THE NEW DEAL

STORY BY BEN JACKLET // PHOTOS BY ANTHONY PIDGEON

Left to right: John Friess of Starve Ups, Mark Grimes of Ned.com, Eric Doebele of ReliableRemodeler.com, Josh Friedman of NedSpace, Nitin Khanna of MergerTech and Ryan Buchanan of eROI and the Software Association of Oregon. All are involved in a multi-pronged effort to boost Portland’s startup scene.

Eric Doebele timed his first major exit nicely.

In 2007, the Beaverton web company Doebele co-founded with his business partner Jack Phan, ReliableRemodeler.com, was one of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. By the following February, just as the economy was poised to crash, Doebele and Phan sold their company to the online marketing giant QuinStreet for $25.5 million.

The moment the deal closed, Doebele’s life was changed. But the 37-year-old entrepreneur, born and raised in Kelso, Wash., did not leave Oregon. Nor did he step back from the business world to pursue other interests. Instead he immersed himself locally, tapping into Oregon’s angel investing community and looking around for companies to invest in and mentor. Before long he had compiled a portfolio of a half dozen burgeoning Portland technology companies to support. He invested between $25,000 and $50,000 in each of these businesses, to keep them going but also keep them hungry, with the ulterior motive of giving the economy a boost.

“When you invest money in a startup, that money goes right back into the economy,” says Doebele. “When an entrepreneur gets money in his hands, he’s hiring somebody. He’s putting somebody to work the next day. It’s short-term job creation that’s local. But you’re also creating something for the long term. Small business is what drives the economy. And you’re planting the seeds for tomorrow’s mid-sized companies.” Doebele’s investments were particularly welcome given the difficulties so many small businesses are experiencing getting access to capital in the still-sluggish economy. Not only has he boosted the prospects of several nascent Portland businesses with serious potential, he has deepened his ties with an energetic team of young business leaders with big ideas about how to jump-start the state’s startup scene.

Eric Doebele decided to stay in Portland after his successful exit from ReliableRemodeler.com in 2008. Since selling that business he has been investing in and mentoring a half dozen promising Portland tech startups.

Nitin Khanna built Saber Consulting into a 1,500-employee business in less than a decade before selling the company for $420 million in November 2007. He is launching an M&A firm, MergerTech, and investing in five local startups.

Mark Grimes, co-founder of the shared work environment NedSpace, has launched four businesses and invested in a dozen others, as well as helping to organize a Maker Faire in Ghana and launching a philanthropic water service.

Taken as a whole, their ideas add up to a compelling master plan for reinvigorating the startup scene — and the economy.