Business

Trading information

or ideas has led to

opportunities for

young local

SHARI S. COHEN

Special to the Jewish News

T

he Jewish American business tradition
often began with a traveling salesman
peddling wares from town to town, or
with a small general store.
Today, business people often sell their prod-
ucts and services not only through stores and
offices, but also over the Internet. Several local
Jewish entrepreneurs are gaining national reputa-
tions for their work in this new field.
They range from recent college graduates pio-
neering successful e-commerce companies to busi-
ness veterans advising large corporations on the
new information technology. "Their common
characteristics are the technical knowledge and the
willingness to learn a 'new world,'" suggests Dr.
Carlos ZOrea, a Northville-based business manage-
ment consultant who works with computer-related
companies in Michigan and other states.

CSSINFO. corn

Andrew Bank, co-founder of CSSINFO.com , a
business-to-business information company,
describes the motivation for Internet pioneers:
"They thrive on the challenge. There is some-
thing new every day. What can make you feel

2/18
2000

106

Initially, the company was paper-based but
more alive than making a change, creating a new
Hammerman soon began exploring the Internet,
value proposition?"
still new in the mid-1990s. CSSINFO enabled
Recognizing a business opportunity were
engineers to easily access and download specific
Bank, originally from Flint (where he was active
technical standards, using company-authorized
in United Synagogue Youth) and Greg
accounts.
Hammerman (from Grand Rapids).
In 1997, the young partners leased
The engineering graduates who met at
Gres: Ha mmerman office space and began to operate the
the University of Michigan began their
an; Andre w Bank
business full time.
information technology company in
started CS' SINFO
"By January of 1999, we had more
1996.
in 1995.
business
on the Internet than off the
"The idea came from Greg's intern-
Internet,"
says Hammerman. "This
ship at the Steelcase Quality Technical
opened
our
eyes
to
the
possibilities. We were ful-
Lab, where they maintain technical criteria for per-
filling
a
need
for
people
and we started thinking
formance, safety and quality of furniture," says
about
what
other
resources
people might need."
Bank. "Standards rules everyone's lives. They cover
CSSINFO
now
has
20,000
customers world-
everything from cell phones to CD-Roms to
wide
with
30
percent
overseas.
"We are expand-
lamps. They're written by industry associations and
ing our lines of content so they can get all of
if a manufacturer's standards are not up-to-date,
their technical needs from us," says Bank, vice
products are not marketable and there are ques-
president of marketing.
tions about liability and exportability."
The company is debt-free and profitable, with
Hammerman adds, "I was working with engi-
sales
close to $1 million last year, according to
neers who were spending their time on the
Hammerman.
Funding for expansion was just
phone tracking down the most up-to-date ver-
secured
through
the Thomas Company, an old
sions of technical standards. There was no
and
well-respected
technical publisher.
resource to consolidate this information."
So, after graduation, Hammerman and Bank
entered licensing agreements with industry associa-
Versity. corn
tions to resell and distribute technical standards.
Versity is another company that began when sever-