VEF Momentum is excited to announce a special and unique event to end our 2009/2010 season.  In conjunction with Chrysalix, VEF Momentum will be hosting a special networking event with senior members of the Chrysalix team, and other established tech professionals in the cleantech space.

Chrysalix is one of North America’s leading Venture Capital firms providing early stage financing, hands on assistance, & strategic connections to innovative companies creating solutions for the new energy economy. Chrysalix Energy Management has 24 startups in their portfolio and it has raised $123 million in their most recent fund.

This event will be a unique opportunity for the next generation of Vancouver tech entrepreneurs to connect with key players in the Cleantech industry as they answer the following questions (and more):

• What are the future trends in the technology area?
• What qualities do they look for in financing young entrepreneurs
• Is VC funding appropriate for young cleantech entrepreneurs?

As the event from Chrysalix will be:

• Dr. Wal Van Lierop, President & CEO
• Richard MacKeller, Managing Director
• Brian Wawro, Senior Vice President, Investments
• Michael Brown, Chairman

To maintain a close networking atmosphere, we have capped attendance at this event at 80, compared to our usual 200 spots. As a result, tickets for this event are extremely limited, and we encourage all interested individuals to get their tickets while they’re available as we have sold out every VEF Momentum event to-date.

Necessities:

• Date: Friday July 16th
• Time: 5:30pm
• Location: Marmalade Restaurant
• Address: 3-1010 Beach Avenue
• Tickets: $45 Register now at http://www.vef.org/?page_id=27

Included in the ticket price will be full dinner and drinks at Marmalade Restaurant on the Seawall.

Register now! We look forward to seeing you there!

*** JUST IN: The Racing Green Endurance team and its electric supercar will be stopping by the event that evening.  The electric car is on a 26 000km trip down the Pan-American Highway, crossing 14 countries.  Don’t miss this special showcase for your chance to see this supercar in real life. For more information about the electric car and its trip: http://www.racinggreenendurance.com/

***Additionally, the Brammo electric motorcycle (http://www.brammo.com) will be on display at the event.

If you haven’t done so yet, make sure you’re following us on Twitter (@VEFMomentum) or Facebook (search: VEF Momentum).

We’re excited to announce our second event of year 2010.  Like the last event, Go To Market kicks off at Pop Opera on 686 W Hastings Street on April 16th 2010. Doors open at 6:00 PM. Click here to register now

This event will feature an exciting speaker, Jason Smith, who is the President of Product Innovation at Vision Critical. Jason will share the Vision Critical story and discuss successful strategies on how to go to market with a new product. Jason is a recipient of the Ernst and Young’s Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year award, the BDC Young Entrepreneur of the Year national award, and he was named one of Business in Vancouver’s top 40 under 40.

Our last event hosted 230 people and as usual it was sold out. Please make sure to register early to reserve your spot!  Registration is available at http://www.vef.org/?page_id=27

Click here to register now.

Like every Momentum Connect event, you can expect:

• A great way to kick off the weekend! There’s no better way to start a night on the town with a few drinks, catching up with old acquaintances and making some new friends on a Friday after work.
• Excellent company and a comfortable environment to meet a diverse crowd of established entrepreneurs, up and comers, investors, mentors and professionals.
• Delectable refreshments from a creative appetizer menu. Arrive early to sample the best!
  
• Trendy and comfortable atmosphere.

You can expect to meet:

• Young technology entrepreneurs from across the city.
• Student entrepreneurs from universities and colleges across the Lower Mainland.
• Early-stage, first-time entrepreneurs talking about their start-ups.
• Venture capitalists and angel investors.
• Established entrepreneurs with wisdom to share.
• Service providers from the accounting, legal and finance fields as potential mentors.

Register now! We look forward to seeing you there!

If you haven’t done so yet, make sure you’re following us on Twitter (@VEFMomentum) or Facebook (search: VEF Momentum).

We’re really excited to announce our upcoming event on February 5th, just one week before the Opening Ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics officially begins.

As part of our Momentum Connect series, this event will feature a speaker and Q&A session, as well as ample networking time to help aspiring and early-stage entrepreneurs connect with the people, resources and answers they need to succeed – all in an inviting, fun and casual environment.

Our speaker for the evening will be Mark Williams, Co-Founder of Elastic Path Software, a local technology company that has experienced substantial growth and success, creating an e-commerce platform used by everyone from Sony Ericsson to the Vancouver Olympic Committee.

Mark will share some great war stories on co-founding a start-up company and what young entrepreneurs can do to emulate building a successful technology business in Vancouver.

Click here to register now.

Jason Bailey, CEO and Co-Founder of KITN Media and SuperRewards speaking at VEF Momentum’s Bootstrapping to Success event on November 10, 2009 at Nuba Restaurant in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Using his own finances, Jason co-founded SuperRewards with two fellow entrepreneurs with the premise of monetizing virtual currencies. Almost immediately the service took off generating millions in revenues. It was acquired by AdKnowledge shortly thereafter for amount rumored in the tens of millions.

Jason shares his lessons and experiences on bootstrapping a start-up company with a killer business model and what young entrepreneurs can do to replicate SuperRewards meteoric rise to the top.

He also addresses the controversy surrounding his business that has been recently surfaced by Michael Arrington of TechCrunch.

VEF Momentum was founded under the Vancouver Enterprise Forum with the purpose of connecting, inspiring and mentoring aspiring and emerging technology entrepreneurs

We’re really excited to announce that after a short summer break, the VEF Momentum team is kicking off its 2009-2010 series of speaker and networking sessions with “VEF Momentum Connect: Bootstrapping to Success”.

As part of our “Momentum Connect” series, this event will feature a speaker and Q&A session, as well as ample networking time to help aspiring and early-stage entrepreneurs connect with the people, resources and answers they need to success – all in an inviting, fun and casual environment.

Our speaker for the evening will be Jason Bailey founder and CEO of KITN Media and SuperRewards. Using his own finances, Jason co-founded SuperRewards with two fellow entrepreneurs with the premise of monetizing virtual currencies. Almost immediately the service took off generating millions in revenues. It was acquired by AdKnowledge shortly thereafter for amount rumored in the tens of millions.

Jason will share his lessons and experiences on bootstrapping a start-up company with a killer business model and what young entrepreneurs can do to replicate SuperRewards meteoric rise to the top.

• Date: Tuesday, November 10 2009
• Start Time: 6:00PM
• Location: Nuba Restaurant
• Address: 207 West Hastings Street (Hastings and Cambie cross street)
• Tickets: $10
• Registration is online only, there will be no registrations at the door. Max capacity 150.
• Ticket price includes refreshments. Sample Nuba’s complementary delectable appetizers during the event. Make sure to arrive early!

Click here to register now.

As you may have heard, in just two weeks the BC Innovation Council will be holding its largest and most anticipated event of the year, Connect ‘09 (October 19, 2009 at the Sheraton Wall Centre). The event will feature speakers including local entrepreneurial icon Leonard Brody of NowPublic, the BCIC Annual Awards ceremony as well as informative expert panels, workshops and excellent networking opportunities.

A group of dedicated people at BCIC have been spending the better part of the summer putting together this world class event, so it is really exciting to see it come together in a few short weeks. As a past Chairperson of the Enterprize Conference and Competition, I can definitely appreciate the time, effort and care that goes into making one of these events a success. I have seen personally the transformative effect a large, multifaceted conference can have on an eager and enthusiastic entrepreneur. For that reason, I wanted to share my thoughts on why all serious up and coming technology entrepreneurs should be registered (and ready) for this event: