Venture capitalist from Seattle makes Forbes Midas List
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Venture capitalist from Seattle makes Forbes Midas List Last updated January 27, 2008 4:48 p.m. PT THE INSIDER
MIDAS TOUCH: Forbes has unveiled its annual Midas List of the top 100 deal-makers in the tech business. Last year, we noted that the list didn't mention one venture capitalist from the Pacific Northwest, even though Madrona Venture Group's Matt McIlwain and Frazier Healthcare Ventures' Nader Naini had good years. Well, maybe the Forbes editors listened. At least one Seattle VC made the list this year. Robert Nelsen of Arch Venture Partners comes in at No. 73. Who were the top names? John Doerr of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Michael Moritz of Sequoia Capital and Ram Shriram of Sherpalo Ventures made the top three. STARBUCKED: The local coffee giant got plenty of media attention last week when Starbucks said it was testing a $1 cup of joe at some of its Seattle stores. However, the discounted "short," or 8-ounce, cup of drip coffee also got panned in two major publications. Starbucksgossip.com, a widely read Web site of employees and those fascinated with Starbucks, posted comments from brand consultant Robert Passikoff, who told USA Today: "This cheapens the brand. It says they're scared as hell about the 14,000 McDonald's coffee bars about to open up. It's hard to be a price leader and then turn around and discount. It's a panic move." And this from BusinessWeek: "For a chain known for its $5 cappuccinos, a $1 price promotion cuts to the quick. It smacks of McDonald's and Wendy's neon-bright dollar menus. It's probably the most off-brand move so far." A COFFEE ALTERNATIVE: A pair of entrepreneurs from Pennsylvania has found a way to give caffeine addicts a buzz without the liquid. Mark Izzo, a chocolatier, and Kathy Niness, a marketer, have developed a line of coffee bars called Caffe Acapella, available in at least 25 stores throughout Washington. The treats, which have an incredibly strong coffee taste, were recently showcased at the Fancy Food Show in San Diego earlier this month. "It's convenient, and it doesn't spill," Izzo said. "It's catching on like wildfire." A 2.25-ounce coffee bar retails for $2.99 to $3.49, and the company sells bite-sized "coffee lover hearts" that retail for 75 cents each. The products are in a few hundred stores in at least 23 states.
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Venture capitalist from Seattle makes Forbes Midas List
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Izzo hopes the bars become so popular they ultimately will end up in coffee chains. "What we have been able to achieve with the coffee bars is a true experience of gourmet coffeehouse coffee in a bar, and you can take it anywhere you go," Nines said. TOLL MOMENTUM: Lt. Gov. Brad Owen gave the keynote lunch speech at a NASA-sponsored event at the Museum of Flight on Friday. (NASA kicked off its 50th anniversary celebration in Seattle.) In an attempt to demonstrate that NASA technology is everywhere, Owen -- quite curiously -- brought up highways and tollbooths. The ventilation systems that are used in tollbooths on bridges and turnpikes rely on space technology, which keeps toll collectors from inhaling exhaust, Owen said. "Now if NASA could only figure out a way to beam us around, that would take care of our transportation problems," he said. P-I reporters John Cook, Craig Harris and Andrea James contributed to this edition of The Insider, the P-I business staff's weekly compendium of quips, quotes, observations, asides, tidbits, weird facts and gossip. © 1998-2008 Seattle Post-Intelligencer
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