Russ: This is the BusinessMakers Show heard here and online and theBusinessMakers.com. And now it's time for the Aflac BusinessMakers Flashback brought to you by Aflac. Ask about it at work. And we're gonna do something special for this morning's flashback because we're flashing back to right now because here with me in the studio I have Paul Frison, Founding CEO and currently Executive Vice Chairman of the Houston Technology Center. Paul, welcome back to the BusinessMakers Show.

Paul: Thank you very much Russ. It's a pleasure to be here I can assure you.

Russ: Alright. Well in case somebody doesn't know exactly what the Houston Technology Center is, why don't you fill them in.

Paul: We're a business incubator, or a business accelerator. What we basically do, we're working with entrepreneurs; the many, many, many of them that are here in our great community. Those that are trying to get a business started, trying to gain customers, trying to have a big success; and we help them accelerate their commercialization, help them get customers, help them learn how to demonstrate and talk about their business plan, raise capital, etcetera, and be a big success.

Russ: Okay. Have you had any success yet?

Paul: Let's see now. We've helped about 200 companies raise in addition to an excess of $750 million to get their businesses online and become a success. Many of them, about 30 of them, have actually had successful outcomes by merging with different companies being outright purchased. And I'd like to say with this economy that we're living in, we're very proud to say in the last 12 months, we've helped companies raise over $120 million. In this economy we're very proud of that.

Russ: I think that is called success for sure. (Laughter)

Paul: Absolutely. We specialize in technology types of companies. And various sectors that we look at and work on the most are in the energy sector very broadly, in the life sciences sector, in information technology; we're looking at a NASA type of aerospace and nanotechnology. Those are the special types of emerging technology companies that we work with.

Russ: Are any of those perhaps bigger sectors than the others?

Paul: Oh I think energy is probably the biggest because we're the energy capital of the world, and basically commercialization can happen rather quickly in some of these standard areas. That takes quite a while of course when you're looking for some of the alternative types of fuels, etcetera. But life sciences takes a lot of time to go through the FDA and all of that type of thing. So once they hit, they hit big; but it's a real process and takes quite a bit of time. ITs everywhere.

Russ: Okay, and you have actually some life sciences background in your history, right?

Paul: Yes, I certainly do. I've run three public companies here in town and one of them about a year and a half ago sold for a billion-seven -

Russ: Wow.

Paul: - so I wish I still had my style, but I didn't.

Russ: (Laughter) Alright. Well, I know that you have a very special event coming up in the not too distant future and I wanted you to come in here and talk about that. Tell us about it.

Paul: Well, that's neat. It's great to have the opportunity because we're very excited about this. You know, we deal with entrepreneurs and this is - in some ways, people would refer to this as the entrepreneur capital of the world, -

Russ: I would.

Paul: - a lot of people don't know that you know, but there's so many stories that have helped make this city. Well for the last seven years we've had a gala celebration of entrepreneurs where we try to pull all types of entrepreneurs, not just from the technology area. You know, we've had people like Harolds "in the Heights". We've had people like Johnny Carraba you know. Also of course, we've had Nancy Chang and Rod Canion and all of those. But we're going to have on May the 13th at the Omni Hotel, our 7th gala and this is going to be honoring Jim McIngvale. Now who in the world but Mattress Mack is a more consummate entrepreneur? Here's a patriot, a philanthropist, a consummate businessman, and with that awful fire that he just had, the way he handled that, we're gonna be honoring him. We're also gonna have features of special achievement awards to Franklin Chang-Diaz in aerospace, and Doug Irwin in information technology and Mauro Ferrari in nanotechnology and Corby Robertson in energy and Jim Willerson in life sciences. Those will be special award winners, and then, including yourself and including your wife who are both excellent entrepreneurs, -

Russ: Thank you.

Paul: - we'll have 60 entrepreneurs, one at each one of our 60 tables, that will be celebrated. So it'll be a fun, fun evening at the Omni Hotel, Thursday night, May the 13th, 6:30 to 9:30. Yes, we are selling tickets if people are interested. You can go to Houstontech.org on our website. And there's still about 60 days before it's there, but we'd love a lot of people there. It'll be a fun time.

Russ: Well Paul, I think I've been to maybe all but one and they're just incredible events. And it just feels like the room is full of entrepreneurship DNA. I mean it's just an extraordinary event, I gotta tell ya.

Paul: What's fun is as I said - and thank you - as I said, each table has at least one of these successful entrepreneurs and each one of them are asked to tell their story. Share with the people that are at their table some of the highs and the lows and the businesses, you at eRealty and some of the wonderful things that you've done, and other parts of your experience. Heck, this is an entrepreneurial thing that you're doing right now at BusinessMakers. But, a lot of fun.

Russ: Well thank you. Well absolutely and Jim McIngvale, my goodness. He alone could make Houston center of the world for entrepreneurial endeavors. Isn't it true that he broke every record of retail square footage sales for furniture on the planet from what I've heard.

Paul: Yes, some of his statistics are absolutely unbelievable and he's very proud and willing to tell you that he started off with $5,000.00 in his pocket and look what he has done; and look how much he has given back to this great community and to others, so he's quite a man.

Russ: Right, and the way the agenda works in this event, we will actually hear from Jim.

Paul: Oh yes. He'll be up there and he'll probably try to save us money.

Russ: (Laughter) I am really looking forward to it as I am every year. And tell us again the date.

Paul: It's May the 13th, 6:30 to 9:30 at night. That's at the Omni Hotel. We're looking forward to a lot of you being here.

Russ: Okay. And if somebody is really interested in just hearing about it right, they go to - what's the website?

Paul: Www.houstentech.org and you look at the website right there. Go up to "Events," go to "the Gala," and there it'll be.

Russ: Alright.

Paul: Or come and see us. We're right there at the Houston Technology Center. Lots of events. The next time, we're gonna have one of our Gala meetings with all kinds of 150-200 people there that will be at our Tech Champions meeting, will actually be on April the 9th, and you can come and hear all about it.

Russ: Okay, cool. Paul, I really thank you for coming in and telling us about it; and I thank you for doing what you do.

Paul: Thank you so much and thank you for doing what you and John do.

Russ: Thank you very much Paul. Well that wraps up our discussion with Paul Frison, the Founding CEO and currently Executive Vice Chairman of the Houston Technology Center. And that wraps up this morning's Aflac BusinessMakers Flashback brought to you by Aflac. Ask about it at work. Stay tuned in for our featured guest segment with John Ellett, co-founder and CEO of nFusion. You're listening to the BusinessMakers Show heard here and online at theBusinessMakers.com.