Blog

Sponsor Video Blog: The Three C's of Pitching Investors: Clear, Concise, and Compelling

Administrator — Thu, 17 May 2012 19:41:58 +0000

EC Blog

Baker Donelson

Clayton White, Director of South Coast Angel Fund, reviews questions that every entrepreneur should address when presenting their business to potential investors.

Sponsor Video Spotlight: Baker Donelson Entrepreneur Minute

EC Ecosystem Overview

Administrator — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:01:31 +0000

EC Blog

Clay Jackson

Nashville Business Journal
May 11, 2012

Open publication - Free publishing

Sponsor Video Blog: Focus on What You Do Best, Delegate the Rest

Administrator — Fri, 11 May 2012 17:07:25 +0000

EC Blog

Baker Donelson

Baker Donelson Entrepreneur Minute: Focus on What You Do Best, Delegate the Rest

David Rieveschl, shareholder at Baker Donelson, explains why "delegate early and often" is a key mantra for entrepreneurs. Find about more about Baker Donelson's Emerging Companies practice group at http://www.bakerdonelson.com

JumpStart 2012 Companies Announced!

Administrator — Fri, 04 May 2012 17:35:37 +0000

EC Blog

JSF

Check it out here at the JSF Blog!

JUMPSTART FOUNDRY ANNOUNCES 2012 COHORT

Nashville, Tenn. (May 3, 2012) – Nashville-based tech business accelerator, Jumpstart Foundry, has announced ten selected applicants to build companies in their comprehensive business accelerator program at the Nashville Entrepreneur Center this summer.

“The selection was especially difficult this year because of the vast number of high quality applicants. It made the evaluation process longer than expected,” said Vic Gatto, Partner for Solidus Company and a Jumpstart Foundry managing director. “We are excited to get started with this year’s cohort.”

The ten selected applicants include:

Contigo, a developing a short-term loan solution to compete with the existing “pay-day” loan industry. Loans will be delivered through a proprietary underwriting model and online platform.

OKDJ.fm, a fan-engagement platform which gamifies free music releases by incentivizing fans to act as promoters for artists.

The Skillery, an online platform that connects teachers and learners, who offer administrative support for offline classes and workshops.

Evermind, the first caregiver-friendly senior monitoring system. If you can plug-in a surge protector and use Facebook, Evermind is easy.

Wax, an app that allows extreme athletes to compete with one another by completing tricks and challenges.

Westcrete, which converts traditional building plans into a prefabricated formwork that is shipped to jobsite, erected & pumped full of concrete.

Rental Kharma, a destination where Good Owners and Good Renters find Trust, Transparency and Simplicity for their home rental relationships.

PhotoRankr, a new site for serious amateur photography.

OurVinyl.Tv, which allows users to discover new music through video They want to be the modern day MTV minus the re-runs.

Talkapolis, microcasts new media (mainly talk format) targeted at local markets and distributed on mobile smartphones and smart TV devices.

The JSF 2012 program will accelerate the growth of these ten startups, which will add to Jumpstart Foundry’s proven track record of success. Like other accelerators around the country, JSF measures its success based on the number of graduates that are able to raise capital or boot-strap operations without additional capital. Over the two first years of the program, JSF has achieved a very strong 62% success rate. Eight alumni have raised follow-on capital and are building operations. These results combined with multiple years of experience, deep mentor pool and affiliation with TechStars position Jumpstart Foundry as one of the best accelerators in the country.

# # #

About Jumpstart Foundry

Jumpstart Foundry (JSF) accelerates the growth of fledgling tech-oriented businesses. Started in 2010, JSF is a formal, mentor-driven 14-week business acceleration program held over the summer months – with the goal of launching successful companies, prime for funding, at an Investor Day in late August.

Those startup companies – keying on the areas of healthcare IT, data systems and social engagement tools – will derive resources and guidance from a hand-selected group of mentors who bring a wealth of experience from a variety of fields. Jumpstart Foundry also enjoys key partnerships with the Nashville Entrepreneur Center and the TechStars Affiliate Network.

For more information, please visit http://jumpstartfoundry.com.
Contact: Vic Gatto vic AT jumpstartfoundry DOT com or Tel: (615) 665-3818

Sponsor Spotlight: Using Restricted Stock or Restricted Membership Interests as a Form of Equity Incentives?

Administrator — Thu, 03 May 2012 16:26:51 +0000

EC Blog

Baker Donelson

Baker Donelson Entrepreneur Minute - Sponsor Video Spotlight
With Baker Donelson Partner - Chris Sloan

Check out the Baker Donelson Entrepreneur Minute!

Using Restricted Stock or Restricted Membership Interests as a Form of Equity Incentives?

Sponsor Spotlight: First Launching of Your Venture: Your Executive Presence and Personal Brand Matters

Administrator — Tue, 01 May 2012 14:39:23 +0000

EC Blog

Baker Donelson

Baker Donelson Entrepreneur Minute Video Blog Post Executive Branding for entrepreneurs by Kimberly Pace, President and CEO of Executive Aura

Why Interning at the EC has been More Worthwhile than Twiddling My Thumbs & Eating Cheese Puffs

Administrator — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 19:56:06 +0000

EC Blog

Eric Guroff

Eric Guroff, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is finishing his junior year as a Music Business and Entrepreneurship double major at Belmont University. Last year, he co-founded BLVD Music Shop, a Belmont-owned, student-run business on campus that sells used instruments on consignment and retail music accessories. He first caught the entrepreneurial bug from Dr. Jeff Cornwall, Director of Belmont's Center for Entrepreneurship, whose Foundations of Entrepreneurship class introduced him to a new prospective of opportunity recognition, and he continues to view his areas of passion--specifically music and media in the digital space--through this lens. Eric has acted as a regional coordinator for the Entrepreneur Center since January, and he will be an intern with Jumpstart Foundry beginning in May.

As I sit at the large wooden table at the center of the EC for the last day of this whirlwind of a semester, I can’t help but reminisce the memories I’ve made here--starting each day with an IV drip of coffee and mini Snickers Bars (thank you Scott Rouse!), celebrating an investment round with RentStuff’s bell ringing ceremony, and meeting each and every one of the inspired entrepreneurs that roam the halls of this place--and be thankful for this opportunity. I’m not really one for nostalgia (OK, that might not be exactly true), but I am one for pointed reflection as a means of extracting as much value as possible from experiences. So I ask myself: what did I learn? What has 3 days a week of volunteer work--on top of being a full time student and managing a brick-and-mortar retail business with a staff of 10 employees--taught me that I wouldn’t have learned if I had spent my “free” time twiddling my thumbs and eating Cheese Puffs (Although I am sure there is an entirely different set of wisdom to be gained by doing that for 220-something hours)? So here they are, the three lessons I learned interning at the EC that made my time worthwhile:

1) I learned how to work. I’ve been going to work consistently since I was 16 years old, and I was working hard in school long before that. But the EC has been my introduction to being productive in the modern office environment. These people get stuff done. The culture of productivity stems from Michael Burcham, who manages to juggle being the CEO of the Entrepreneur Center AND Startup Tennessee with being a professor, mentor, nationally-renowned speaker, author and the other million-and-two things he has going on at any given time. This work ethic inspires and transfers itself to the staff--John, Sam, Clay, and David (I worked most directly with John and David)--who all stretch beyond their job descriptions to make sure that both the Entrepreneur Center and Startup Tennessee operate smoothly. The EC’s culture of productivity is the perfect environment for the entrepreneurs in the accelerator. These people amaze me at what they sacrifice to make their dreams become reality, even in the uncertainty of the pre-revenue stages of a business. I learned at my time at the EC that the amount of work one can accomplish is dependent not on how much time he/she spends at the office, but how much passion and drive he/she has for the work being done.

2) I learned what is necessary to create an investable business. I have done a lot of different projects during my internship--reaching out to community partners, entering information into the SalesForce database, writing one-page promo/info materials, creating a framework for progress tracking of the state’s Accelerator network, and a host of other tasks that have needed completion around here. Some of it has been exciting and challenging, some of it not much more than necessary administrative work, but honestly the most valuable part of this experience has been absorbing the conversations that go on here. I’ve been able to sit in on sessions with Michael Burcham, John Murdock and several of the incubating companies, and the framework through which they view opportunity is the most valuable tool I will take with me beyond these walls. If you’re reading this and haven’t yet been exposed to this framework, I recommend beginning by reading The Idea Frame and by looking over the 4M approach, which you can find at entrepreneurcenter.com.

3) I learned the importance of people. This lesson may be more of a reinforcement than it was new knowledge, but I couldn’t ignore the importance of this lesson to my semester’s takeaways. The Entrepreneur Center is a pretty incredible place--not because I want a good recommendation from my supervisors, not because it has really cool branding, and not even because it is flowing with some of the coolest ideas I’ve ever been exposed to (even though all of these things are true). The EC is incredible because it is an organization run on the back of a group of highly successful mentors that give their time, expertise and so much more to other people. Maybe it’s because somebody helped them along the way and they want to pay it forward, or maybe it’s because they didn’t get the help they needed and don’t want to see new entrepreneurs make the same mistakes they did, but either way, these mentors make up an incredible support network for entrepreneurs in Nashville. The takeaway for me is that no one, no matter how smart or how driven he/she might be, can go at it alone. We need other people to mold and shape us and, as entrepreneurs, our companies, in order to unlock our full potential. The Entrepreneur Center understands that fact and offers this valuable resource to entrepreneurs in our region. That’s why the EC matters and why it has been a worthwhile experience for me--or at least better than twiddling my thumbs and eating Cheese Puffs.

-Eric Guroff

Sponsor Video Blog - Avoid Stupid-Land: Close the Gap Between True North and Your Business Plan

Administrator — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 21:10:25 +0000

EC Blog

Baker Donelson

Avoid Stupid-Land: Close the Gap Between True North and Your Business Plan

with Michael Burcham

Baker Donelson Video Blog - The Law of Common Sense

Administrator — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 17:05:27 +0000

EC Blog

Baker Donelson

Read Contracts Carefully: "The Law of Common Sense" Featuring Baker Donelson Partner Chris Sloan
The Baker Donelson Entrepreneur Minute from the Emerging Companies Team

EC Startup Kodiak Pitching at SXSW

Administrator — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 19:04:19 +0000

EC Blog

EC Admin

John Horstman of Kodiak doing a short pitch of Kodiak at SXSX.

John Hortsman pitches Kodiak Software, a software app that helps you gain valuable insight as children play and learn on the iPad. Tailor instruction, gauge class progress, and choose the best apps. This pitch was given at the SXSW middle states happy hour presented by Verge and Startup America.

http://youtu.be/1HameLLTWJ8

Blog

Sponsor Video Blog: The Three C's of Pitching Investors: Clear, Concise, and Compelling

EC Ecosystem Overview

Sponsor Video Blog: Focus on What You Do Best, Delegate the Rest

JumpStart 2012 Companies Announced!

Sponsor Spotlight: Using Restricted Stock or Restricted Membership Interests as a Form of Equity Incentives?

Sponsor Spotlight: First Launching of Your Venture: Your Executive Presence and Personal Brand Matters

Why Interning at the EC has been More Worthwhile than Twiddling My Thumbs & Eating Cheese Puffs

Sponsor Video Blog - Avoid Stupid-Land: Close the Gap Between True North and Your Business Plan

Avoid Stupid-Land: Close the Gap Between True North and Your Business Plan with Michael Burcham

Baker Donelson Video Blog - The Law of Common Sense

EC Startup Kodiak Pitching at SXSW

John Horstman of Kodiak doing a short pitch of Kodiak at SXSX.

Avoid Stupid-Land: Close the Gap Between True North and Your Business Plan

with Michael Burcham