20140113-NEWS--0001-NAT-CCI-CD_-- 1/10/2014 5:57 PM Page 1 ® www.crainsdetroit.com Vol. 30, No. 2 JANUARY 13 – 19, 2014 $2 a copy; $59 a year ©Entire contents copyright 2014 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved Page 3 Valassis was once a coupon king, but that kingdom dwindled with the decline of newspapers. Diversification and deals ISTOCK PHOTO DAVID HALL/CDB slowed the slide, but in the end, a sale seemed the best option. Auto show drives Detroit’s pitch to meeting planners 2 from Telemus leave to run Cutting the losses firm’s new wealth unit BY BILL SHEA The buyer turned out to be San Madison Heights biz aims CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS NUMBING Antonio-based Harland Clarke Hold- ings Corp., one of the many pieces of to stir the pot in Canada he answers to why Livonia- NUMBERS New York City-based MacAndrews & based direct-marketing and Valassis has Forbes Holdings Inc. that’s owned by newspaper coupon giant struggled to CRAIN’S maintain revenue, Ronald Perelman, a private equity Valassis Communications Inc. MICHIGAN BUSINESS profits, Page 20 industrialist estimated by Forbes — a profitable company T this year to be one of the wealthi- with $2 billion in annual revenue — chose to Is Kent County’s Land Bank est Americans at $14 billion. put itself up for sale can be found buried in a The timeline of the Valassis-Harland more like land grab? Page 9 labyrinth of public disclosure documents. Clarke deal’s birth is neatly laid out in a Valassis’ earnings statements paint a pic- long U.S. Securities and Exchange Com- ture of a company facing troubling financial mission filing, but that’s the limit of pub- questions about its core products, and man- M&A AWARDS: LAST CALL lic comment by either company, for agement’s answer last year was to find a buyer now, about the acquisition. FOR NOMINEES for the firm the late George Valassis started in Involved in a merger or 1970 in Oak Park. acquisition in 2013? You may See Valassis, Page 20 be eligible for Crain’s M&A Awards. Crain’s Detroit Business and the Association for Corporate Growth will honor companies and individuals in the following categories: Ⅲ Best Deal of the Year: Under $100 million and $100 million or ProNAi steps up cancer drug push more. The deal must have closed in 2013. The buyer or the business sold must be in Wayne, Firm plans more funding, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw or Livingston counties. Ⅲ Dealmaker of the Year/buyer- IPO after success in trials seller. BY TOM HENDERSON Ⅲ Dealmaker of the Year/adviser. M&A experts, CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS lenders, CPAs, consultants and Based on dramatic results last year in human trials attorneys, among others, are 10 eligible. for its lead cancer drug, ProNAi Therapeutics Inc. of Ply- Questions to ask mouth Township finished a fundraising round of Dealmaker candidates also must be in Wayne, Oakland, $12.5 million on Friday and has engaged a major New Macomb Washtenaw or York investment bank to start raising $30 million and when creating your planning for an initial public offering by year’s end. LON HORWEDEL Livingston counties. ProNAi President and CEO Mina Sooch and Chief Medical Winners will be profiled in the The $30 million crossover round is meant to at- Officer Richard Messmann look to more cancer drug trials. marketing plan March 24 issue of Crain’s Detroit tract the angel and venture capital investors that Business and will be honored at have funded the company so far, but it will also tar- that drew attention in December at the annual meet- an awards event in May. get firms that usually invest in public companies, ing of the American Society of Hematology, a major To enter, visit with the hook being that an investment in this conference that drew 30,000 to New Orleans. Area marketing minds tell crainsdetroit.com/nominate. round gives them first crack at investing in the IPO. The 12 patients in the first trial were enrolled be- how building brand helps For questions concerning the how building brand helps The company will use its funding to conduct more cause they had non-Hodgkin lymphoma that had nomination process or the human trials on its lead product, which has the been treated unsuccessfully with conventional ther- companies build sales. nomination form, contact working name of PNT2258, and to get two other Jennifer Chinn at (313) 446- apies, including radiation. 6065 or [email protected]. cancer-fighting compounds into trials. Four of the 12 are now in remission and 10 had President and CEO Mina Sooch says the company The deadline for nominations is their tumors shrink. One of those in remission is a See Page 13 Jan. 20. is poised to take advantage of the results of its phase-two Food and Drug Administration trials, results See ProNAi, Page 18 PRESENTING Tuesday, Feb. 25 Mike Duggan 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. DETROIT MAYOR MotorCity Casino Hotel NEWSPAPER Register at crainsdetroit.com/events 20140113-NEWS--0002-NAT-CCI-CD_-- 1/10/2014 5:43 PM Page 1 Page 2 CRAIN’S DETROIT BUSINESS January 13, 2014 MICHIGAN BRIEFS Grand Rapids may extend increase Miller Johnson. MLive.com also report- that the lots were in Flint, Fenton, ed that the project now is expected to Mt. Morris, Lapeer and Holly. GVSU clerical workers vote in income tax to fund road repairs cost $45 million instead of $28 million Find business news from Grand Rapids residents could and will be 11 stories instead of five. around the state at crainsdetroit vote on an income tax extension Ⅲ The president of Suski Chevro- .com/crainsmichiganbusiness. this year, Michigan Radio reported. let-Buick in Birch Run closed five to leave MEA, form new union used-car lots because he said they Sign up for Crain's Michigan In 2010, voters approved the tempo- weren’t being operated to his stan- Business e-newsletter at crains Clerical workers and support we’re not getting any decent re- rary increase. It will expire in 2015. dards. Andy Suski told MLive.com detroit.com/emailsignup. staff at Grand Valley State University search when it comes to bargain- The Grand Rapids City Commission is this month voted to sever ties ing,” she said. considering asking voters to extend with the Michigan Education Asso- Bedford also cited the relation- that for 15 more years. ciation and form an independent ship with the university: “It’s a col- City Manager Greg Sundstrom CORRECTIONS union, MLive.com reported. laborative work environment and said the increase would raise about Ⅲ The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History was de- Of the 266 members of the Cleri- it’s a supportive work environ- $9 million a year for road mainte- signed by Sims Varner & Associates. The company was misidentified in cal, Office and Technical Association, ment.” A lack of employee griev- nance along with sidewalk repairs. an item in the Jan. 6 Week on the Web. 235 voted to form the Alliance of Pro- ances is one reason that the union About two dozen Michigan cities Ⅲ An article on Page 12 of the Jan. 6 issue should have listed a $200 fessional Support Staff. didn’t need the MEA, she said. have an income tax. million gift from billionaire alumnus Stephen Ross made in Septem- Coreen Bedford, acting presi- Bedford expects dues to be ber under President Mary Sue Coleman’s leadership as the largest gift dent of the new union, said em- “significantly less.” ever received by the University of Michigan rather than the $110 million ployees found that the cost of be- The Allendale-based universi- MICH-CELLANEOUS gift made by investor and philanthropist Charles Munger in April, ing affiliated with the MEA ty has about 2,000 total employ- Ⅲ Grand Valley State University has which was the largest gift at that point in the year. outweighed the benefits. “We’re ees. Grand Valley faculty aren’t appointed Diana Lawson dean of The article also should have said that Coleman will cap a 12-year not getting any decent training, unionized. the Seidman College of Business, tenure as president when she retires at the end of the 2013-14 school MiBiz reported. Lawson is cur- year, rather than 13 years. rently dean and a professor of mar- a predicament in that they hire The following are corrections to the Crain’s Book of Lists published State’s fruit and veggie growers keting at the Herberger Business dozens of seasonal workers. Dec. 30: School at St. Cloud State University in express Obamacare confusion “Right now, it’s just the lack of Ⅲ The 10 Things to Remember report on Page 9 erroneously omitted Minnesota. She will begin her Brenda Jones as a member of the Detroit City Council. A lot of employers in a lot of in- information out there” that is frus- Grand Valley job July 1. Ⅲ The list of Largest Southeast Michigan Information Technology dustries have weighed in on Oba- trating fruit and vegetable grow- Ⅲ Central Michigan University in Companies should have included Epitec Inc. at No. 19, with revenue of macare. But what about farmers? ers, Findlay said. Mt. Pleasant has the best online $65 million. The Southfield-based company provides professional IT Ryan Findlay, national legisla- Nancy Farnam of Varnum Law’s undergraduate program, accord- services such as custom software application development, in addi- tive counsel at the Lansing-based metro Detroit office said Oba- ing to a survey by U.S. News & tion to staffing services.