TiE Silicon Valley Announces "Entrepreneurs Bazaar" at TiEcon 2007 -- the World's Largest Convention for Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs Bazaar "Preparatory Meet" an Overwhelming Success


SANTA CLARA, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- May 9, 2007 -- TiE Silicon Valley is proud to host the 2nd Annual Entrepreneurs Bazaar event at TiEcon 2007, the largest conference for entrepreneurs that will take place at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, Calif. on May 18 and 19, 2007.

Entrepreneurs Bazaar is a "must participate" event for savvy entrepreneurs. This unique event provides a valuable opportunity for entrepreneurs to have high quality one-on-one interactions with top Venture Capital, Legal, Finance, and other service firms. It gives entrepreneurs direct access to VCs which they may not have had otherwise.

Debuted at TiEcon 2005, this event was called "VC in the House." Soon after, TiE realized that entrepreneurs needed to have access not only to the best VCs but also to the best service providers in legal, banking, etc. so that they can build successful start-ups. Hence Entrepreneurs Bazaar was launched in 2006. Building on the success of Entrepreneurs Bazaar last year, TiE has taken this event at TiEcon 2007 one step further by hosting an exclusive "preparatory meet" 10 days prior to the conference.

Raj Jaswa, President of TiE Silicon Valley, said, "It's a great pleasure for us at TiE Silicon Valley to offer this unique forum for aspiring entrepreneurs where they have an opportunity to meet with VCs one-on-one and take advantage of mentoring sessions so they can perfect their pitches before actually meeting with the VCs."

Entrepreneurs Bazaar "Preparatory Meet"

The Preparatory Meet held on Tuesday, May 8 at the TiE SV Conference Center in Santa Clara was attended by more than 125 aspiring entrepreneurs. Ajit Nazre, Partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), gave an astounding speech, providing entrepreneurs with insights on the funding process and pointers on what the VCs are looking for in their first interaction with an entrepreneur. Over 25 TiE Charter Members, who include serial entrepreneurs and senior executives, reviewed business plans and venture capital presentations of these entrepreneurs to better prepare them for their invaluable one-on-one meetings with VCs at the Entrepreneurs Bazaar at TiEcon 2007. Ajay Chopra and Sanjay Bonde, Co-Chairs of TiEcon 2007 Entrepreneurs Bazaar program, noted, "The incredibly overwhelming response to the prep meet reinforces the fact that entrepreneurial spirit of the Valley is on its upswing and in full steam."

"Thanks to TiE and its programs such as Entrepreneurs Bazaar and Prep Meet, hands-down there's a qualitative difference in the entrepreneurs we are seeing today -- their pitch is clean, their business plan focused," Nazre said. "There's no better networking event in the world than TiEcon."

Following is a partial list of VC and service provider firms at TiEcon 2007 Entrepreneur Bazaar:

Accel Partners, Applied Ventures, Artiman Ventures, Battery Ventures, Bay Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, Canaan Partners, Clearstone Venture Partners, Comerica Bank, Cooley Godward Kronish LLP, DCM, Fenwick & West LLP, Frank, Rimerman Consulting, Greylock Partners, Hoge, Fenton, Jones & Appel, Inc., Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, IBM Venture Capital, Intel Capital, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, KPMG, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Mayfield Fund, Menlo Ventures, Microsoft, New Enterprise Associates, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, Opus Capital Ventures, Perkins Coie LLP, Sequoia Capital India, Shasta Ventures, Silicon Valley Bank, Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP, Storm Ventures, Thelen Reid, Trinity Ventures, USVP

Register Today!

Save $50 on registration for TiEcon 2007 -- online registration closes on May 14th. Registration starts at $245, go online to www.tiecon.org or call 408-567-0700 x231.

About TiEcon 2007

TiEcon 2007 is two action packed days of aspiring, exploring, and networking on May 18 and 19. TiEcon will explore today's business environment and discuss the big issues facing industry and entrepreneurs. A stellar combination of Keynote Speakers, Distinguished Speakers, Luminary and Front Line Panels will focus on this year's theme, "The New Face of Entrepreneurship," across businesses and ecosystems. TiEcon attendees will have the opportunity to interact with more than 4000 attendees including industry experts, corporate executives, VCs, customers, and entrepreneurs -- making this an exciting and don't miss event.

Come to TiEcon 2007 -- dream, explore, and connect with the best in the industry and discover the "entrepreneur in you."

About TiE

TiEcon is TiE Silicon Valley's annual flagship event. Founded in 1992 in Silicon Valley, TiE is a not-for-profit global network of entrepreneurs and professionals. TiE stands for Talent, Ideas, and Enterprise; it is an open and inclusive organization that has rapidly grown to more than 45 chapters in 10 countries with a membership base of over 10,000. TiE Silicon Valley is sponsored by the top Venture Capital firms, Fortune 500 corporations, and professional service providers. TiE fosters entrepreneurship through mentoring, networking, and education. At the heart of TiE is its strong ecosystem, which has enabled members to facilitate and create a cohesive network of strong, viable, and sustainable chapters worldwide. The TiE brand is synonymous with entrepreneurship and wealth creation globally.

Contact Information: Conference Contact: Email Contact Phone: 408.567.0700 x231 Fax: 408.567.0777 Media Contact Information: Xenia von Wedel Terpin Communications Email Contact Phone: 415.595.2030