This North Shore company connects local businesses with crowdfunding investors

MainVest, a new company in Salem, wants to help bring small businesses and small investors together. It's crowdfunding with a twist, according to its CEO and co-founder, Nick Mathews. "These businesses aren’t asking for handouts, they’re giving the opportunity to invest and get a potential return."

The Wandering Stage, one of the proposals currently up on MainVest's site, is seeking $65,000 to create a moveable stage for all kinds of theatrical productions. "It can pull into any parking lot or city park and it can drop a 20 by 12-foot stage. As it drops, the side wall of the trailer actually stays in place and the actual trailer becomes a backstage area," said Nat McNiff, the entrepreneur behind the idea.

MainVest is looking for amenity-based companies that can help inject a sense of vibrancy and economic vitality into a community while offering small investors a chance to get in on the action.

"It's something where you are looking to make money,” said Mathews, “But also the ability to do that in a way that is building your local community and doing good.  We think that intersection is really where the magic happens, where it's not just like donating, you're investing."

MainVest doesn't vouch for companies, although they do meet with personnel and require a detailed business plan before posting a proposal.

They hope they can offer people a chance to achieve their version of the American Dream.

"There are so many people, I would say between the ages of 20-40 years old, who are interested in starting their own businesses," McNiff added. "Maybe they’ve had 9-5 jobs their whole lives and banks just won’t take on shot on you."

It doesn’t cost anything up front for a company to start raising money if MainVest accepts a proposal. If a company reaches its goal, however, then they're required to share a percentage of those funds with MainVest.

Cox Media Group