Hi, I'm Jeff Rea your host for Economic Outlook.

Thank you for joining us.

Each week as we discuss the region's most important economic development initiatives with a panel of experts.

Four years ago, the South and Elkhart Regional Partnership launched the Founder Factory to reinforce the entrepreneurial spirit in the region and to commemorate Global Entrepreneurship Week.

The target audience is entrepreneurs, investors, enthusiasts, students.

Anybody who's feeling inspired or wants to start a business or is working on a startup.

We'll dive deeper into the event.

On today's show.

The South and Elkhart Regional Partnership has been working to enhance the entrepreneurial ecosystem by developing program education and support opportunities to help those starting a business thrive.

One of those great events that bring people together for that purpose is the Founder Factory.

Today, we're diving deeper into the Founder Factory event with the organizers and host.

Joining me today for that discussion are Bethany Hartley, the president and CEO, the South and Elkhart Regional Partnership, and Amish Shah, the president of Kem Krest.

Guys, welcome.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Always good to have you here.

Pretty excited talk.

Founder Factory.

It's been been a popular event the last couple of years.

But before we start getting a come your way.

So if somebody you're not a stranger at all.

But if people don't know this up in Elkhart Regional Partnership, tell us about what you do.

Sure.

Thank you very much, Jeff.

Thanks for having us on.

So the South Bend Elkhart Regional Partnership is a five county economic development organization.

Unfortunately, two of our board members are sitting with us.

And we really focus on catalyzing inclusive economic growth across those five counties.

Some of our major projects involve the readI program in the state of Indiana, start up South Bend, Elkhart, which is our entrepreneurship arm.

And then we pursue, which is our talent attraction and development arm.

Great.

Appreciate it, and congrats on your good work.

A lot of great things have happened.

We've been, fortunate to to get to feature a few of those here on the show.

We'll have you back shortly to talk.

Ready?

I hope so, at least come your way a little bit.

So if somebody doesn't know, Kem Krest, tell us about campus.

So Kem Krest is a global supply chain company.

We've got 19 plants around North America really focused on the automotive industry.

So everybody from GM, Ford, Porsche, BMW, we handle their parts, chemicals and accessories.

Bethany I'm going to come back your way.

So so we're going to talk a little bit more entrepreneurial ecosystem.

But generally we teased Founder Factory a little bit.

So so let's dive into that first a little bit.

Tell us a little bit about the Foundry.

So earlier this month we had the founder of factory.

Tell us a little bit about what the event is.

Yeah.

So Foundry factory occurs during Global Entrepreneurship Week.

This will actually be our fourth year of doing it and our final year of doing it.

And I'll talk more about that later.

But Global Entrepreneurship Week is, in its name, a global event, that there are thousands of events that happen across the world.

And fortunately, the state of Indiana has really dug deep into working on Global Entrepreneurship Week here in the state.

And so when we started Founder Factory, it actually was at the beautiful moment of it wasn't cold in November in South Bend and Covid was residing.

And so we had the opportunity to bring together about 250 folks.

And it was just a celebration of entrepreneurship.

And so we bring people together, their venture capital is their business owners, their startups, their enthusiasts, their customers, to connect around entrepreneurship.

And it's evolved over the last four years.

We started with we were doing roundtable sessions with experts, a full day of programing, some expo components, keynote sessions, and over the years it's evolved.

We went over to Elkhart for one of the years to the learner, and to come back to South Bend.

And this year we are focusing more intentionally on the keynote sessions, which will feature a mission catering Afaik.

And then we're having we had a networking session at afterwards.

And so really we hear from entrepreneurs, they want to connect to other entrepreneurs.

It's a lonely game and Amish can speak firsthand to this.

And so it's how do I find peers that can support me.

And honestly that first customer.

And so we really want to be supportive of those entrepreneurs.

And this is one way we're able to do that.

Amish come your way.

So you've been a successful entrepreneur.

Why are events like this important for entrepreneurs?

Well, I think Bethany hinted towards the fact that entrepreneurship can be lonely, but it doesn't need to be.

And one of the biggest things that we've been trying to do in this region is to build out that ecosystem.

And what is an ecosystem?

It's resources, it's inspiration, it's funders.

It's, you know, putting all of these things together.

And I think that having events are really bringing like minded people together to share stories, to help with leads or needs, perhaps provide funding, maybe be customers of some of these new companies.

But I think all in all, it's just about bringing great energy together.

And that's what helps drive the success that we've seen in entrepreneurship in our region.

I do love I hear the word collisions and stuff, those kind of things that happen there and a lot of great things.

Let me just stay with you for a second.

So Bethany touched on, keynote.

You get a chance, had a chance to host.

And so just tell us a little bit about the keynote.

So she was, amazing.

She's a great entrepreneur, inspirational entrepreneur.

And she was the founder of Flickr.

So if you remember, back in the days when we needed places to put all of our photography and kind of digital assets, that's what the company is that she founded.

And since then she started her own fund.

I mean, she's done so many different things.

But it's it's awesome to see a founder of her magnitude to come here and spend some time with all of us and really teach us, about our successes, but also, you know, about the failures and the challenges that occur during that whole entrepreneurial journey that happened to come your way.

So because when I think of this, entrepreneurs, it means a little bit everything, right?

It's the coffee shop on the corner.

It's the tech company and everything in between.

Speak to the just kind of the the range of folks who come to a, a founder factory, maybe the kinds of businesses that they're involved in.

Yeah.

So it really is a range I will say that we have we have the coffee shops, we have the individuals that are starting up their own, whether it's like a makeup line or a, skincare line, we have the tech entrepreneurs coming.

What we really appreciate is we've done a partnership for the last two years with the Awesome Fund, and that has brought in a lot more of our Main Street businesses and those that just have an idea.

And so what we've done with them, for example, this year we contributed the pitch competition for Awesome Fun was last night and that if you're not familiar, it's really a grassroots effort to encourage ideas and startups and entrepreneurship.

And so what we did was we took the proceeds from our ticket sales for Founder Factory and added that to the Pitch competition award.

So we have three winners and we'll announce them at we've announced them at Founder Factory and it brings in more of those those smaller businesses, because we know that small businesses need, again, they need the exposure to customers.

And so that's exciting to have them come in.

We have entrepreneurs that have failed miserably, as I'm sure saying, part of it is failure.

But they get back up and they start again.

And so we've really found that when individuals get to hear those stories again, to the loneliness, they're not alone.

And again, they get to work with each other.

We have suppliers in all different industries here that can work with one another, and it's just a matter of having a conversation where, as you both know, we're a very relational region, right?

And being able to say, oh, have you met Jeff or Amish?

That's a big deal for a lot of folks.

And so it's how do we make those connections and those warm introductions.

So I wouldn't say we have a percentage of this type of entrepreneur.

We have all kinds.

And it's interesting we asked folks to self-identify.

How do you what do you call yourself in the registration?

Founder, co-founder, CEO, entrepreneur?

They were all picked.

And so we don't like to label any of them.

We say all are welcome.

So it's quite interesting.

The mix that comes in great.

I'm going to get back to you in the second round, the entrepreneur journey.

But let me stay with you for a second because, well, we've been talking we've been able to show our viewers a little bit of the, of the event and the space and such.

This is a unique space.

Not a lot of people have been in talk about just the maybe the environment and the atmosphere.

Even all four years you've done it, you've had kind of a really unique atmosphere for this.

Yeah.

So the name Founder Factory came because our office is in an old Studebaker factory.

And so that's where we hosted the first year.

We actually had folks walk through the factory side, the unfinished side.

I don't think they loved it, to be honest.

It was a little dirty, but it was part of the experience.

And so, it's serendipitous that we started in a space that was how housing South Bend City Church at the Studebaker building.

And once again, we're going back to a space housing South Bend City Church.

But in the Tribune Building, just up the road a couple blocks on Lafayette in South Bend.

And it is a unique environment, and the church has done a beautiful job of outfitting it with some industrial design, beautiful high ceilings.

They had, what, a four story printing press in there at one point.

And and so it's just we want to find those unique environments to have these sort of events because not everybody gets to go in those all the time.

And so it's part of the fun of doing these events.

So it is quite unique.

I'm sure we'll hear some feedback on the parking, but we're doing our best with the parking.

I hate talking about parking.

Yeah.

But they'll figure it out.

Yeah yeah yeah yeah.

So these come your way.

So.

So, some of these are, entrepreneurs that are younger or newer in their space than the new, for example.

So what do you what do you hope they took away from, from the discussion that happened at the event?

Yeah, it's a great question, and thanks for calling me old.

I just turned 50 this year.

I didn't really mean it that way, but, sorry, but but, you know, the reality is, there's so much energy and inspiration around entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurship is kind of a bridge for so many people.

Yeah, I'm here because of entrepreneurship.

You know, my father immigrated here in the 60s, started a company.

I grew up with, an entrepreneur, which inspired me to be an entrepreneur and start my own business.

And I think that when you hear about the successes, it's one thing.

But when we all collectively get together and talk about how challenging it is, it is a journey and it's hard and you're going to fail.

There is no such thing as entrepreneurship and the lack of failure.

And when you share stories amongst other people, they realize, hey, we're all in this together.

We're all going through the same path.

And so, you know, I think that one of the a few takeaways, one is being able to build a network of others, others of like minded, but also that can help fill some of the gaps of some of the strengths that you might not have or some of the strengths that you need.

And being able to understand that this is a hard journey.

If you're going through pain right now, then you're on the right path because pain is part of entrepreneurship.

I think being at it alone and feeling like this is really hard and I don't have anybody to lean on.

That's that's tough.

And the last is and I think very important is that this region that we live in is an entrepreneurial haven.

People used to think you'd have to go to Silicon Valley, or you'd have to go to Denver, Colorado, or you have to go to Texas.

You know, you right here in front of us with Notre Dame and IU and all of the resources that the partnership has been, you know, basically helping to put together, this is the place to be to start your next entrepreneurial journey.

And I and I hope and I believe that people are leaving the event with that, that excitement and that energy and that belief that, you know, they can do it.

I love that we're going to continue this discussion.

Second, we're going out in the field.

George left, and notice my co-host is out to add to the story.

George, let me toss it to you.

I'm near the campus of Notre Dame University and I am joined today by Susan Ford.

Susan, thanks for being with us.

Thank you so much for having me.

Susan, you are a board member of the South Bend Elkhart startup, correct.

Tell us a little bit about that organization and what purpose it serves.

Great question.

So the South Bend Elkhart Startup Board is a part of the regional partnership.

And so the regional partnership has is the organization that came together about ten years ago to really start going after dollars in the that we wouldn't otherwise be able to capitalize on if we weren't coming together as a region.

So this is South Bend, Elkhart, Marshall County all coming together.

And there are five subcommittees historically that have been going after goals to help raise the region.

And so the Entrepreneurship Board is one of those boards.

And so that board is all about helping make the the fertile ground so that entrepreneurs can continue to succeed.

And when I think about entrepreneurship, this is something that's really personally important to me.

It's both, mom and pop business owners.

It's the Main Street businesses.

It's people who are trying to start something in their garage.

It's high potential startups, but it's also the existing businesses that are here in South Bend and Elkhart who have been around for ten, 20, 30 years.

Those are entrepreneurs.

And I think we sometimes forget to use the word entrepreneur from those existing businesses.

So our board is all about helping make those businesses successful.

Now you talk about fertile ground.

What does it take to fertilize ground and make an area ripe for entrepreneurship?

That's a great question.

So part of it is creating coalitions.

I think that's so important.

Another thing that I think about for our region that really matters is how can we help each other be customers first?

Customers take a chance.

I was at an event at Notre Dame earlier this week and it was so exciting.

They had a local business doing the catering for the event.

That's really exciting.

So when our larger businesses can support the smaller businesses, I think that matters.

And I think part of it is just the ground is about how do we create the connection, how do we create the collisions, how do we make sure people know what is going on?

That sort of the things that just happen if you create the right infrastructure.

But it's also how do you provide access to funding?

How do people know what the central point is, how do they get there?

And there's a lot on our on the regional partnership website and also across the state connect in.com is a great place for budding entrepreneurs to go, to get access to resources, to capital, to service providers, etc..

Awesome.

And just quickly, as a final thought, yes, what makes our area so great for entrepreneurs, whether it be Elkhart in the RV industry or South Bend in its automotive roots, what makes this area just so ripe for starting your own business?

such a good question.

I thought about this a lot.

I think just as a headline, we have to say, the state of Indiana is doing some really powerful things that just set the framework for it.

But then I think it is the people here who want to connect, they want to roll up their sleeves, they want to do business here, and we make it easy.

It's not an exclusive club.

You people want to help each other.

And I think that's really powerful about being part of this ecosystem.

That's awesome.

And that actually leads us to a great way to sign off on this.

Today we're going to talk with someone who's got more resources for entrepreneurs, but helping each other out is such a vital thing that our community does that helps our economy grow and startups thrive.

Following up with that, I am now joined by Kris Priemer.

Kris, you are the founder of Momentum Entrepreneurship.

Is that right?

Yes.

And so before we get to what momentum is and what it does, tell us a little bit about your background.

What brought you to this particular building downtown, South Bend, and made you think this would be a great hub for entrepreneurs?

Yeah.

So for the last 30 years, my family's owned a small building here in downtown.

And as I bought that from my family and had my own tenants, I was noticing more of the the underutilized buildings in downtown and thought, you know, I can complain about it or I can do something about it.

And I thought, let me do something.

I've worked with the city in the past, and, you know, what I knew was start ups, entrepreneurship.

And so that's where I wanted to bring those two things together.

You know, and for for our viewers to give them a graphic location of where we're standing and what the plans are for, for what you're calling your entrepreneurship hub.

I called it an entrepreneurship clubhouse because, you know, your plans are so broad, but we are standing south of the library downtown South Bend on Main Street, in a neighborhood that has been forgotten somewhat, hasn't necessarily seen some of the growth of other parts of downtown South Bend.

So, as you look to this space, let's talk a little bit about the momentum hub.

What is your hope to provide a potential young entrepreneur new entrepreneur.

Yeah.

The really the goal is if I have if someone has an idea or they're, you know, maybe even further along their idea that where do I go for help.

You know it could be for collaborations.

It could be for investment, mentorship.

This is the you go to momentum like, that's the place to start.

Not only because we will have resources to help you, but also there's going to be amazing other folks working there as well that you might want to collaborate with.

And so not only will it be a place where they can collaborate with other entrepreneurs, but your hope is that you're going to create an environment where they can collaborate with more established business folks.

Advisor.

All right.

And get some coaching.

Exactly, exactly.

That's great.

So to get something like this done, I mean, that's a quite a leap of faith.

What?

Who really?

I mean, are you in this on your own or have you had, you know, have some amazing partners that joined really early on?

Mark Neal, Brad Emberton and Kurt Janowski .

They were instrumental in getting this project off the ground and where we are today.

And then we've had some additional partners like the City of South Bend, the RTA, the South Bend, Elkhart Regional Partnership that have all contributed to making sure this is a successful project.

Well that's awesome.

You have named some of the best alumni of our show.

So, you know, for a show called Economic Outlook and Entrepreneurship Hub is is a great thing.

When do you hope to launch?

The goal is through the end of April.

So at the end of April is typically when idea week is.

And so we're partnering with Idea Week, having a launch party in our event space.

And then we'll officially be open in early May.

Well Kris that's exciting news.

So thanks for having us here today.

And do you promise to have us back when you've got some entrepreneurs in the space?

Absolutely.

We'll have you again soon.

Awesome.

Well, thank you for joining us.

Learning a little bit more about a great, exciting opportunity, how you or maybe some of your friends, colleagues or relatives could come down to a place like momentum and figure out how to start your own business right here in downtown South Bend All right, we're back in the studio here, guys.

We want to continue our conversation right before we went to break.

Initial time, I just kind of the ecosystem a little bit.

I think this a little, you know, kind of snapshot of how we're doing in the region.

Like, I like I feel some people say, gosh, we were really entrepreneurial and maybe not so much.

And now again, give us, give us a feel or flavor for the for how we're doing in that space.

Yeah, I think as a region we're doing really, really well.

The state of Indiana looks to us as one of those advanced regions across the state when it comes to entrepreneurship.

We've been we've hosted the state for the last two years and their your book, launch party for Entrepreneurial Yearbook that they started two years ago.

I think there's also a really positive climate when it comes to our infrastructure and our utilities.

And with big projects like AWS and GM coming, that provides more opportunity for lifestyle businesses to come online.

It's bringing again more customers to the region.

So this is huge.

I think often and you've said this many times that the big projects get the headlines, but it's the businesses that will thrive because of those big projects and be able to expand is a really big deal.

I also think, you know, the state of Indiana looking at in 2025, bringing the Global Entrepreneurship Congress back to the United States for the first time since it launched is a really big deal.

We're going to have 5000 people in the state of Indiana for a week in June with all eyes on this state, and over 200 countries will be represented.

I had the chance to go to Australia for the event last year.

It's tremendous.

And they're talking about the policies to make entrepreneurship more accessible.

And thinking about what other countries are doing in this space.

So I think it's only up from here.

You know, I've heard at several events talking about how we've got this great momentum going and we've got some really good wins behind us, but we can't let off the gas pedal because just as quickly as they come, they can go.

And so I'm excited that we have really good partners involved.

We've got really good support organizations in this region.

I've never seen anything like this, and I grew up in the area and it wasn't like this when I was growing up.

So it's really awesome.

Let me try to come your way because because you've been in this space for a little while.

I'm not trying to call you old but but, but you've seen kind of the evolution of the region.

You've seen people come together pull in the same direction.

Talk to a little bit about your observations over the last decade plus.

Yeah.

And, and and I want to give thanks where thanks is do is I think one of the biggest catalysts was the University of Notre Dame.

And, you know, I saw the data the other day that I think through the idea center, there have been more startups in the last three years, and there has the entire history since Notre Dame was founded.

And that was intentional.

And I think that you need an anchor institution or organization.

And through the idea Center, they've got great process and systems.

But outside of that, and again, you know, when when regional City started and we were all part of that, that was a big catalyst for us to say, here's one of the components that we need to make vibrant in this area.

We need to fund it.

We need to put resources around it.

You know, the startup committee, that's part of the partnership is unbelievable.

The amount of resources that they're bringing to the table to help all of these entrepreneurs in our region.

So, you know, I grew up Elkhart was the land of milk and honey.

It was all these great start ups, mostly around van conversion and RV.

And we still need manufacturing.

Startups are really important.

But now when you look, you know, more towards the side of Saint Joe County in South Bend specifically, you're seeing these tech startups, you're seeing high potential startups, you're seeing businesses that are all starting to come together.

And I think it's because they realize that we do have so many resources here in Michigan to stay with you for a second.

So let's talk a little bit just about your entrepreneurial journey, because, you know, and I just say, like, this isn't for everybody.

Like, but, but, but I think we're trying to build this culture and folks, we're trying to develop thoughts in, in, in young people about, doing this.

It's a scary proposition, but there's a lot of folks just give us a little bit more of kind of of, of your journey and things you're doing in the community to kind of help, start young, get young people thinking about this as well.

You know, it's a great point, is that to really build a culture of entrepreneurship, it can't just start with for 30, 40, 50 year olds, you know, we're really starting to get kids from a young age learning about entrepreneurship.

Years ago, we relaunched Junior Achievement in our community where we would talk about entrepreneurship.

A few years ago, we we, created Biz Town so we can get kids learning about community and the role that entrepreneurship plays in communities.

Several years ago, you know, through Iris and Larry Jr, Tony's leadership, they created the Startup Moxie program, which we have a division here in Saint Joe County and one in Elkhart.

You know, that program we're putting at least 20 in Elkhart, 20 high school kids through an entire rigor of a one year program where they learn how to start their own business.

And I think that that's incredible.

And then through rise through Saint Joe County, there's hundreds of kids within high school and in college that are learning to create their own business with resources, with funding, with mentors.

So I think we're doing a lot of the right things, which is like teach them young, like show them that this is a journey.

Let's show them.

You know, I always remember when kids start the the program, for Startup Moxie, they come in, they're kind of excited.

They don't know what they're going through.

You get to that midway point and they're like, whoa, this is hard.

And we've got to do everything we can to keep them on rail.

And then at graduation, I always cry because they give these speeches that are amazing about the businesses and the learning.

And I'm like, yeah, that's it.

And every one of them says, you know, all the adults in the room say, I wish I had that when I was a kid.

And so I think there's and that's one piece of the resource.

There's something that, you know, we've been doing with through hustle, SBA, which are also helping women and minorities in the community.

So I think, again, you start with programs and then all of a sudden, your program start to form around it, and then that's again the creation of the ecosystem.

And what's interesting about that too, is our local regional colleges.

Most of them now have either a minor or a major in entrepreneurship and innovation.

And that wasn't the case five years ago.

And so that's really exciting to see to.

AOSp is going to open up their Innovation Entrepreneurship center here shortly.

Bethel has a program, Holy Cross, all of them.

And it's really exciting to see them come online.

And so now it's how can we make sure they're helping one another and being and working together because there's a lot of thought sharing that could happen there.

Let's come here in our last couple of minutes.

Bethany.

So, last year of Founder Factory, great event.

Why would this be the last year?

Yeah.

So Startup South in Elkhart, has taken on idea week, in partnership with the University of Notre Dame.

They're going to stay as our anchor sponsor for the event.

But I do week is a huge event.

It's a weeklong of programing in April, April 20th through 26.

And so our team is going to shift our focus to that event.

We will still do something during global Entrepreneurship Week, but not at the scale of bringing 250 people together for this sort of event.

So really it was some of it is the ecosystem is growing and we don't need to be the anchor in everything when it comes to that anymore, because it's growing and thriving.

So we feel our time can be best spent elsewhere and supporting the other organizations that are hosting the events.

So we're excited about that.

And I think it's great and and appreciative for what you've done with Founder Factory, because it's been a phenomenal event.

But these other events are critical to.

We may want you back to talk ideally in this year.

So so as we get to our last minute or so, advice to somebody who's on the fence, been thinking about a business, have been think about jumping in that pool.

What what would you what would you tell them about starting their entrepreneurial journey?

The reality is, is that entrepreneurship is hard but easy.

It's hard because the journey that you take to launch a product or launch a business is difficult.

You go through a lot of challenges.

The easiness is, is I will say, you know, if you're going to if you're going to jump off the cliff, make sure you look down and know what you're going to jump into.

So you get to take a little bit of time and prepare.

You get to create your business plan or your, you know, your your business model canvas, or you have to have some clear direction.

You have to understand, you know, what the problem is that you're solving.

I think too many people want to get into a new business because they want to be an entrepreneur, but are they really solving a problem?

And so I think when you have a distinct problem that you're solving, you put a plan together, you have the energy.

You know, that you have to be resilient, and you have the patience to see it through.

This community around us will put their arms around you and help you every step of the way, all the way down to funding.

So it's possible.

Yeah.

Well thank you guys.

Thank you.

Appreciate.

Congrats on a great event.

Thanks for sharing more with our viewers about it.

That's it for our show today.

Thank you for watching or listening to our podcast.

Find out the Economic outlook@night.org or find our podcasts and most major podcast platforms like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter.

I'm Jeff Rea I'll see you next time.

This WNIT local production has been made possible in part by viewers like you.

Thank you.