Startup Week CHA 2021
Monday, October 18, 2021
Badge Pickup + Co-working @ Basecamp powered by EPB
Come grab your badge to access all Startup Week CHA has to offer! Badge pickup is available starting at 8 AM and co-working held throughout the day.
Complimentary Peet's Coffee will be available each morning while supplies last night!
Will This FLOAT?
This might be the start of a dream come true. Nine people with fresh, creative, fun visions will swallow their fears and doubts and take the stage to present business ideas in this pitch competition. Come see if their ideas FLOAT and connect with budding entrepreneurs.
The full list of companies selected to pitch can be viewed here.
Judges for the event include:
- Adrienne Cooper, founder and CEO of Moonlight Roller
- Erin Felton Lopez, Etsy Inc. Strategy & Analytics, MBA, Ex-Goldman Sachs
- Meilani Santillán, Program Director at Code for America
- Jay Shaffer, Angel Investor and Board Member of Atlanta Tech Angels
Tuesday, October 19, 2021
Tour the Innovation District
Get a guided tour of the first Innovation District established by a mid-sized city. The vibrant and walkable district is home to the city’s main downtown public spaces and a host of coffee shops and restaurants, linked by attractive streets, public art, a bike share program and free downtown electric shuttle. Wear comfortable shoes and bring water for this hour-long walking tour.
TVFCU Idea Leap Pitch Competition
Join TVFCU for the Idea Leap Pitch Picnic on the front lawn of the Bessie Smith Cultural Center. Come early at 3:30 p.m. to set up your lawn chair or spread your picnic blanket and grab an early supper from Chatter Box Café for this outdoor, socially-distant event. The Pitch Competition will begin at 4 p.m. as Champion Christian Learning Academy, Chatt Taste Food Tours, LLC, Lil Mama's Chicago Style Hoagy, Salon Posh and Wild Violet Permaculture, LLC compete for the five Idea Leap Grants ($21K, $15K, $10K, $7K and $5K). In the event of rain, the event will be strictly virtual. Furthermore, if there is a COVID-19 case surge, the event may pivot to strictly virtual. Follow TVFCU on social media for event details
Wednesday, October 20, 2021
Tech & Startups & Jobs: Job Fair 2021
New this year! Join us for the inaugural Startup Week CHA Job Fair. Come meet area employers from tech-enabled startups to major and mid-sized businesses who are hiring right now.
Explore work opportunities from:
Austin Sizemore • FT - Sales/Real Estate Professionals
Bellhop • FT - Sales/Human Resources/Software/Operations/Management
Carbon Five • FT - Software
Chattanooga Selfie Museum • FT/PT - Management/Marketing
Chattanooga Tourism Co. • FT - Marketing
The City of Chattanooga • FT - Human Resources/Software/
Operations/Management
The Enterprise Center • FT - Marketing/Communications
EPB • FT - Customer Service/Technical Support/Network Engineering/Electrical Engineering/Resource Planning/Dispatch/Marketing/IT
Girls Inc. of Chattanooga • FT - Operation/Programs Coordinator
Iron Workers Local 704 • FT/PT - Skilled Labor/Operations
Komatsu • FT - Finance/Accounting/operations/skilled labor
Legacy Box • FT - Marketing/Human Resources/Customer Service/Software/Operations/Management
Marius Group • FT/PT/Intern - Sales/Marketing/Human Resources
M&M Industries • FT/PT - Maintenance Operators/Packers/Printers/Injection Molding
Novo Health Services •
Reliance Partners • FT - Sales/Marketing/Customer Service/Finance/Accounting/Software/Operations/Management
Robert Half • FT/PT - Marketing/Human Resources/Customer Service/Finance/Accounting
Shelly Cove • FT/PT - Operations
Skuid • FT
Steam Logistics • FT - Sales/Operations/Administration
Text Request • FT - Software
The Professional Cleaning Solution • FT/PT - Operations
Trident Transport • FT - Sales
Using story to share your mission
People can’t resist a good story, and when you’re sharing your business or organization's mission, story can be one of your most powerful tools. But, there’s an art to crafting a narrative that is both compelling and informative. Join us for this panel on the power of story, hosted by The Enterprise Center, featuring three local businesses and nonprofits (Lodge Cast Iron, The Chattanooga Tourism Company, and Chattanooga Whiskey), who have used a smart approach to storytelling to share their mission. We will discuss how to think about who your audience is, what your message is, and what platform (video, blog, podcast, social media) you should use.
Makers Marketplace
30+ Chattanooga-area vendors will be in one place so you can browse all the best from entrepreneurs across the city. The event will be in Miller Plaza’s Waterhouse Pavilion on Oct. 20 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m
Thursday, October 21, 2021
TVA ED Community Innovation Academy
What would it look like if local governments and communities thought like start-ups to solve problems in their community? If 77% of economic growth can be attributed to small creative advances, what role could our communities play in leveraging those creative advances to create more economic opportunities for their communities?
Whether you’re a pioneering business executive, a startup hustler, a government leader, or a curious student or resident who cares about their community, this event is for you.
Join us for a pitch event to hear 6 community teams from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) region present their top ideas and solutions aimed at solving a complex community challenge over the course of a 5-minute pitch. During our 2 hour program, our community teams will look to engage expert judges known as (Sharks) and audience members to identify and connect resources (ie. feedback, introductions, relationships, program funding).
The Challenge? Communities are inherently slow in responding to solve social and economic problems together. Many of them struggle to break down silos and deploy horizontal collaborations with diverse teams that produce the creative ideas critical to achieving the results that they are seeking.
By participating in the TVA ED Community Innovation Academy the past seven months, these teams of local economic developers and community champions explored tools, tactics and skills to more effectively and collaboratively solve community problems with the goal of sparking more economic growth and shared prosperity.
Participants were tasked with organizing a community innovation team, identifying a critical community problem, and incubating a solution that could solve it and positively support growth in their local economies. Teams have completed ecosystem maps, performed community innovation capacity assessments, engaged in hours of collaboration meetings, and are now interested in each sharing their bright ideas on the national stage of Chattanooga start-up week.
Chambliss Startup Social + The Startup Awards
Join us for the annual Startup Social (powered by Chambliss Startup Group) + the Startup Awards!
CHAMBLISS STARTUP SOCIAL powered by Chambliss Startup Group | 6 PM - 7:30 PM
Meet us at Naked River Brewing & BBQ starting at 6PM to eat, drink and network with entrepreneurs, startups, founders, and Chattanooga's movers and shakers.
At the conclusion of the Startup Social, a special surprise guest will take us from Naked River across the street to Finley Stadium for the Startup Awards.
STARTUP AWARDS | 7:30 PM - 9 PM
Join us for the annual Startup Awards, where we will recognize and celebrate the next generation of emerging companies as well as everyone who helped them become successful along the way.
The awards will be held on the field of Finley Stadium and include opportunities to meet players from the Chattanooga Football Club.
We will also have a late-night food truck on site for eats and drinks.
Awards will be given to:
- Startup of the Year, voted on by the public
- High Growth Company of the Year, presented by CO.LAB
- Goldfinch of the Year, presented by the INCubator
- Micro-business of the Year, presented by LAUNCH Chattanooga
- Charlie Brock Ecosystem Builder of the Year
- Volunteer of the Year, presented by The Enterprise Center
- Rising Star of the Year, presented by the TSBDC
- Latino Entrepreneur of the Year, presented by LaPaz
Friday, October 22, 2021
Tour the MLK Testbed for Smart City Technology
You've likely driven or walked on the UTC testbed for Smart Cities located downtown on MLK Boulevard, but do you know about the innovation taking place? Join UTC for a walk-and-talk tour of the space and learn how innovative technology is being developed and deployed in a real-world setting - right here in Chattanooga!
You can find the meeting point here.
Happy Hour with Solas Bio @ The Company Lab
Come meet the Solas Bio team and start your weekend off right - with happy hour!
Solas BioVentures is a Venture Capital firm that invests exclusively in the Life Science industry, focusing primarily on early and development stage Biotech, Medtech, and impactful companies. Come prepared with your Qs to get As on everything life science and biotech.
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