Jake Budler

I'm back at my sort-of-regular-LinkedIn-posts-about-entrepreneurs-doing-cool-things. That title probably doesn't help the algorithm, but I digress. Here are some great founders in Indy from my last week: → Nida Ansari simply does amazing things. And that isn't stopping - Nida just helped launch Kinship, a global community built for the builders, backers, and bridge-makers of the Muslim entrepreneurial ecosystem. And they say you can't build global platforms from the Midwest (I don't know who says that but it's not true). → Speaking of people building great things, I finally had the pleasure of seeing the new Five Four offices in Broad Ripple! Sara Croft and Christian Beck are two of the smartest marketing/startup humans, and I think Christian is the only person almost as funny as me on LinkedIn. It was really great to see the intersection of startups, community, in-person office work, and talented friends. → After popping by Five Four, I headed to lunch with Scott Kraege - one of the most talented entrepreneurs/investors in Indy. Scott is currently leading Ivy Ventures and is investing in really "wonky" deal that go against the grain of the VC/AI fervor (and, spoiler, it's working). Beyond Ivy Ventures, I really respect Scott for truly investing in Indy - as a parter at Forty5, building the music scene across the city. → While we lost Lindsay Tjepkema to Boston, I still loved catching up with Lindsay who has built her next company, Human Brands Win, to help other founders leverage and build their own brands. Plus, we talked about one of my favorite topics - books! (Give Lindsay a follow to see what she's got coming soon...) → The Indianapolis Business Journal recently shared updates on the 20 companies featured in last year's Innovation Issue - 20 of 20 are still in business! The progress updates shared on Bereave, Opendate (another Scott Kraege company - that raised $14M in January!), and others were fantastic to read. These entrepreneurs have kept me so busy that I once again didn't take any pictures along the way. But it was cool to have the Endeavor logo up at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, the first stadium purpose-built for women's professional sports - so here ya go! Lots happening here in Speed City. Follow along, especially during the month of May in Indy 🏁🏎️

The Indiana Fever are back in action 🏀 I had a great time watching Caitlin Clark back on the floor, along with a great line up including instant hometown hero, Megan McConnell (whose older brother, TJ, is a famous billboard face across Indy) The basketball was fun, but the highlight of last night's game was seeing so many of my friend's small businesses around the fieldhouse! It's really damn cool to have Pacers Sports & Entertainment and Gainbridge Fieldhouse supporting so many small businesses. In the first quarter alone: - PLEASE & THANK YOU was all over the big screen, letting people know that Brooke Vaughn truly makes the best cookies in America! - Olivia West is right back at this this year as the best in-game host in the entire WNBA (Women's National Basketball Association) - It took some jogging through the fieldhouse, but I made it just before tip-off to snag a half-price Garage Beer during happy hour. Garage Beer may be over in Ohio, but they make a great beer. - I spotted a Bike People community bike store hat (who, naturally, aren't on LinkedIn) - my good friend Matt Martin has built an incredible community... and all we NEED more bike parking outside of Gainbridge - it's overflowing at every single Fever game - brought to you by Bike People Indy! - Local brands have spots all over Gainbridge including one of my favorite South American favorites, Mambo's Cheesesteak Grill, who also have a spot in 16 Tech Innovation District! The only brand that's really missing is Tomorrow Bookstore slinging some basketball books - but I know how we can change that ;) Fever and Pacers - y'all are doing it right with local, small business support and collaborations. Now you know. ⛹🏼‍♀️

It's been pretty quiet lately across Indy tech and entrepreneurship. Public focus and resources have shifted away from innovation, media hasn't had lots to cover, and quality events have been sparse. I'll admit - I've been part of the "quiet" problem too. It's easier to go with the flow than fight the current. But, over the last week, I've gotten really excited. Founders are still building. Entrepreneurs are still solving problems. Fundamentally solid companies are still growing. Here's a round up of founders, builders, and exciting things happening in Indy that I've run across recently: → I don't think it's in Frank Dale's nature to be loud and flashy, BUT, I'm happy to talk Frank up - we caught up over lunch recently, and I am so stoked that Frank is back to building. We had a great chat about the state of entrepreneurship in Indy (part of the reason for this post) and how there are still great founders like Frank quietly solving real-world challenges. I can't say more about his Stealth Co... but stay tuned! → Another person I met up with recently is Christopher C. Whitfield, MBA. Chris and I have overlapped in so many ways (Eli Lilly and Company, Wabash College, and Endeavor South Africa) but had NEVER met in-person. As it turns out, Chris is back in Indy and building his next company: Antigenix Therapeutics, developing antibody-based therapies that target cancer cells and push the boundaries of cancer treatment. Watch this space. → TechPoint is having a moment: it's genuinely exciting to see a founder step into the CEO role, with Eric Christopher taking the reins. Techpoint went right into the Mira Awards (I wasn't there because, let's be honest, you won't often catch me in black tie in Carmel) - and I am so pumped for Alicia E. Mckoy, Hon.D.Bus, CCWS being awarded the Resilience Award. There is truly not a more deserving entrepreneur in Indiana. → Yesterday was one of the most energizing days I've had in a while. Pat East is running a phenomenal gener8tor gBETA program focused on small businesses, and he was generous enough to ask me to mentor. The program falls right into a personal sweet spot for me (in the overlap of my work at Endeavor Southeast and Tomorrow Bookstore) and I had a fantastic time meeting the cohort and learning about the homegrown businesses built across Indiana. → Beyond current founders, it's been so good to catch up with folks across the entrepreneur ecosystem who are making a great impact on Indy entrepreneurship. I had coffee with Wyatt Wells recently to catch up with all the great work Sports Tech HQ does, Emily Atkinson, PhD and I chatted on a about BioCrossroads & Crossroads Health Ventures growth, Mark Latta shared over coffee about how he's using better data to improve eviction outcomes for people in Indy, I met Matt Jaworowski to learn about the amazing momentum at IU Launch Accelerator for Biosciences (IU LAB). I'm basically out of space. But, Indy is back (we weren't gone). More posts to come!

Such a pleasure to have Prof David join the latest Endeavor National Selection Panel to serve as a panelist. It's folks like this who are committed to helping founders scale & succeed that make Endeavor work! Thank you to all of the panelists, partners, and of course - founders who are building amazing businesses!

Wheels up in ATL ✈️ Endeavor Southeast recently re-launched in Atlanta - and the entrepreneur energy was real. Rachel Wilson brought the Atlanta vibes. Delta Air Lines and Wheels Up brought the best event venue I've been to - an actual 747. Justin Brown and Casey Murphy brought some Louisville energy. And all the founders made it happen 🚀 I'm stoked to be supporting so many high-impact founders in Atlanta. It made complete sense to grow Endeavor Southeast with this amazing community & strong entrepreneurial market. I'm looking forward to spending more time in Atlanta this year and beyond (since they're also hosting several South African World Cup matches...) If you want to learn more about Endeavor's work supporting founders in Atlanta, shoot me a dm. Special thanks to all the founders who supported this event: Theresa Reno-Weber @ GoodMaps, Michael Jones @ Thrive Farmers, Tracey Pickett @ Hairbrella, and Dan Oliver & Phillip Crosby @ Dan-O's Seasoning And shout out to Gabriella Trigueros for pulling off a truly high-impact event.