the east coast all of my life and wanted to take a chance on moving out west. An opportunity came up here in Reno and I jumped on it to be closer to Lake Tahoe and the ski resorts. I love to be outdoors and Reno is a great place for someone who loves the outdoors.

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Imagine the opportunity to drive an electric vehicle, tour a solar plant, learn more about conventional fuels or discuss the role of minerals in energy—all  while meeting other energy industry professionals in Nevada?

The opportunity is now here. Young Professionals in Energy, with support from NIREC, has announced establishment of a new Nevada-wide chapter (YPE Nevada) —along with its first events:

May 14 – Electric Vehicle Caravan to Solar One (Las Vegas; Henderson)

May 24 –Geothermal Operations Tour and Mixer at the Peppermill (Reno)

June 7 – Nevada-Grown Energy Innovation (Las Vegas)

June 19 – Electric Vehicle – Gourmet Food Truck Scavenger Hunt (Reno)

“YPE Nevada is designed to engage Nevada’s mid-career energy professionals through a variety of career-related, community service, professional education and social events to be scheduled across the entire state. ” said YPE Nevada Board Member Walt Borland, the President and CEO of NIREC that is sponsoring the launch of the new chapter. “And, we expect that this enhanced interaction will help to drive more energy-related entrepreneurial activity in Nevada.”

“We are dedicated to forming a statewide organization that brings together the next generation of energy industry professionals,” added Brin Gibson, an Associate with Lionel, Sawyer & Collins. “Members are welcomed from all sectors of the industry and of all ages and experience levels.”

The group has plans to reach out to all of Nevada with activities in rural areas as well, pointed out YPE Nevada Board Member Cheree Boteler, Web Marketing Consultant for NV Energy’s Economic Development Department. “We hope that all of Nevada’s energy professionals will decide to join YPE Nevada and help to enrich this important industry.”

YPE is the first and only interdisciplinary networking and volunteer group for people in the global energy industry. YPE Founders Stephen Cravens and Michael Teplitsky, who both work in private equity firms, envisioned YPE as a way to bring industry professionals together to network and exchange ideas in a focused setting. With chapters throughout the U.S. and in London, Hong Kong and Moscow, it’s clear that YPE is filling an important niche for the energy industry.

More information about group activities is available on the YPE Nevada website at www.ypenevada.org.

What began as a senior thesis project for University of Nevada, Reno physics major Ben Sumlin has turned into a winning business.

Sumlin is part of Mining Environmental Technology and Services, which won the inaugural Sontag Entrepreneurship Competition on Wednesday during the award presentation at the UNR campus.

Sumlin and fellow team members David Karr, Bryan Rainwater and Heather Zunino walked away with $50,000 and additional prizes to market and develop a device that can detect potentially harmful airborne particulates in mining workplaces.

“It started out as my senior thesis work,” said Sumlin, who added his heart was still pounding minutes after the announcement. “We are developing a weather balloon that measures pollution in the atmosphere. … The same technology would be perfect to measure diesel exhaust in the mines.”

The team, all physics majors, developed a working prototype and have confirmed orders from the UNR mining department. It also is in talks with several major mining companies.

The $50,000 already is budgeted to pay for cost of goods sold, labor and wages for the company’s first year, Zunino said.

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Bumblebee Blooms Flower Boutique at 205 South Sierra St. in Reno has chalked up remarkable success for a first-year business, says owner Katie Knapp.

Set on a busy corner near the Washoe County Courthouse and just a block from the Truckee River, the colorful flower shop offers unique gifts as well as a full-range of floral arrangements.

In the nine months since Knapp opened Bumblebee Blooms, she’s hired three part-time workers, acquired a business intern/assistant and is breaking even financially – quite a feat for a first-time business owner.

Participating in business plan competitions is one reason for her success, she said.

Last year Knapp participated in both Truckee Meadows Business Plan Competition and the Donald W. Reynolds’s Governor’s Cup. She took third place in each.

Participating – and qualifying as a finalist – helped her in several ways:

1. She was able to vet, refine and get input on her plan from knowledgeable business people and entrepreneurs.

2. Each competition win included prize money, which she was able to use as a down payment/collateral in her business.

3. The awards enhanced her application for a business loan from the Small Business Administration. She firmly believes that the SBA loan would not have happened without the help she received during the competitions.

“Katie is one of our great recent success stories,” said Dave Archer of the Nevada Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology (NCET). NCET puts on the annual Governor’s Cup competition.

“Many people don’t realize that the Governor’s Cup is designed specifically for students,” Archer said. The participants aren’t required, and may not start, their own businesses, but just the process of going through the competition gives every student a leg up in the job market, he said.

For those competitors who do start their own business, NCET continues to offer a wide range of services, support and advice.