Green Bay entrepreneurship hub TitletownTech will share its building with “eatertainment” venue Topgolf Suites, its developers announced today.
TitletownTech will occupy 11,000 square feet on the second floor of the $10 million, 46,000-square-foot building in the Titletown district next to Lambeau Field, said the Green Bay Packers and its real estate development arm, Titletown Development. Delaware North will operate Topgolf on the first floor, which will include high-tech simulation bays, as well as food and beverage offerings.
“Delaware North has been a great partner and we’re looking forward to building on that relationship to provide excellent service for our guests,” said Mark Murphy, president and chief executive officer of the Packers. “We’re excited to work with their team on the entertainment concept featuring the Topgolf Suites. The welcoming atmosphere will make it the place to go for dates, family outings, nights out with friends, and should be popular with golf and gaming enthusiasts. We’re proud to introduce it to the region.”
Topgolf will open in August. The larger TitletownTech development was expected to open in early 2019. Today, the Packers indicated it will open “in the next few months.”
A joint project of Microsoft Corp. and the Packers, TitletownTech is set to include an innovation lab, a venture studio and a venture fund. The innovation lab will be focused on working with new entrepreneurs and existing businesses to create new ideas that can be vetted, tested, scaled and prototyped. The venture studio will offer resources for entrepreneurs in later stages as they scale and grow a business. TitletownTech plans to target sports and entertainment; digital health; supply chain; agriculture, environment and water; and advanced manufacturing startups.
The project’s developers also today announced they have secured two national executives as investors in its venture fund. They are: Jerry Jacobs Jr., co-CEO of Delaware North and alternate governor for the Boston Bruins; and Jeff Wilpon, partner of Sterling Project Development and Sterling Equities, and chief operating officer of the New York Mets. The venture fund also has local investors, the Packers said.
“This is a great day for Titletown and the Greater Green Bay area,” Murphy said. “Since Titletown opened in 2017, we’ve been pleased with the response to the development and believe it has become the amenity we envisioned when we first began planning a decade ago.
“The development’s initial success and our plans for the future have sparked interest from a wide variety of investors and partners. Delaware North and Sterling Project Development have been key partners for us in the effort and having them expand their roles will be very beneficial for TitletownTech and the region overall. We are excited to move forward with great momentum as we work together on TitletownTech and continue to enhance Titletown.”
“We are excited to be investors in the TitletownTech Venture Fund, which will embody the spirit of Wisconsin’s beloved football team in helping to grow a dynamic startup ecosystem in the region,” Jacobs said.
“We are proud to take part in the TitletownTech Venture Fund and honored to continue building on our partnership to develop this region and Titletown as a vibrant community to live, work and play,” Wilpon said.
TitletownTech leaders also announced today that Aaron Kennedy, founder of Noodles & Co., will work at the hub as the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay entrepreneur-in-residence.
Kennedy, who holds an MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, grew the fast casual restaurant to more than 350 locations nationwide. Last year, Kennedy spoke at the Wisconsin Technology Council’s Early Stage Symposium, about his entrepreneurial successes. Earlier in his career, Kennedy directed branding projects for Coca-Cola, Swiss Army Products, the PGA and Pepsi Cola Co., and helped develop Lunchables for Oscar Meyer. At TitletownTech, he will connect the UW campuses to TitletownTech and help foster entrepreneurial growth.
