Need Capital? You Might Want to Check This Out

If you’re an early-stage company heading to CTIA Wireless 2012 in New Orleans next week with a good business plan in need of financial support, you might want to hook up with Catalyst Investors. The growth equity investment firm is looking for a few good companies, and CTIA’s annual show is a good place to hook up – if you can find each other. Brian Rich, managing partner at New York City-based Catalyst Investors, has been attending CTIA’s annual conference for more than two decades – since before Wireless Week was launched. Full disclosure: Catalyst owns Wireless Week’s parent company, Advantage Business Media. “We like growing businesses that are a proven commodity already,” Rich says. The firm isn’t looking at “super early” stage companies that need venture capital or the other extreme, leveraged buyouts, but “everything in between.” One example: InSite Wireless Group, in which it invested in 2010. InSite constructs, owns and operates tower site facilities and distributed antenna systems (DAS). In 2009, Catalyst acquired an interest in MindBody; it’s a software as a service (SAAS) provider to the health, wellness and personal care industries. What about apps developers? That’s a “maybe,” Rich says, as they usually represent a tougher business case. Catalyst is no stranger to wireless spectrum deals, either. In December 2010, Leap Wireless International completed the acquisition of Catalyst portfolio company Denali Spectrum LLC, giving Leap control of Denali’s Chicago and southern Wisconsin markets. It also was an early investor in several other 4G players, including Clearwire, Aloha Partners (sold to AT&T) and Oneida Broadband (sold to Sprint and Clearwire). So, with Catalyst being a provider of capital and a lot of up-and-coming companies in need of a little assist, next week’s show could prove fruitful for both sides of the deal. For more info or to inquire about setting up a meeting, visit .