Today is my last day at Techstars and I leave with an eternally grateful heart. The last three years have been a wild ride. I am humbled to have had the opportunity to work with some amazing founders, mentors, and partners.
When I started exploring bringing Techstars to the Twin Cities, it was a total pipe dream. I recently had moved back from Boulder, started Matchstick Ventures and had been a mentor in multiple Techstars programs. I saw firsthand the impact a Techstars program could have on a startup ecosystem. I also knew the Twin Cities startup community was a sleeping giant that was about to explode. Fortunately, both Techstars and Target shared this vision. So, In 2015 we announced our new program – the Techstars Retail Accelerator in partnership with Target.
Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to visit with startups in all corners of the world and learn from some of the best…all while achieving a record level of airline status.
More importantly, we’ve supported over 30 Techstars Retail startups and 100+ founders from all over the world. These startups continue to impress and have gone on to raise over $50M, create hundreds of jobs and are having huge impacts on the world.
Before I go, I need to do a few shoutouts to a some folks who helped me along the way.
First and foremost, thank you to Sarah Bain for being my co-pilot through this journey. Big ups to Brett Brohl for being there since day one. Mark Solon, Natty Zola, Nicole Glaros, Amos Schwartzfarb and Cody Simms for being my North Stars. Finally, thanks to David Cohen, David Brown, and Jenny Lawton for taking a chance on a small-town farm kid from Iowa to help bring Techstars to the Twin Cities.
The success of our program couldn’t have happened without the support of our incredible Twin Cities startup community and partners at Target. We had over 200+ mentors support our program over the years. Your willingness to welcome our founders with open arms and dig in to solve hard problems has left a lasting impression on our founders.
Finally, to our founders – I’ve loved being in the trenches with all of you and am honored for having had the opportunity. Go change the world!
So….what’s next? While I will not be managing the new Metro Target Accelerator certified by Techstars, I plan help out and ensure a smooth transition.
I plan to double down on the Twin Cities startup community including Beta.MN and Twin Cities Startup Week.
I plan to stay plugged into our multiple local Techstars programs and find ways to add value.
I also plan to grow Matchstick Ventures with Natty Zola to continue investing in the best founders in our regions and across the Techstars network.
Onwards!