Techstars Startup Week Louisville: Full Schedule

7:30am EST

Louisville Open Coffee Club

Join us MONDAY, NOV. 11 for Louisville Open Coffee Club. Whether you're a business founder or provide support/services to founders, stop in for 15 minutes or come the entire time.

REGISTER FOR FREE: https://locc2019.eventbrite.com
We begin with open networking & free coffee. Pastries and other drinks available for purchase. Around 8:30 a.m. we start:

ASK for advice or services / GIVE advice or services
Ask for any advice or service you want. Just remember, you must give in order to receive. What you give is up to you (e.g. an hour of tech services, a class, meeting space, connections).

JOIN US • NETWORK • LEARN • SHARE • GROW • ENJOY!
Nov. & Dec. open coffees take place every Monday and are sponsored by Techstars. Please note that future meeting locations are subject to change.

REGISTER FOR FREE: https://locc2019.eventbrite.com
Interested in sponsoring one or a series of meet ups in 2020? Contact larry.horn@network.techstars.com

Wiltshire on Market
636 East Market Street
Louisville, KY 40202

Monday November 11, 2019 7:30am - 9:00am EST
Wiltshire on Market | 636 East Market Street Louisville, KY 40202

Networking

7:30am EST

Registration

Pick up swag bag and itinerary

Monday November 11, 2019 7:30am - Friday November 15, 2019 5:30pm EST
Story Foyer 900 E. Main

ALL TRACKS

8:00am EST

Yoga

Description: Find your center and purpose during this morning Yoga class. Many thanks to Story Louisville for opening this event to Startup Week participants!

Cost: Free

Monday November 11, 2019 8:00am - 9:00am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

ALL TRACKS

9:00am EST

Funding Chalk Talk with David Willbrand

Description: “Chalk Talk” which covers the basic nuts and bolts of capitalization and fundraising from a legal perspective. We cover the instruments and structures used, with a heavy emphasis on demystifying the jargon.

Cost: Free

Monday November 11, 2019 9:00am - 10:00am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Whiteboard session

10:00am EST

Digitizing The Manufacturing Environment - How 3D Digital Engineering Improves the Overall Consumer Experience: Omar El-Abed (GE Appliances)

GE Appliances (GEA) has electrified and modernized life for more than 125 years with a legacy of invention and innovation. In line with the company’s mission of building the world’s best appliances, GEA is employing the latest in digital engineering to revolutionize its product development. Developing a core competency in 3D optical metrology has enabled GEA to innovate its bench-marking, reverse engineering, part validation, and root cause analysis.

A “change agent” for developing new technologies and processes, Omar EL-Abed is the Metrology Leader at GE Appliances, a company that values teamwork, innovation, reliability, speed and, above all, a passion to help people. He is applying new technologies, methodologies, and approaches to pursue better ways to conduct business across a global supply chain. He is pioneering the application of Optical 3D Metrology for part and process validation as well as innovating the application of Model-Based Definition (MBD) for inspection using PMI data. GEA is leveraging its core competency in Dimensional Management and Optical 3D metrology to redefine its product development process.

Monday November 11, 2019 10:00am - 11:00am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Emerging Tech, Speaker

11:00am EST

Startup Culture In The Spirits World - Kaveh Zamanian (Rabbit Hole Distillery)

Join Kaveh Zamanian, Founder and Whiskey Maker of Rabbit Hole Distillery, as he shares his experience as an entrepreneur , the overview of start-up culture, and getting the business off the ground. Rabbit Hole makes super-premium Bourbon & American Whiskey, and is located in the Nulu neighborhood of Downtown Louisville.

Monday November 11, 2019 11:00am - 12:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Food & Beverage, Speaker

12:00pm EST

Accelerating Louisville's Food & Beverage Industry: Tom Murro (Chefspace)

Food incubators and commissaries are necessary for growing markets. The shared space/shared idea model not only eliminates overhead but allows entrepreneurs to take a chance with more security and less financial burden on themselves. Fostering food service establishments, especially in markets with raging commercial real estate prices, make shared kitchen spaces more appealing both in the smaller overall footprint but also in shared rent pricing structures. In addition, many commissaries and incubators are building “food hall” spaces (mixed retail/ restaurant / consumer packaged goods) which directly contribute to growing food/bev markets but also allow growing businesses the same model of the shared kitchen in a retail space (less overhead, less initial financial burden, less barriers to entry).

Chef Space is a food business accelerator located in Louisville’s West End that provides commercial kitchen space and business training for entrepreneurs to start food‐related ventures
https://www.chefspace.org/

Monday November 11, 2019 12:00pm - 1:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Food & Beverage, Speaker

1:00pm EST

5 Marketing Lessons for Launching a New Startup: Drew Beechler (High Alpha)

Marketing a new startup can be one of the most challenging roles in a startup—especially when you are defining a new market or trying to displace a commonly-held practice. You are fighting an uphill battle against large incumbents or a major adversity to change — all with a tiny marketing budget. Working in venture capital and building marketing programs for many high-growth startups, Drew will share a handful of lessons around messaging & positioning, marketing, and “punching above your weight class” as you look to launch and grow your early-stage startup

Monday November 11, 2019 1:00pm - 2:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

2:00pm EST

Scaling in Middle America: Jackson Andrews (Endeavor)

How do you disrupt a traditional industry? How do you scale while innovating? Come hear high-impact entrepreneurs talk shop about innovation and how their scaling in America’s heartland. Moderated by Jackson Andrews, Managing Director of Endeavor

“Life is not about place, it’s about people. Anything in the world can be accomplished from wherever you are.” The late David Jones, Sr. (Founder of Humana, Founding Chair of Endeavor in Louisville)

About Endeavor
Established in 1997, Endeavor is leading the global high-impact entrepreneurship movement to drive economic growth and job creation by selecting, mentoring, and accelerating the best high-impact entrepreneurs around the world. To date, Endeavor has screened more than 60,000 individuals and selected more than 1,900 founders leading over 1,200 scale-up companies. With support from Endeavor’s worldwide mentor network, Endeavor Entrepreneurs have created over 3 million jobs, generate more than $20 billion in revenue each year, and inspire future generations to innovate and take risks, building strong entrepreneurship ecosystems in growth markets. In 2015, an Endeavor office was launched in Louisville, KY as one of the first in the U.S. Our office services Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio entrepreneurs.

Speakers

Jennifer Williams

Founder and Chief Cloning Officer, Cuddle Clones

Andy Eastes

CEO, SkuVault

Dr. Joey Rivera

President / CEO, Rivera Group

Justin Delaney

CEO, Buff City Soap

Monday November 11, 2019 2:00pm - 3:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Panel

3:00pm EST

Startup Week Pitch Event (Brought to you by Sheltowee)

The Sheltowee Business Network is holding an entrepreneur pitch contest during first day of the Techstars’
Louisville Startup week on Monday November 11th from 3-5 pm. You’ll hear from 7 awesome startups
pitching their startup’s idea. They’ll each have seven minutes to tell us why their startup is the best
thing since sliced bread and why their team can lead their startup to full on success. Hear what
problems these visionaries are trying to solve and how they are doing it. There will be time for 1 or 2
questions after each presentation. Plan to stay afterwards for some one-on-one time with the various
entrepreneurs who are happy to connect with you and answer any questions.

Sheltowee will have a panel of esteemed local business people judging the event. The winner will take
home a year’s entrepreneurial membership ($2,000 value) with the Sheltowee Business Network where
they will receive access to mentors, curriculum, service providers and investors.
BONUS: The audience will also vote on their favorites and we’ll compare how you voted vs. the judges.
This will be a premier startup week event so please remember to mark it on your startup week schedule
and plan on attending.

Monday November 11, 2019 3:00pm - 5:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Pitch Competition

6:00pm EST

Opening Party with special guest John Hill (Techstars)

Grab your friends and colleagues -the opening party at Odeon is going to be a good time! This is a great chance to network, talk shop, and relax with the entrepreneurial community.
Cost: Cash bar

Techstars Keynote: How to build a kickass Network: John Hill
Learn the tools, the approaches and the results of the networking techniques that power the most effective entrepreneurial network in the world, Techstars.

John is the VP of Network for a company that dreams big, global and accelerates the growth of tech companies. Techstars is a mentorship driven seed stage investment program. To date, thousands of companies have gone through the Techstars accelerator, and John is charged with supporting and growing a global network of tech entrepreneurs, mentors and investors who surround them and the Techstars team.
As a speaker, John often implores others to have the audacity to “Dream Big”!

Hill traded one passion for another which led him to leave Michigan State University to become the Higher Education Evangelist at LinkedIn. And, then one more time moving from LinkedIn to become the Network Catalyst for Techstars. Hill believes “changing the world” can be more than hyperbole. Building relationships and connecting people with opportunity are at his core, and he relies heavily on online and offline networks to facilitate each.

Monday November 11, 2019 6:00pm - 8:30pm EST
Odeon 1335 Story Ave., Louisville, KY 40206

Networking

8:00am EST

State of Women in Entrepreneurship

Who run the world?! Join this panel discussion to hear what the entrepreneurial landscape for females looks like now (and why), ways we might address the gender gap and what we can all do to foster a more inclusive community.

Panelists: Natalia Bishop Founder & Happiness Chief of Story Louisville and Level Up; Dr. Angelique Johnson CEO of MEMStim; Sarah Gardiner, Owner of Nanny Goat Books; and Candice Rezvanian, Portfolio Manager at Radicle Capital.

Tuesday November 12, 2019 8:00am - 9:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Diversity, Panel | Equity & Inclusion, Panel

9:30am EST

Valuation: Solving the Startup Riddle by Daniela Yoder

From inception to exit, Venture First (VF), provides the financial leadership clients need to execute their ideas and move to the next stage, is pleased to announce Daniela Yoder, Vice President of CFO Services, will present at HCDC. Yoder will address valuation basics and insights.
Yoder is a regular speaker at accelerators and investing conferences around the country. Daniela is very active in the Greater Cincinnati startup scene as an investor, an investment committee member in Connetic Ventures, a local VC group, and a GP in a teaching fund, Cherub Fund.
Nationally, she is an active LP in Next Wave Impact Fund which invests in high growth, positive impact companies with diverse founding teams. Yoder also specializes in financial valuation and CFO leadership activities AND presently holds the CFO title for venture backed companies or companies looking to raise debt or equity capital. Daniela has considerable experience valuing companies in a variety of industries, including companies that have been newly backed by venture capital and private equity investments for mergers and acquisitions and employee stock option plans.
Ms. Yoder holds the designation of accredited senior appraiser (ASA) from the American Society of Appraisers. Before joining VF, Daniela was Sr. VP at Valuation Research, managing valuation projects for transaction advisory services and valuations for 409A purposes. She earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Xavier University in Cincinnati, and a bachelor’s degree in finance from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

Tuesday November 12, 2019 9:30am - 10:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

10:30am EST

The Greatest Gift - How Mental Illness Made Me a Better Person: Matt Helt (Techstars)

Matthew Helt is the Sr. Implementation Consultant on the Ecosystem Development team at Techstars. In addition to his startup community building work, Matthew is an advocate for mental health awareness and volunteers as an advisor for Open Labs, an organization seeking to end the stigma of mental illness. Having struggled with a lifetime of mental illness himself, he now speaks about the importance of founders seeking help right away to avoid the problems he encountered.

Speakers

Matt Helt

Sr. Implementation Consultant, Techstars

I help cities and countries create thriving entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Tuesday November 12, 2019 10:30am - 11:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

11:30am EST

Building the Ecosystem from a Culinary Perspective: John Wechsler (Launch Fishers)

We welcome John Wechsler, powerhouse community builder, as he speaks towards his newest endeavor, culinary innovation. John is launching a culinary accelerator, "Fishers Test Kitchen" and "The Signature Table", and will join local food advocate Jolene Ketzenberger and Sun King Brewing to bring a completely new concept that will shape the culinary landscape of Fishers for the future.

The Fishers Test Kitchen will host three culinary entrepreneurs who will launch their restaurant concepts from our completely built-out kitchens adjacent to the new Sun King Brewery. These entrepreneurial chefs will be in the Test Kitchen food hall for a year or two as they test their concepts, refine their menus and build a following. We hope they’ll eventually launch out to their own restaurant location, and then we’ll bring in another aspiring chef to take over the space — all with the goal of creating a more vibrant and exciting local food culture.

The entrepreneurs joining John:

Chef Carlos Salazar will share his love of global street food when he opens Lil Dumplings
Chef Leisha Berg brings her favorite California comfort food to the Fishers Test Kitchen with the debut of West Coast Nook.
Chefs John & Kim will be serving up fast, fresh Korean barbecue when Korave opens in the Fishers Test Kitchen

----
John has founded, co-founded, or served in C-level roles in several venture-backed startups
including Formstack, Formspring, DeveloperTown, Vontoo, Wishoo and beenz. In 2012, John
founded Launch Fishers, a 52,000 square foot launch pad for startups and high-potential
enterprises. In 2014, John founded the statewide entrepreneurial mentorship initiative, Launch
Indiana, and continues to serve as an active advisor to entrepreneurs.

In 2017 John founded The Indiana IoT Lab in Fishers, a 24,000 square foot innovation hub for
Internet of Things (IoT)-related enterprises. John earned the 2018 Trailblazer Award from
Techpoint, recognizing a “visionary whose contributions have had a significant impact on our
technology ecosystem and state.”

John has been a lifetime volunteer with community organizations, currently serving on the
Boards of Directors of several organizations including the Indiana State Museum, the Indiana
Chamber of Commerce, and the Indiana Technology and Innovation Association.

Tuesday November 12, 2019 11:30am - 1:00pm EST
Story 1st floor

Food & Beverage, Panel

1:00pm EST

Exploring Entrepreneurship

Learn the basics of starting a business, what you can expect and what resources are available to help you. The class is free but registration is required:
https://podio.com/webforms/22372351/1574416

Tuesday November 12, 2019 1:00pm - 2:00pm EST
NIA Center 2900 W Broadway

Startup Life

1:00pm EST

Keynote with Isaac Saldana

Keynote Talk from Isaac Saldana, Co-Founder of SendGrid.

Isaac Saldana, Co-founder of SendGrid—which was acquired by Twilio for $3 billion in an all-stock deal in October 2018—isn’t lounging on a beach. He’s helping other entrepreneurs create companies, using everything he learned by building SendGrid. And he’s returned to Techstars, the company that taught him how to build SendGrid, to do it.
Just months after SendGrid’s headline-grabbing exit, Isaac has a new job, as Chief Technology Officer for Techstars Studio, a new Techstars offering that will empower members of the Techstars worldwide network to rapidly envision, validate, and launch disruptive startups.

Tuesday November 12, 2019 1:00pm - 2:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

2:30pm EST

Building Smart Cities and Celebrating a Community of Success and Failures: John Wechsler

John Wechsler is a powerhouse community builder and will be speaking on the role of innovation and entrepreneurshi[ in local economies from coast to coast. He will touch on building smart cities, future of internet of things, Launch Fishers, and Fail Fest - a business conference that celebrates failure...attend this event to learn why!!
---
John has founded, co-founded, or served in C-level roles in several venture-backed startups
including Formstack, Formspring, DeveloperTown, Vontoo, Wishoo and beenz. In 2012, John
founded Launch Fishers, a 52,000 square foot launch pad for startups and high-potential
enterprises. In 2014, John founded the statewide entrepreneurial mentorship initiative, Launch
Indiana, and continues to serve as an active advisor to entrepreneurs.

In 2017 John founded The Indiana IoT Lab in Fishers, a 24,000 square foot innovation hub for
Internet of Things (IoT)-related enterprises. John earned the 2018 Trailblazer Award from
Techpoint, recognizing a “visionary whose contributions have had a significant impact on our
technology ecosystem and state.”

John has been a lifetime volunteer with community organizations, currently serving on the
Boards of Directors of several organizations including the Indiana State Museum, the Indiana
Chamber of Commerce, and the Indiana Technology and Innovation Association.

Tuesday November 12, 2019 2:30pm - 3:30pm EST
Story 1st floor

Emerging Tech, Speaker

4:00pm EST

How To Get Into An Accelerator: Panel Discussion

Accelerators have the ability to rapidly grow the size and value of your company in a very short period of time and can be an ideal gateway to venture capital, mentors, and customers. In reality, only a small percentage (less than 1%) of companies are accepted. This panel will provide insights, tips, and advice on how to navigate the process and put your company in the best position to be accepted.

Isaac Saldana - Sendgrid / CTO at Techstars Studio
Andrew Hippert - Program Manager for Techstars Sports Accelerator (Powered by Indy)
Maggie Galloway - Inscope (Techstars Grad)
Chris Bailey - Revio (Techstars Grad)

The panel will be moderated by Keith McMunn of Awesome Inc.

Tuesday November 12, 2019 4:00pm - 5:00pm EST
Story 1st floor

Startup Life, Panel

5:30pm EST

Vogt Demo Day

Witness six of Greater Louisville's best early-stage companies present their progress before an audience of fellow entrepreneurs, business leaders, and investors.

Cost: Free, however GLI Registration required. Please register at: https://greaterlouisvillekycoc.wliinc35.com/events/Vogt-Awards-Demo-Day-3481/register

Tuesday November 12, 2019 5:30pm - 8:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

ALL TRACKS

8:00am EST

Talent, Teams, & Things to Know

Join this panel discussion to hear three distinct perspectives on talent needs, hiring, and things to know when scaling businesses in Kentucky.

Panelists: Stacy Griggs, President and CEO of El Toro; Morgan Carrier, Account Manager at TEKSystems; Paul Goatley, Labor & Employment Attorney at Fisher & Phillips LLP, and Stacie Stivers, Business Performance Advisor at Insperity.

Wednesday November 13, 2019 8:00am - 9:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Panel

9:30am EST

What an Entrepreneur Can Learn from David Bowie: Jeffrey Rose

Believe it or not, everybody can learn something from David Bowie about entrepreneurship. He was the consummate entrepreneur throughout his career, and like Buddy Holly the end of his career came way too early.

You’ll learn what actions and attitudes drove David to super-stardom and how you can mimic these to drive your own startup toward success. Let one of David Bowie’s biggest fans take you on a journey through the successful traits of David Bowie.

Wednesday November 13, 2019 9:30am - 10:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

10:00am EST

Exploring the SBIR/STTR Program for Early Stage Financing

Must register for this event:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/exploring-the-sbirsttr-program-fueled-by-elevate-ventures-at-the-root-registration-76139767093

Known as "America's Seed Fund," the SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) and STTR (Small Business Technology Transfer) programs provide competitive access to R&D funds to stimulate technological innovation by small businesses in the US. The program can help startups and existing small businesses, interested in or performing research, by providing access to grant funds to support proof of concept and prototype development in Phase I. If successfully proven, with full development support in Phase II, successful technologies could move into the commercial market.

This event will introduce you to the resources Indiana has to offer, give you tips on what agencies look for in successful proposals and supply you with the basics of the program's structure and how to determine if it's a good fit for you.

Lunch will be provided to those who register. Limited space available, please register early!

SPEAKERS:
Heidi Platt
Heidi C. Platt, a Chemical Engineer (Purdue University, 1988), is the Founder and President of Platinum Grants & Proposals, LLC, a company formed in 2007 that provides consulting services to businesses seeking SBIR/STTR grant funding. In the past 12 years, Platinum has helped clients develop approximately $66 million in grant applications.

Dr. Lisa Hoverman, PhD
Dr. Lisa Hoverman is a former academic researcher-turned small business owner in the federal funding niche. Dr. Hoverman is an excellent STEM writer, editor, & proposal/grant manager – all experiences honed as an academic. Dr. Hoverman’s clients include Fortune 50 Companies, International Societies, Medium and Small Businesses, and Startups. She supports these clients primarily in B2B, local, state, and federal grants and proposals. She has obtained over $2.5 B in funding for clients. Her success spans many highly-ranked scientific publications, B2B proposals, federal agency proposals, and importantly for today, SBIR/STTR proposals.

AGENDA:
12:00 - 12:10 pm – Arrival / Networking / Lunch
12:10 – Opening Remarks and Agenda Review – Kyle Keeney
12:10 - 12:45 pm – Heidi Platt
12:45 - 1:15 pm – Dr. Lisa Hoverman, PhD
1:15 - 1:20 pm – PTAC Overview
1:20 - 1:30 pm – Closing remarks/Final Q&A

Wednesday November 13, 2019 10:00am - 11:30am EST
The Root 110 East Market Street, New Albany, IN 47150

Startup Life, Speaker

10:30am EST

Market Validation

So you have an idea for a startup? That’s fantastic! What your target market thinks about your idea is critical to the success of your startup. Learn how to get feedback about your idea to determine how to move forward with your idea.

Wednesday November 13, 2019 10:30am - 11:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life

12:00pm EST

Alternatives to Equity (Panel)

Access Ventures invites Startup Week attendees to deepen the conversation around alternatives to equity. We'll discuss revenue-based financing, alternative loan products, and investment crowdfunding. Plus, free lunch!

Panelists: Tendai Charasika, CEO of SuperFan; Vanessa Koenigsmark, Associate at Access Ventures; and Sam Lillie, Co-founder/CEO of Vinder, guest from Austin, TX. This panel will be moderated by Raechele Gray, Entrepreneur Selection & Growth Associate at Endeavor.

Cost: Free | More Details

Wednesday November 13, 2019 12:00pm - 1:30pm EST
The Park 1229 S Shelby St, Louisville, KY 40203

Startup Life

3:00pm EST

Fireside Chat With Entrepreneurial Community Leaders On Regionalism and The Ecosystem

To understand Kentucky's startup ecosystems, Keith McMunn (Director of the Awesome Fellowship at Awesome Inc in Lexington) will moderate a panel consisting of Brian Raney (Lexington), Brit Fitzpatrick (Covington), and Patrick Henshaw (Louisville). Attend this panel if you want to find your place in Kentucky's future of building scalable startups.

Wednesday November 13, 2019 3:00pm - 4:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Panel

5:30pm EST

Founder Story & Rhinegeist Rosé Ale Bubbles w/ Alice Shade

Description: Alice is CEO and co-founder of SentryHealth, a Kentucky based technology enabled health management company, specializing in creating and delivering clinical programs to improve the health among those with chronic disease. Join this Founder Series event to hear more about her entrepreneurial journey (and to enjoy a free round of Rhinegeist Rosé Ale Bubbles!)

Cost: Free

Wednesday November 13, 2019 5:30pm - 6:30pm EST
Maddox & Rose 900 E. Main

Diversity, Speaker | Equity & Inclusion, Speaker

6:00pm EST

Network of Entrepreneurial Women: Natalia Bishop

NEW is a grassroots informal organization for entrepreneurially-minded women – for those just beginning the journey, those bumping along the road, and those who have crossed the finish line and want to keep on going. There is no cost to join NEW. All our events are only $10 to attend. Events are held the second Wednesday evening of every month from 6:00pm-8:00pm in a different location.

Get ticket here https://www.nentw.com/event/november-13th-natalia-bishop-story-louisville/

Our goal is to keep our monthly events casual and inviting for ALL entrepreneurs who want to meet and network with like-minded people. NEW is a great place to meet mentors and ask any questions you might have about starting, running, or growing a business.

Wednesday November 13, 2019 6:00pm - 8:00pm EST
Story 2nd floor 900 E. Main

Diversity, Speaker | Equity & Inclusion, Speaker

7:30am EST

GLI Business at Breakfast

Description: Join GLI and Presenting Sponsor LG&E, as we celebrate Louisville Startup Week and showcase a few of Louisville’s successful entrepreneurs. Hear about their journeys to success, opportunities for the local startup community, and what Louisville can do to grow and retain tech talent. GLI’s recent GLIDE trip to San Francisco focused on technology & tourism. We will discuss takeaways and next steps from the trip.

Get a look into Louisville’s newest boutique hotel, Hotel Distil, adding to our region’s booming tourism landscape.

Panelists: Natalia Bishop, Founder & CEO of Happiness, Level Up; Demetrius Gray, Founder, WeatherCheck; and Stacy Griggs, President & CEO, El Toro

Cost: Member Registration: $35 | Non-Member Registration $55 | Pay At the Door Individual Ticket: $55
For more information or tickets, visit: https://greaterlouisvillekycoc.wliinc35.com/events/Business-at-Breakfast-3505/details

Thursday November 14, 2019 7:30am - 9:00am EST
Hotel Distil

Emerging Tech

9:30am EST

The Do's & Don'ts of Raising Capital

Money is the name of the game. We all want it but finding funding can be an ever-elusive endeavor. Join this panel discussion to hear area leaders discuss startup capital and the best ways founders can approach fundraising.

Panelists
Kyle Keeney, Entrepreneur in Residence at Elevate Ventures; Scott Jacobs, QCA; Candice Rezvanian, Portfolio Manager at Radicle Capital; and Alan Grosheider, Director at MetroStart.

Thursday November 14, 2019 9:30am - 11:00am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Panel

11:00am EST

Breathing Life into Boring Business Categories: Alex Reed (CMO of Trumans)

Ceiling fans. Surface cleaners. It’s okay. We’ll pause to allow for that yawn. Those billions in annual sales come even as few consumers can name the brands they own. Alex will detail his comprehensive approach to marketing that infused each of these product lines with personality. Consider Big Ass Fans. Their embrace of brash branding through both paid and earned media cemented customer loyalty to the point that repeat business accounted for half of all orders in 2017, and that’s on top of new customers increasing nearly 40 percent annually over the prior five years. You’ll learn how to capture people’s attention and teach them why your product excels. Not convinced? Just check the Facebook stats. Big Ass Fans is followed by more than three times as many people as industry giant Hunter.

After helping guide Big Ass Fans to a $500 million sale in late 2017, Alex co-founded Truman's to bring much-needed disruption to the cleaning products industry. Big household cleaning companies each offer dozens of products ... for just your bathroom. With endless scents and warning labels that read like prescription drug ads, cleaning products needed to change. That’s why Truman’s offers just four non-toxic cleaners and patented refill cartridges that eliminate single-use plastic bottles. With a clearly differentiated (and dramatically simplified) product. Alex has focused on contrasting the self-importance of the best known cleaning brands with an identity that’s fun and approachable. From quirky product names to unexpected customer touchpoints, Alex's brand strategy drew the interest of more than 10,000 consumers who signed up on Truman’s website months before the company started shipping in late February 2019. Along with an abundance of cleaning puns, Alex will share his technique for breathing life into product categories that need a fresh start.

Thursday November 14, 2019 11:00am - 12:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

12:00pm EST

The Need For Positive Disruption In Moving To An Innovation Economy: Tammy York Day (Louisville Healthcare CEO Council)

What is needed and what are stakeholder responsibilities in building a foundation for a vibrant startup community.

Tammy is the CEO of The Louisville Healthcare CEO Council (LHCC) which was formed in 2017 to leverage the strengths and assets of its members to solve important problems that extend beyond the scope of any one single member company.

Thursday November 14, 2019 12:00pm - 1:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Healthcare, Speaker

1:00pm EST

How to Produce 27% Annual Returns with Micro-Angel Investing

Did you know that the AVERAGE startup company investor (angel) in the United States produces annual returns of 27%? That's 3 times average S&P 500 returns. Multiple studies of angel investments by the Kauffman Foundation and others can show you how. Alan Grosheider, Director of the non-profit MetroStart (metrostart.org), will teach you how you can do this with investments as low as $50.
Presenters: Alan Grosheider, Director, MetroStart
Cost: Free

Thursday November 14, 2019 1:00pm - 2:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Whiteboard session

2:00pm EST

Your Mom likes everything you do, but is she your customer? : Campbell Boyer

There is a great deal of information out there about "customer discovery", but how can you gather the information you really need to move ahead (or not) with an idea.

This talk is about how to define true customer discovery, what the goals of it might be (how they radically differ by company type - B2B is very different from B2C), and what tools come in handy.

Thursday November 14, 2019 2:00pm - 3:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

3:00pm EST

Bootstrapping/Tips and Tricks for Starting on a Shoestring

Believe it or not, you don’t need to be rich to start a company - You need to know how to keep your costs to a bare minimum until you have enough accomplished to get some friends and family or pre-seed money from an angel investor. This is called bootstrapping.

During this session you will learn a handful of ideas on how to do just that. This presentation is for those thinking of starting a business, newbie’s who have recently started and don’t sleep at night wondering how they are going to make their passion come alive with little or no money in the bank, and for those further along seeing the cash they have raised disappearing faster than they had anticipated. This event will also include time for the attendees to chime in with additional ideas on how to bootstrap and share with one another.

Thursday November 14, 2019 3:00pm - 4:00pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

4:00pm EST

Louisville from a creatives view with Stacey Wade (Part of the "Network and Chill" series)

Stacey Wade is the CEO of Nimbus, a Louisville based creative agency who has worked with clients, such as, Toyota, Brown-Forman, and Papa John’s just to name a few. Stacey leads by example and believes in cultivating an inclusive workplace. Join this event to learn more about his entrepreneurial journey and the captivating work he is doing in Louisville, KY.

Thursday November 14, 2019 4:00pm - 5:00pm EST
Nimbus - 624 W. Main St

Startup Life, Speaker

5:30pm EST

The Louisville Collaborative Happy Hour

Join CIVITAS, Kentuckiana Hispanic Business Council, QueerKy, Together Digital, WILD and Network of Entrepreneurial Women for an evening of celebrating our entrepreneurial community. Connect with other founders, learn more about the affinity groups in our area, and really, just have a damn good time. Vane will be spinning records. Note: Cash bar

Thursday November 14, 2019 5:30pm - 8:00pm EST
Play 1101 E Washington St

Diversity Equity & Inclusion

8:30am EST

Facts over Theory: JK Mcknight and team (Untitled Firm)

Data doesn't lie, so let it drive. The case for adopting data-driven decision making for in the 2020s.

Untitled is a data-driven decision making team comprised of business intelligence educators and developers that help companies leverage their data to cut waste and grow revenue.

Friday November 15, 2019 8:30am - 9:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Emerging Tech, Speaker

9:30am EST

Doing Well By Doing Good with Scott Koloms (Canopy)

Scott Koloms is the President of FMS pbc, the first janitorial service in the world to earn B Corp certification, and the first company in Kentucky to register as a Public Benefit Corporation. He recently founded Canopy, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting and growing businesses that work to improve the lives of people, our planet, and the future while making a profit. Join this event to learn more about how FMS’ path to becoming a B-Corp and a Public Benefit Corporation led to the work to create the Canopy Certified Program here in Kentucky. You’ll learn the basics around B-Corps, PBCs and the Canopy Certified Program.

Friday November 15, 2019 9:30am - 10:30am EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Startup Life, Speaker

11:00am EST

Founder Hunt

Founder Hunt is a startup pitch event, but in reverse. We'll pitch the technologies to a room of entrepreneurs looking for their next big opportunity. Our goal is to connect research-backed technologies with startup founders who want to build a company around them.

Friday November 15, 2019 11:00am - 5:00pm EST
Churchill Downs 700 Central Ave

ALL TRACKS

5:30pm EST

TALK: 5G Deep Dive

The Technology Association of Louisville Kentucky will take a deep dive at what Kentucky will see in the areas of 5G, and discuss some of the cities already deploying 5G projects. 5G is the next generation of wireless connectivity. Verizon announced that it intends to launch its 5G Ultra Wideband network in more than 30 U.S. cities by the end of this year, including Indy. AT&T has 5G operating in Louisville in certain areas. Through a combination of technologies—including millimeter waves, small cells , and fiber—5G is capable of delivering data rates as high as 1 gigabit per second. That’s 20x faster than current networks and comparable to the speeds you get from a wired connection like cable or fiber optic internet service. That’s a big deal. We don’t yet know all the new innovations 5G will bring. That’s part of what makes it so exciting. But it’s already clear that it will launch new industries and fundamentally change how many existing businesses operate:

· AR (augmented reality) and VR (virtual reality) technologies in classrooms, libraries, and museums will transform the way we learn—and explore the world.

· By combining the digital world with the real world in front of you, new technologies will merge online and in-store experiences. Many experts predict that 5G will pave the way for new developments in AR and VR technologies that could spur entire new industries.

· Connected machinery is making industries like manufacturing, construction, and mining safer and more efficient. Remote controlled machinery allows for safer responses to emergency situations such as landslides, earthquakes, flooding, and fires.

Presenter: Phillip K. Brown, Government Affairs Manager, Central Area, Crown Castle (crowncastle.com)

Food & Drink: Cocktails & Appetizers. Cash Bar.

Cost: Free - RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/what-5g-will-bring-you-tickets-75955640365

Friday November 15, 2019 5:30pm - 7:30pm EST
Story 3rd floor 900 E. Main

Emerging Tech, Speaker

Techstars Startup Week Louisville

7:30am EST

7:30am EST

8:00am EST

9:00am EST

10:00am EST

11:00am EST

12:00pm EST

1:00pm EST

2:00pm EST

Jennifer Williams

Andy Eastes

Dr. Joey Rivera

Justin Delaney

3:00pm EST

6:00pm EST

8:00am EST

9:30am EST

10:30am EST

Matt Helt

11:30am EST

1:00pm EST

1:00pm EST

2:30pm EST

4:00pm EST

5:30pm EST

8:00am EST

9:30am EST

10:00am EST

10:30am EST

12:00pm EST

3:00pm EST

5:30pm EST

6:00pm EST

7:30am EST

9:30am EST

11:00am EST

12:00pm EST

1:00pm EST

2:00pm EST

3:00pm EST

4:00pm EST

5:30pm EST

8:30am EST

9:30am EST

11:00am EST

5:30pm EST

Recently Active Attendees