Local company sprouts business

Bloomington-based businesses are sprouting up with a little help from a new local consulting business.

SproutBox is the brainchild of three Bloomington-based entrepreneurs and venture capitalists who found that by sharing resources, startups can focus less on expenses and more on developing their unique brands and products.

SproutBox takes care of many of the early details such as finding employees, health insurance, building space, planners and coders.

Even though revenues don’t immediately start flowing in, the founders can still stay afloat. In exchange for their services and funding, investors and the SproutBox team own a percentage of their new “sprouts.”

Mike Trotzke, one of the co-founders and managing members of SproutBox, said the company isn’t about giving money but taking an idea and making it happen. Trotzke said he believes the end product is something investors can feel comfortable putting their money behind.

The three founders of SproutBox, Trotzke, Brad Wisler and Marc Guyer, worked together on other projects prior to their collaboration. As they each started to move in different directions with their own ideas, they realized they would be more successful as a team.

SproutBox prepares and launches one tech startup each quarter, which makes the application process competitive, Trotzke said.

Once the team narrows down the applications, each of the prospective founders is invited to Bloomington to present his or her idea.

Since opening, SproutBox has nurtured five sprout businesses from idea to fruition over the last year and a half. The company’s most recent sprout is called Proposable.com.

James Kappen, the founder of Proposable.com, said SproutBox goes above and beyond what typical venture capitalist firms offer.

“Instead of just being a financial investor in an idea, they invest their resources instead of cash,” Kappen said.

Neal Patel, who lives in California and works in business development for Google, is one of the most active investors of SproutBox. Patel met Trotzke at a tech conference, and the two realized their shared interest in venture capitalism.

“They are starting to build more of a high-tech community around the Bloomington area and the Midwest,” Patel said. “This is something that I believe in as well.”

The company hopes to create opportunities for new founders and wants to help the tech community of Bloomington grow.

Culture is a large part of the SproutBox experience and to better reflect the culture its space was remodeled.

Each of the team members has his or her own office decorated to match individual tastes.The walls are decorated by local artists, and one particular mural stretches like a tree from the floor to the ceiling. Bean bag chairs, recliners, Rock Band and an assortment of board games are also present in the office.

While this environment might sound counterproductive, Trotzke said he feels it’s ideal for their type of work. Trotzke said coding and developing can be mentally mind-numbing, so the mindless distractions help by providing much-needed breaks.

“Because we’ve hired really good people who are motivated, we can have an environment here that isn’t strict or your typical office environment,” Trotzke said.