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For entrepreneurs looking to get business support in Oakland County, Oakland University’s OU INCubator could be your answer. It’s a place for technology-based and life sciences businesses to let their ideas take root.

What sets this incubator apart from its peers is the formation of the Ideas 2 Business (I2B) lab.  Here current students, alumni and faculty of Oakland University and Cooley Law School can find the resources they need to help their business survive. It is also a place for students from the School of Business Administration and the School of Engineering and Computer Sciences to get hands-on experience in starting a business.

Dr. Gary Russi

In order to support the development of ideas needed to create unique businesses, the incubator is also home to the Clean Energy Research Center.

“One of the hallmarks of learning in the School of Business at Oakland is experiential learning … the ability to learn not just the concepts in the classroom … we have programs that help the students actually apply what they learn in the classroom in a real world setting,” says Dr. Balaji Rajagopalan, associate dean of the School of Business Administration.

Regardless of the success or failure of a venture, the process of forming a business is what Rajagopalan finds to be the most valuable for students.  It is a way for them to see how ideas can be transformed into businesses. That leads to greater innovation regardless of who students call their employer.

“Even if a venture is not successful, it is not a failed venture.  It is a very successful venture because they have learned so much about how to ideate, how to go through the process of venture formation,” he says.

Executive Director of OU INCubator Amy Butler

In a state struggling to improve economically, an incubator like I2B is critical for the nascent economic recovery.

“It’s very important that as we move Michigan’s economy forward. Institutions such as Oakland University realize their place in the broader picture of the community and helping to revive Michigan’s economy,” says Arnold Weinfeld, director of strategic initiatives and federal affairs for the Michigan Municipal League. “We think the I2B program here is a perfect example of that.”

The open house introducing I2B at Oakland’s Shotwell-Gustafson Pavilion came on the heels of Bloomberg announcing Michigan is number two in overall economic health in the country.  That prompted Cynthia Grubbs, business development manager for the MEDC, to conclude, “It’s a great time to be a Michigander, a great time to start a business and a wonderful time to open a facility such as this.”

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If Shifting Gears had been around when I was younger, I swear I would never have entered a rodeo and ridden an unbroken wild horse in front of a few thousand amused onlookers.

Prior to this disastrous exercise, I had embarked on a perfectly sensible career in agricultural science and was studying at a prestigious university in England. I was passionate about my subject and could talk for hours about different breeds of cattle, varieties of corn and the correct fertilizer rates for different crops. This was a problem for some people around me, including my first serious girlfriend.

“You’ve got to face facts, you’re very boring,” my best friend told me as I drowned my sorrows in the local English pub after being dumped. “You can’t change your personality, but you can change your career,” my friend advised. “You need to get into a line of work that has a little more excitement.”

It was at that point that my eye caught a poster on the pub wall advertising an American-style rodeo. “Okay,” I declared, “bring on the broncos. That ought to impress the lady.”

It didn’t. Even though I managed to stay on the horse for several seconds, I convinced my ex that my brain was indeed so full of agricultural trivia that the balance of my mind was disturbed.

Today, anyone seeking a career change for whatever reason can get more measured, thoughtful advice from a program we are running at TechTown called Shifting Gears, developed at Ann Arbor SPARK. Currently, we have seventeen men and women going through the course, which helps talented, well-qualified people understand the adjustments you need to make when moving from a large corporation to a small startup.

Individuals attending Shifting Gears receive a great deal of guidance. We all need it. Going from big business to a startup is, in my humble opinion, not all that different from changing a seat on a staid John Deere tractor for one on a bucking bronco.

As a part of the Shifting Gears program, participants fulfill internships with local companies. If your company is interested in hosting interns, please click here.

If you’re shifting gears yourself and would like to enroll in a future program, click here.

Randal Charlton is the Executive Director of TechTown, a business incubator in the city of Detroit. This post was republished with express permission.

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Matt Mosher is a self-described serial entrepreneur.  He and two friends were talking about what their next venture should be when they realized traditional job boards fail the employer and potential employee.  Their idea to have people pay to apply for jobs has raised eyebrows and thrilled employers.

In less than a year, they find themselves with a business that has caught the attention of Detroit Venture Partners and a refined business model Mosher thinks will be a big hit.

“The current system of job boards is broken.  Employers get flooded with unqualified applicants,” says Mosher, CEO of Hired My Way. “We’ve found that the candidate pools have become better.”

It seems having a little skin in the game forces people to be more thoughtful about the jobs they apply for.  In return, they are competing with fewer people for those positions and if an employer does not look at their application, the $2 fee for applying is refunded.  This creates a win-win situation for everyone involved … for the employers with a more qualified candidate pool without using a traditional hiring firm and for the prospective employees, who now have a better chance at a job.

This novel idea of charging prospective employees caught the attention of Josh Linkner, CEO and managing partner of Detroit Venture Partners (DVP).  Mosher says the recent investment by DVP has proven to be very different from the way most venture capital investors work with businesses.

“It’s been a hands-on experience so far,” he says. “We’ve been using their wisdom and experience to help refine our business model and plan for the future.”

That experience has led Mosher’s team to a referral program that he’s sure will be popular, too. When the program is officially launched on June 1 employers will be given the option to pay an additional fee for each employee they hire.  The fee they agree to will fund a signing bonus to the new employee and a bonus to the person who referred the new employee.

Armed with their new investment, a business plan for growth and a growing list of companies who want to retool how they hire people, it seems Birmingham-based Hired My Way is on the right track to become another Michigan success story.

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The number of venture capital (VC) firms in Michigan has tripled over the last decade proving they are beginning to take notice of budding companies in our state.

Recent history tells us that Michigan was a place venture capital firms avoided because the deals were small and the potential return on investment was even smaller.  Many great businesses were hatched here only to be moved to one of the coasts because the access to talent and investment dollars was so much better.

Fortunately, that history is behind Michigan. People like Chis Rizik, CEO of Renaissance Venture Capital Fund, think venture capital firms are starting to take notice. This was among the many changes speakers noted at the Xconomy Forum held recently at TechTown.

Risik points to the number of VC funds in Michigan tripling over the last decade as proof that there is value here.  While fellow panelist Charles Rothstein, senior managing director and co-founder of Beringea, might be a bit more staid in his enthusiasm for the future of VC in Michigan, he noted startup companies in the state are becoming more successful. With that success the perception of Michigan within the industry will continue to change.

Randal Charlton, the executive director of TechTown noted in his opening remarks that only one in 100 companies in the US export internationally. Since Michigan has access to international shipping through the Great Lakes and a significant trade relationship with Canada it is well-positioned to help more companies enter untapped markets.

David Cole, chairman emeritus, Center for Automotive Research, talked about a change in corporate philosophy toward intellectual property.  He pointed to organizations like his new company AutoHarvest as a way for automotive companies to share their research outside the auto industry to help spur on innovation.  He sees that automotive intellectual property as an example of what Michigan has to offer.

“We have the local resources to attack global markets,” said Ann Marie Sastry, co-founder and CEO, Sakti3 and professor at University of Michigan.  She points to the changing attitudes in Michigan universities toward professors and their ventures outside of the classroom as the type of thinking that helps incubate the types of businesses recent graduates want to work in.
Even entrepreneurs are starting to help each other stay in the state.

Dug Song, an experienced entrepreneur and CEO of Duo Security, talked about starting Tech Brewery in Ann Arbor as a way for newly hatched companies to learn from other companies that are growing, too.

“We’re starting to figure out how to keep the companies that are started here,” Song said.  “We are learning things like companies can shop for capital just as capital shops for companies.”

The event ended as it began, the panelists mingling with the approximately 40 people in attendance, exchanging business ideas and thoughts for what Michigan will look like in 20 years.  Which left me wondering … Will the state motto change to, “If you seek a pleasant business opportunity, look about you?”

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If Kerry Doman from After 5 Detroit has her way 800 interns working for more than 40 companies will fall in love with Detroit this summer.

Kerry runs the After 5 Intern Program, which gives interns a firsthand look at the Downtown Detroit lifestyle.

In its second year the popular program offers those participating a summerlineup of outings, which includes loft and rooftop parties, a restaurant crawl, an Eastern Market tour, networking happy hours and a special Welcome to Detroit gift bag.

“Last summer more than 20 employers enrolled more than 400 of their summer interns in ourprogram,” Kerry says. “We hope to double the 2010 number of employer and student intern participants.”

Kerry Doman, founder and CEO of After 5

Blue Cross Blue Shield, DTE, Ernst & Young, Marketing Associates and the Butzel Long lawfirm have already signed up and more companies are waiting in the wings.

Detroit companies have traditionally brought in summer associates for internships, but it has sometimes been an uphill battle convincing those interns to return to Detroit post-graduation. The tide is turning though. With a growing number of downtown employmentopportunities, an exciting urban lifestyle, unique housing options, walkable neighborhoods, agrowing art and cultural community and the distinct possibility of an M-1 rail, many educatedyoung professionals are considering starting their careers in the City of Detroit and Southeast Michigan.

“The After 5 Intern Program is designed to begin building the ties that will convince interns to launch their careers here,” Kerry says. “We want to show them Detroit is fun, vibrant, clean andsafe. It’s a place where young people can make a difference.”

The program earned praise from companies involved last year.

“The After 5 Intern Program provided our interns with some great after-work experiences andexposed them to networking opportunities with their peers,” said Mia Johnson, senior staffing specialist for DTE Energy, which successfully placed more than 200 students into some very meaningful summer work assignments in 2010.

“Through this relationship with the After 5 Intern Program, our interns enjoyed downtown experiences that showcased the best of downtown Detroit, and may ultimately help us to retain them and convert them into long-term employees,” she says.

Blue Cross Blue Shield also sees this program as a path to retaining these interns.

“The program helped the interns network with other young professionals and build connections.Those connections to the city and its professionals are what help to retain employees,” says Jody Guastella Jones, senior workforce diversity consultant.

The After 5 Intern Program was developed by After 5 Detroit and is supported by the DowntownDetroit Partnership (DDP) and the Hudson-Webber Foundation. The cost of the program is $95 per intern. You can register by contacting Kerry at 248.703.6224or kerry@after5detroit.com and get more information at www.after5internprogram.com. The After 5 Intern Program 2011 will kick off on Tuesday, June 7 from 5-7 pm at the Majestic/Magic Stick in Detroit. Come join them.

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Getting Mayors, radio personalities, singers, rappers, reporters and civic leaders to agree to participate in a campaign is something that seldom happens.  Fortunately for Detroit, those leaders are coming together and affirm that they believe in Detroit.

The campaign, Believe In Detroit, is designed to accept the challenges of the region and help people accentuate the good.  It will help connect Believers to opportunities for volunteering or donation.  The goal is to help change the community while changing attitudes.  Along the way, you get to hear from people like author Elmore Leonard.

“I’ve lived here since the fourth grade,” said Leonard.  “I like Detroit.  I have always liked Detroit.  I haven’t had any reason to move.

Realizing American readers had lost their taste for Western novels, Leonard focused on crime novels.  He started by taking an assignment for the Detroit News and created a piece called “Impressions of Murder.”  He was so fascinated by the dialogue between officers and suspects that the four day assignment turned into a three week project.  It turned out to be a project that fueled his career.

He stayed in Detroit because of the relationships he built with the people he based his books on.  Even though he no longer rides along with detectives, he is still a proud Detroiter.

“One time about 20 years ago, a writer for Time Magazine dubbed me the ‘Dickens of Detroit.’  Could you imagine what they would have called me if I lived in Buffalo?” he joked.

David DiChieria, founding general director of the Michigan Opera Theatre, learned that sceptics are ever-present, and the only thing that can change a sceptic’s mind is results.  He found that out in his work to start the Michigan Opera Theatre. He senses that same spirit behind the Believe in Detroit movement.

“We [Detroiters] don’t always have a good perception of ourselves; we have no clear picture of how good we are,” he stated.  “We need to bring the community along with us.  We have to constantly tell them that this is possible.

Stephen Henderson, editor of the Editorial Page for the Detroit Free Press, noted the success of a similar campaign in Baltimore.  During his 12 years there, Baltimore’s mayor started a similar campaign just asking people to believe in the city again.  It made a big difference in the way city resident’s viewed their city.

“Things like this make a big difference,” he remembered.  “It gets to the point where it takes off and people start saying it.  It doesn’t fix all the problems but it does help change perceptions.”

Mayor Dave Bing does not back down from the city’s problems either.  Acknowledging our obstacles, Bing noted that his administration is working to bring trust back to city government by bringing back a businesslike attitude to city government.  He asks that people start help to tell the story of the city.

“The city is changing for the better.  It is time for us to begin telling our own story.  No one tells our story better,” exclaimed Bing.

For more information on the campaign, you can find Believe in Detroit on Facebook and Twitter.

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Since their opening in 2008, Detroit Community Acupuncture has given over 3,000 treatments to metro Detroiters. It’s located on Woodward and Alexandrine– below Apartment Finders and neighbor to the Majestic, making it another interesting small business to have popped up in Detroit’s midtown.

Nora Madden, whose “social business” model is based on Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunus’, founded this location as an adjunct to a national network of clinics.
(For those who don’t know, the short definition of a social business is one whose owners’ primary objective is cause-driven, rather than personal financial gain.)

“It’s in the middle of town,” she says “which makes it easier for folks from different directions to get to me. There are many reasons folks find themselves in this part of town.”

She also muses “my other business neighbors (the folks at Kim’s Produce, the Hub, Curl Up & Dye, Bureau of Urban Living, etc. etc.) are very encouraging and supportive.” She laughs and adds “I was also addicted to Avalon.”

Acupuncturists who work at the clinic are boomerangs, of sorts. Nora and her associate, Jaclyn Spencer, both grew up in Michigan and left the state to pursue schooling and other careers. After fifteen years, however, both of them came back to Detroit.

“I’d like to see more acupuncturists return to the midwestern states they came from,” Nora explains.

When I asked what someone who has never had acupuncture done before should expect, Nora says, simply “they should expect to feel better!” Still, if you’re weary about a treatment that might, to some, seem like needle-magic, community acupuncture offers an experience that is decidedly un-spooky. “Most people expect the needles to hurt, and are surprised to find that they mostly don’t feel like much of anything. I think it’s good for them to know that even though acupuncture itself is somewhat mysterious, and that the way it feels can be hard to describe, the clinic itself tries to be very “transparent”: it’s a pretty down-to-earth, what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of place,” says Nora. “Everyone is treated in the same room, so there’s no weird stuff happening behind closed doors; we don’t pretend to be doctors or gurus.” Oh, and for you skeptic readers, the work they do is empirically-based as well.

All in all, the folks at Detroit Community Acupuncture promise an experience that is “one of comfort, and regeneration.” Unpretentious and practical, they help to heal both individual residents and the community at large: “we have a lot of faith in folks’ capacity to heal so we hope that people get a sense of that capacity themselves – not so much from us, even, but from the needles.”

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This post is by guest blogger Brian Ambrozy, the Curator of Delightful Experiences at Icrontic.com. Follow him on Twitter.

“I think that’s it…” said my friend. He pointed to the right. “It’s the one that has the crowd in front of it.”

There we were, driving through midtown Detroit, looking at every house to see if we could spot the mysterious Neighborhood Noodle—and when we finally came upon the unassuming spot on Trumbull, it was as if we had discovered Noodle Mecca.
Neighborhood Noodle was shrouded in mystery from the moment we had first discovered it just days earlier from a tip found on Yelp. The entire process had a hint of intrigue to it, but that wasn’t the only thing working in its favor. Neighborhood Noodle seemed almost too good to be true. Local greens, grown in Detroit? Check. A barebones website with “MS Paint”-quality artwork that just screamed “indie”? Check. Authentic food made by someone who learned how to cook in Cambodia? Check.

Normally, when you read stories like this, you assume it’s a homegrown Detroiter who loves their community and chooses to stay here and support local business and agriculture. In this case, however, founder Jess Daniels is an import who comes to us from Orange County, CA by way of Cambodia and then Washington DC. She had heard Malik Yakini of the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network speak at an event, and the fates began conspiring to draw her ever closer to Detroit. A friend of hers moved here to do farm and community work, then she met Dan Carmody of Eastern Market and began discussing ways in which the market has become a hub for local food distribution. She began to read sites like Model D and also began, in her words, “internet-stalking interesting businesses and people in town.”

I asked her how she learned to cook the clearly Asian-influenced noodles on her menu. Her answer was direct and simple, much like her food; “Some from my mom and Singaporean aunties, some from friends in Cambodia, cooking classes in Thailand, and plain old experimentation.”

The experimentation paid off, because the noodles I had were delicious. Perfectly cooked, with a solid texture, not-too-salty sauce, topped with fried wontons and grilled lemongrass chicken slices. For this delightful dish, I paid a mere $5. For an additional $2 I was treated to sweet green iced tea with whole longans (a sweet fruit native to Southeast Asia) in it.

Neighborhood Noodle is not just about good food though. Jess’ stated goals are to donate 5% of her net income to community organizations (currently the Woodbridge Community Garden), to only use local produce whenever possible, to purchase supplies from local businesses, and to compost all waste.

The current iteration of Neighborhood Noodle is clearly a beta. The “lemonade-stand” approach of selling food off her front porch isn’t a viable long-term plan, and this coming week’s orders are already closed off due to high demand. When asked about her long-term plans, she mentioned an immediate need to expand and go towards the “food truck” route. In addition, she hopes to eventually create an incubator kitchen that would allow food entrepreneurs to rent space to start up their own businesses.

For now, it’s enough, for me at least, to order homemade noodles from her funny website and making a trip on Mondays to her front porch. She may not be from here, but this girl is Detroit all the way.

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Business potential in Michigan?  Young college graduates are staying here?  That’s different from what you may have heard, but it’s true.

Ryan Forrest, Co-Founder of Verde Lifestyles and current student at Oakland University, says the potential of the people is one reason he is happy to be doing business in Michigan.

“There is a lot to be said for the growing technology generation.  Especially a lot of the people I’ve met the past two years at events trying to promote Verde, there is a lot of potential in Michigan,” said Forrest.  “Even going to other states, there really is not (a) guarantee of jobs.  I would rather stay with a solid foundation here.”

With his business partner and recent Michigan State University graduate, Danielle Brycz, they have been working after work on building this business.  Verde Lifestyles is their first business venture and their first year in business has been educational.  If they had to change anything, they would have started out with a tighter product niche.

“We would have started with fewer products, that would have saved a lot of time an energy on our part,” said Brycz.

Forrest concurs.  They started with several hundred products featured on their site and have slowly narrowed it down to around the 60 that sell well.  By listening to customer feedback, analyzing sales data and paying attention to shopping channels, they were able to find the products their customers were hungry for were hand-made, environmentally sustainable wood furniture and home goods.

This past July was by far their best month in business.  They have found that a mix of social media engagement, search engine optimization and comparison shopping engines that are fueling their growth.  While things have grown more slowly than they had envisioned, they are seeing sustained growth in their business, giving them confidence that they are on the right track.

For new entrepreneurs, they have a few words of wisdom.

“It always takes twice as long and twice as much money as you would expect,” quipped Brycz.

“Listen to your customers and don’t quit,” said Forrest.  “You have to understand, there’s always ups and downs.”

Starting a business in a down economy, or any economy, is a challenge. But Michigan and Metro Detroit, along with hard work, learning, and persistence is a formula that works.  Just ask the crew at Verde Lifestyles.

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David Leider, CEO of Gas Station TV, grew up in the family business. So it should not surprise anyone that he felt his own entrepreneurial itch, even while building a career in marketing and advertising. In fact, it was his background in advertising that lead him to the realization that DVR’s and other entertainment options make commercials on television almost obsolete. He also noticed that people are typically bored while filling their gas tanks. [watch video]

Gas Station TV eventually became the concept that allowed him to scratch that entrepreneurial itch.

“Gas stations are really interesting and unique because people’s dwell time is about five minutes and during that five minutes, you’re bored. You have nothing to do,” he notes. “So we provide great content.”

As the company officially opened their headquarters in downtown Birmingham, Leider is excited to prove that Michigan has the talent to innovate and dominate a new television market.

“We are the only television network headquartered in Detroit,” stated the Oak Park native. “There’s a lot of great people here. Certainly the cost of operating is less than in New York or in LA, but the talent. This is a great place to do business.”

That talent has proven valuable as the company has vaulted over several challenges in their short four year history. Other companies have tried the concept of putting a television on top of a gas pump before. After perfecting the physical hardware needed at each gas station, GSTV innovated a system that allows messages to be tailored individual gas stations. This ability has allowed them to grow to over 5,000 gas stations in 32 states.

It has also led to a great opportunity for everyday people to get publicity for charitable events in their hometowns at no charge. They call it Neighborhood and it is GSTV’s first foray into original programming. Combined with efforts on both Twitter and Facebook, GSTV estimates that over $1 million in advertising has been donated since the inception of this program.

Another challenge is making sure all of the televisions are working across their entire network. Stuart Lyne, Gas Station TV lead engineer heads the team that has met that challenge head on. Since programming is delivered over the internet, his team works hard to make sure they are delivering the programming consumers expect.

“Unlike a traditional TV, nobody is going to be watching it and tell you something is wrong,” he says. “So we have to effectively watch those TV’s day in and day out 24 hours a day.”

So the next time you fill your gas tank and catch up on your local weather, just think of the dynamic team of people audacious enough to start a television network in Detroit. More proof that Michigan’s talent pool is deep and our entrepreneurs are tenacious.

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What do you have when you combine 48 passionate people and 19 creative business ideas packed into one auditorium on the campus of Wayne State University? The answer: Startup Weekend Detroit. [more below video]

For someone new to the idea of a Startup Weekend, Friday night begins with a little networking, dinner and “PitchFire.” PitchFire is when people get two minutes to convince the room they have an idea that can succeed. The ideas ranged the gamut from a mobile classroom to a website where people with food allergies can easily find restaurants they can eat at safely. At the end, everyone gets tickets to vote on the ideas they liked best and are willing to support.

Next people with pitches immediately went out to lobby for their idea. They had 45 minutes to get as many votes as they can, which quickly became an opportunity for the passionate to start forming their teams. Team formation is critical for several reasons.

The more technical ideas need more technical expertise, and the people with expertise were in high demand. Ideas with a more marketing and media focus were pining for the best marketers in the room to join their team.

In the end, six ideas were selected and teams were solidified. They will be working together (and we’ll be checking in on them) until Sunday at 4pm to define, refine and prepare their ideas for judging by a panel of potential investors. Along the way, entrepreneurs will be dropping in to give short speeches about how they got their start and what pitfalls await the teams as they develop their business ideas. Bonds will be formed, business alliances will grow while the entrepreneurial spirit of Detroit will be on display for the Startup Weekend world to witness.

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When it comes to innovation, sometimes you’ve gotta go in and do the work. And here in Detroit, we know how to do the work.

That’s why Detroit Unspun is proud to announce our sponsorship of Startup Weekend Detroit. The event to be held May 14th through 16th on the Wayne State University campus (more specific details here).

This three-day event is novel in that it’s a full weekend experience where people from all walks of life get together, pitch a business idea, collaborate — and then, in a short period of time, make their ideas happen right then and there.

What’s also great is that people from all kinds of backgrounds — developers, PR, user experience, attorneys/legal beagles, social media, students, and jacks-of-all-trades are able to participate. It’s a very exciting and unique opportunity.

Detroit Unspun will be there covering it that weekend (in addition to our Downtown Hoedown coverage, more on that later), sharing stories and experiences live from the business incubation floor.

Not only will you be able to follow the Startup Weekend action online, but you’ve got a chance to be there yourself — we’re giving away TWO FREE TICKETS!

This is what you need to do:

On Twitter, tweet: “I want to Startup Detroit, @detroitunspun! #SWD2010″ and you’ll be entered. In fact, as long as you include the hashtag #SWD2010 and the @detroitunspun, you’re in. The winners will be chosen at random by the Startup Weekend organizers.

The contest closes the morning of Monday, May 10th, so you have the whole weekend to participate.

So, those who want be a part of building Detroit’s future by starting up a business . . . good luck!

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Future Midwest wrapped up day one of the conference with a dynamic keynote speaker that had a message tailored just for Southeast Michigan.

Former Digg CEO Jay Adelson was clearly excited to be on stage. The Southfield native used his time to remind Metro Detroit that there is a large pool of talent in the region. The region boasts great schools, affordable lifestyles, creative thinkers and a strong work ethic. It is the type of place where entrepreneurs should thrive.

[See our pre-keynote interview with Jay Adelson on our Youtube Channel]

Which is exactly why he challenged the standing room crowd to just get a little crazy.

“You need to find that screw that’s loose and loosen it a bit more,” Adelson said.

He pointed out that several well known industry leaders were thought to be just a little crazy. Henry Ford was crazy for thinking that people wanted something other than a horse to power their transportation. Bill Gates was a little crazy for pointing out the dangers of malaria worldwide by releasing a jar of mosquitos during a speech. Even his grandfather, who owned an electronics store on Eight Mile and Greenfield in the 1960′s was a little crazy in his drive to create a retail shopping experience. All three men were moved the thinking of the world by their craziness. That is the type of crazy Adelson wishes for Detroit.

Adelson even laid out a bit of a challenge for the Detroit region.

“If you want to make a difference in Detroit, I would say think about those limits that have been set for you — anything you’ve been told is impossible — find one and break it, because there’s no people better qualified to do that than the people in this room,” he stated.

Entrepreneur. Innovator. Proud new dad. Keynote speaker. All of these terms could be used to describe Adelson, but tonight the Future Midwest crowd knows there is one more term that should be used to describe him, Detroit evangelist.

We had a chance to sit down with him before his speech. The video is below.

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