Jun 18, 2013

Cathy Allred - Daily Herald Jun 18, 2013 (…) Utah Angels founders second generation are left to right, Damon Kirchmeier, Jensen Warnock, Ryan Ollivier, Matt Haney, Aaron Ollivier and, Davis Warnock.Photo by Morgan Latimer LEHI -- The second generation of Utah Angels, UAII, made its debut investment launch Monday afternoon at Adobe in Lehi. "We are looking for startups to invest in, this is our kick off," founder Aaron Ollivier said. With nearly 200 guests at the event, each person got to vote on one of seven startup teams during the two-hour party. At the close of the event, UAII founders presented the winning team, Vinny , with a $10,000 check. The award also includes mentoring and help from the new investment group. "I think it's fantastic. I think it could have been anyone here. It's great, this was one of the last minute entries," Ollivier said. Danela Tran said she was surprised to win. One of the major developers for Vinny , Tran was the only woman representing a startup at the event. The idea behind Vinny is simple. The application shares knowledge on previously owned vehicles. By using Vinny, the amount a car dealership paid for a used car is available, providing bartering leverage for the buyer. Revenue is made through the program for reports on the vehicle and insurance comparisons, at little cost to the consumer. Sometimes the simplest ideas are the most important and most scalable for a startup company, according to investors. A lot has to do with presentation and the drive of the team. Tran didn't have a lot of techie toys or people at her booth, but she knew her topic. "She is really smart, first of all, and she has also a lot of creative ideas, which is what makes Vinny the really creative app that they are still developing. She is very dedicated," a close friend, Avisha Sabaghian, said. UAII didn't just give away $10,000, though. Members also gave each guest $300,000 in play money to invest in several companies. After the voting ended, the founders revealed the names of the companies and how they did as a startup and how those companies were doing currently. Mostly Utah County-based, UAII is a phoenix of sorts, rising after the disbanding of the original Utah Angels group in 2012; and at least one of its five founders is a second generation angel investor. The original association of Utah Angels invested more than $250 million into startups during a period of 20 years with an approximately seven- to eight-time return on their investment. "Some of us in the original Utah Angels decided we wanted to keep carrying this on and continue to make silly risks for many more years to come," Ollivier said. UAII founder Jensen Warnock's father, Greg Warnock, was one of the early Utah Angel members and after nearly 20 years with the group has moved on to other types of investing. He is also the managing director of Utah's Mercato Partners. "I love entrepreneurship. I have grown up around it. I think it is the best opportunity for the entrepreneur and starting up companies and it's the most fun you can have while making a living," Warnock said. The founders are driven by a love of the game. "It's starting up a company, with innovation and new ideas, and trying to be a part of all that. I'm a junkie for innovation and technology," Jensen Warnock said. More on Utah Angels II can be found at ua2.co. -- Cathy Allred covers 11 cities and towns in north Utah County and is responsible for Our Towns announcements. Send your school, civic, city and business news to northutahcountynews@gmail.com for Daily Herald publication. You can follow her blog at NorthUtahCounty.com .