More than 125 startup founders attended the inaugural Founder/Fest Thursday, an event held at Penrod LLC’s headquarters that highlighted Milwaukee-area startups and the innovation brewing in the city’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Founder/Fest was organized by Milwaukee Founder Collective, a new group of startup founders who define themselves as an “asynchronous” and “decentralized” community of entrepreneurs.
The Milwaukee Founder Collective aims to build a community around startups so that founders can establish a web of connections through events, relationships and educational programming.
More than a dozen Milwaukee-based startups including Investii, Sydetasker, Vault, AfroCharts and JoyBoost participated in the event. Other area startups like Crosskudi and Blue Line Battery pitched their companies during a founder feature series, a program where Nadiyah Johnson of the Milkyway Tech Hub interviewed founders to learn more about their entrepreneurial journeys.
- LikelMinded CEO Jeremy Fojut kicks off FounderFest at Penrod LLC’s headquarters.
- Dozens of startup founders attended Founder/Fest Thursday.
- Northwestern Mutual financial representative Tish Franklin and Dave Bent, owner of Jamaican Fair Trade.
- MKE Tech Hub Coalition CEO Kathy Henrich and AfroCharts founder and CEO Leonard Novati.
- Several startups pitched their companies during the Founder Feature series at Founder/Fest.
- CrossKudi founder and CEO Bobola Odebiyi talks about his company during the founder feature series at Founder/Fest.
- tyker CEO Sean Tepper and GE Healthcare data scientist and Tischebytes founder Raymond Roberts.
- Graphic Brother Marketing owner Jerod Butler and Agricycle COO Jacob Foss.
- WorkAround co-founder Nick O’Brien interviews Blue Line Battery co-founder Kristen Holtan.
- Alchemy Capital venture partner Ivan Rahman and WEDC entrepreneurship program director Ed Javier.
- Sacred Love Yoni Steaming and Wellness owner Brianca Beverly and Joanna Fraczek, attorney, Sterling Law Offices, S.C.
- Unytus co-founders Sukhi Sihra and Jit Sihra.
- WorkAround co-founder Nick O’Brien.