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2022 was a busy year for the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center, with events like the annual “What’s the Big Idea” pitch contest, the exciting “Growth & Grit” Inc 5000 gala, and the biggest and best Maker City Summit ever. Educational programs such as the “Let Her Speak: Access to Capital” series and “Make, Learn, Grow” Maker Meetups continue to engage, challenge and grow the entrepreneurial community. Additionally, our #MadeforKnoxville storytelling initiative continues to grow exponentially, with thousands of shares, hundreds of founder stories, engaging live stage events, and even bigger plans for 2023. I have.
In fact, 2023 is KEC’s 10th anniversary, the 10th anniversary of changing lives through entrepreneurship. We share big, bold ideas, but our most important focus will always be the success of the entrepreneurs we serve. We reached out to some of the founders to see what it looks like for the company and what 2023 has in store for them.
“This year, PowerUp has grown to nearly 400 schools and youth organizations, with more than 57,000 students participating in PowerUp programs nationwide! It’s exciting to see the impact of physical activity aligning with academics. 2019 Since 2020, we have been focused on growing PowerUp Your School, our school-based fitness program for grades K-8, and in 2023 we will be launching PowerUp Peanuts.” – Stacey Baugs, Founder, PowerUp Fitness
“Veteran Ventures has closed its first fund to new investors (December 16th). As we aim to fully deploy the Fund in 2023 and 2024, we will leverage our key links within the federal government and the defense industry to generate non-dilutive, non-dilutive funding from these sources. With an additional $5 million in funding and further de-risking investments, our portfolio companies are able to scale faster than their competitors.” -Derren Burrell, Founder and Founder of Veteran Ventures Capital president
“This year, I am especially proud of how the RDI team handled a rapidly changing and unpredictable business environment. team has done an excellent job adapting product release plans to address supply chain issues, navigating sales and marketing during cycles of plant closures, and growing in an ever-changing financial environment. , is running a profitable business. In the coming year we look forward to expanding our product portfolio and acquiring companies that will reach new markets. We are a global business based out of Knoxville.” -Jenna Johns, COO, RDI Technologies
“In 2022, I finally stepped into the entrepreneurial world and took my first business class at KEC. What are you doing?”, went through many stages from “I will never understand this” to “Okay, okay, we can do this”.! In 2023 , I hope to put into practice what I learned at CO.STARTERS, continue to be involved in the Knoxville community, and build on the relationships I have built over the past year. – Kelsey Dillow, Founder of Kelsey Tiara Photo
“For me, 2022 has been a year of incredible opportunities in entrepreneurship. From participating in the Innov865 Startup Day pitch competition to building diverse relationships with my 100Knoxville cohort, this year has It’s been a great year of , collaboration and development.As we enter 2023, I’m focused on expanding ThinkUp’s outreach and serving 40 more regional organizations ready to help our team grow. As we set out in 2022, we are optimistic about what the new year will bring!” – Douglas Mapp, Founder of ThinkUp
“We are very proud to do a lot of work that impacts communities here in Knoxville and the surrounding area, but expanding our footprint is what we always aim to do. has produced content in 20 different states and Mexico, constantly raising the bar for the production value it delivers to its clients.In addition to its aggressive growth strategy for the video production sector, its biggest goal for 2023 is to Expanding the team and adding 2-3 new team members by the end of the year.We are very lucky to have had some great clients in this department so quickly and we are looking forward to maximizing our potential. It’s time to strengthen the team to keep performing.” – Andy Feliu, Co-Founder, Loch & Key Productions
“I am really proud of how the team has grown this year, not only in terms of size and revenue, but also in terms of personal growth. Responsible for the majority of service delivery, in 2023 we are looking to further streamline our client services and launch a new line of services we deem “Managed Service Lite” for local governments across the country. – AV Verekar, Founder of Avero Advisors
To learn more about our entrepreneurial community, visit knoxec.com. Remember, Knoxville is made for all entrepreneurs. Join the community and tell your #MadeForKnoxville story on madeforknoxville.com.
Chris McAdoo is Head of Strategy and Engagement for the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center, host of the podcast Big Ideas Welcome, artist and entrepreneur evangelist. Over his 20-plus years, he has built businesses, pursued a successful career in art, and has lectured around the country on the power of creativity and challenging assumptions. Connect with Chris at chris@knoxec.net
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