Innov865 Week to Celebrate Knoxville’s Entrepreneurial Spirit BY: JESSICA KARSTEN
Knoxville’s annual Startup Day is taking on a new approach this year as it transitions into a week-long celebration of the region’s entrepreneurial spirit. Innov865 Week will take place Sept. 19-23 and will consist of pitch competitions, educational opportunities, and social events highlighting the region’s vibrant entrepreneurial landscape. The program serves as the signature event of the Innov865 Alliance, a group dedicated to showcasing Knoxville as a great place for entrepreneurs to start and grow businesses. Founding members of the alliance include the University of Tennessee Research Foundation, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, UT’s Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Pershing Yoakley and Associates, Launch Tennessee, and the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center. “With the success of our previous half-day event, Startup Day, the Alliance felt that we could develop a week-long program that would showcase an even broader cross-section of the region’s entrepreneurs,” said Jim Biggs, executive director of the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center. “This year will include programming that highlights startups and growth-stage companies, technology being developed by UT and ORNL, and more.” The week will kick off with the Kauffman Foundation’s Mayors Summit on Entrepreneurship hosted by Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero. The event will bring together entrepreneurial and civic leaders from across East Tennessee to talk about strengthening our region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Innov865 Week will also feature nationally-recognized serial entrepreneur Paul Singh and his North American Tech Tour. He will offer programming and hold one-on-one consultations with Knoxville-area startups. These meetings will help Singh better understand Knoxville’s entrepreneurial landscape and identify investment opportunities.
The Works: Demo Day 2016 will showcase the area’s newest media and software companies at Scripps Networks Interactive on Sept. 21. This will conclude the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center’s inaugural accelerator program focused on media content and coding companies. The week will continue with Startup Day 2015 Winner FunLPro poses for a the signature Startup Day 2016 photo with the $5,000 grand prize. at the Bijou Theatre from 2–4 p.m. on Sept. 22. The event promises an exciting line-up featuring fireside chats with some of Knoxville’s most successful entrepreneurs and investors, power pitches from six Knoxville-area startups competing for a $5,000 cash prize, and awarding of the UT Federal Credit Union Traction Award to a Startup Day alumnus that has made the most progress. “Shining a spotlight on East Tennessee’s most promising companies is so important for the economic growth of our region,” Biggs said. “Highlighting the collaborative efforts of organizations that supports entrepreneurs here only reinforces the growing recognition of East Tennessee as a world-class place to start and grow a business.” Tom Ballard, chief alliance officer for Pershing Yoakley and Associates, said, “Innov865 elevates the visibility of the region to entrepreneurs and investors across the country. It gives us the opportunity to put the spotlight on the great things that are underway and celebrate the ever-growing entrepreneurial ecosystem.” For more information about Innov865 Week, or to register for any of the events, visit www.innov865week.com.
SEPTEMBER - MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES Since 1869, the Knoxville Chamber has been the leading voice for business in the region. Each of these businesses are celebrating milestone anniversaries as Chamber members during the month of September. Thank you for your commitment to the Chamber and the community! 31+ YEARS
MEMBER SINCE
YP 1965 McClure Realty Company 1966 Frantz, McConnell & Seymour, LLP 1968 Alcoa, Inc. 1969 Bernstein, Stair & McAdams LLP 1973 Blaine Construction Corporation 1973 Junior Achievement of East Tennessee 1984 Sertoma Center, Inc. 1984
25 – 30 YEARS V. Alexander & Co., Inc. Pellissippi Office Center, LLC Crown College
20 – 24 YEARS Tennessee Tubebending, Inc. Enterprise Rent-A-Car - Dutchtown
MEMBER SINCE 1989 1991 1991
MEMBER SINCE 1992 1993
Ashe’s Wines & Spirits AESSEAL, Inc. Knoxville Area Urban League Berry Funeral Home Rogers Petroleum, Inc. Sandler Training Herzog & Associates Athens Paper Company, Inc.
15-19 YEARS
1994 1995 1995 1995 1996 1996 1996
MEMBER SINCE
Tennessee College of Applied Technology – Knoxville 1997 Mike Lewis - State Farm Insurance 1997 Swofford Financial - Lifetime Wealth Solutions 1997 AC Entertainment 1998 Commercial & Investment Properties 2000 Factory Carpet Warehouse 2000 Impact Associates, Inc. 2000 Bonitz Flooring Group, Inc. 2000 Turkey Creek Land Partners 2001
K N O X V I L L57 E C H A M B E R | 77
10 – 14 YEARS
MEMBER SINCE
Studio Four Design, Inc. 2002 Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park 2002 The Abacus Group, LLC 2002 Bradford Catered Events 2002 Power Systems, Inc. 2003 Rodefer Moss & Company, PLLC 2003 The Relocation Division for Realty Executives 2004 Dempster Poured Foundations 2004 3 Minute Magic Carwash of Knoxville, LLC 2005 Butler, Vines and Babb, P.L.L.C. 2005 Zaxby’s 2005 Gresham Smith & Partners 2005 Elliott Davis Decosimo 2006 First Century Bank 2006