On June 26, JumpStart will be teaming with some of its closest partners and collaborators for Startup Scaleup—an event celebrating the growth of Northeast Ohio’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and showcasing the full array of local resources available to help entrepreneurs succeed.

Learn more about Startup Scaleup at www.startupscaleup.org.

Presented by KeyBank and powered by JumpStart, Startup Scaleup is an all-day, festival-style event held in the heart of Cleveland’s Gordon Square Arts District. Over the course of the day, Startup Scaleup’s 39 different workshops, panels and networking events will occur in 13 different eateries, theaters and creative spaces in the neighborhood.

In addition to the traditionally strong lineup of local entrepreneurs, small business owners, investors and support organizations, this year’s event will also feature guest speakers from across the country, including:

• Monique Woodard – current startup investor and former Venture Partner at 500 Startups in San Francisco.
• Gerri Kahnweiler – Founding Partner of InvestHER Ventures in Chicago.
• Hannah Fleishman – Inbound Recruiting Manager at HubSpot in Boston.

“Entrepreneurship can often feel very lonely,” said JumpStart CEO Ray Leach. “Startup Scaleup is a great opportunity to connect with others who are sharing the journey and surround yourself with a team of people who can help you and your business grow and thrive.”

“What makes this event so valuable for entrepreneurs is the opportunity to not only select specific topics that are important to them, but to form connections with people who can actually help them execute in those areas,” added JumpStart President Cathy Belk. “It’s not just a lecture or a business card swap; it’s about forming very specific relationships that can drive business growth in a tangible way.”

The day’s agenda is packed with 39 collaborative workshops, interactive panel discussions and valuable networking events designed to help entrepreneurs find the right people and the right resources to build strong, reliable support systems.

Highlighted sessions include:

• Finding Money For Your Business – Join entrepreneur Angela Flowers as she speaks with a panel of funders about where to find the money you need to grow, whether you’re launching a new venture or growing an existing business.
• Grow Or Die: How To Scale Your Business – When it comes to running a company, there is no such thing as standing still. This session, led by Bounce Innovation Hub’s new CEO Douglas Weintraub, focuses on keeping your business relevant (and profitable).
• Ask The Founders – Tap into the knowledge and experience of two of our Northeast Ohio founders who have grown companies to an exit (former Explorys Co-founder/CEO Steve McHale and former Mr. Beams Co-founder/CEO David Levine) in this interactive Q&A session.
• What Really Persuades Investors –Get inside the head of investors as they decide where to invest their money in this session featuring Gerri Kahnweiler from InvestHER Ventures.
• Making Brick & Mortar Work In The Age of Amazon – Entrepreneur/advisor Adam Kaufman leads a diverse mix of local business owners in a conversation focused on running a successful brick and mortar shop in the modern economy.
• How Startups Can Partner With Corporations – JumpStart President Cathy Belk convenes some of Northeast Ohio’s corporate innovation leaders to share how they think about leveraging partnerships with local startups to stay on the cutting edge of their industries.
• Using Great Company Culture To Grow Your Business – HubSpot’s Hannah Fleishman discusses the importance of strong company culture, and how to use that culture to attract talent and build better teams.

Tickets for the June 26 event are $20 and include a $10 lunch voucher, as well as two $5 snack vouchers redeemable at various local food vendors in the Gordon Square Arts District.

To register and learn more, visit www.startupscaleup.org/register

Startup Scaleup’s Presenting sponsor is KeyBank. Gold sponsors for Startup Scaleup 2018 include Thompson Hine and Burton D. Morgan Foundation. Silver sponsors include Cleveland Clinic and Vantage Financial Group. Bronze sponsors include Adam Kaufman, Citrus Social, Taft, Dominion Energy and Chemical Bank. Copper sponsors include ADP, Walter Haverfield, Calfee and Insivia.

JUMPSTART INC. unlocks the full potential of diverse and ambitious entrepreneurs to economically transform entire communities. For more information, follow @JumpStartInc on Twitter.

THE GORDON SQUARE ARTS DISTRICT (GSAD) was formed in 2007 by three theatres to revitalize a once-thriving west side Cleveland neighborhood. More than 80 new businesses have located in GSAD, more than half of them arts-based, and residents are now flocking to a range of new and rehabbed housing options. In 2014, GSAD completed a $30 million capital campaign and began planning to steward the investment and look to the future. www.gordonsquare.org.