Telluride Venture Network: Final Weekend Workshop, 10/6-10/7 & More!

24 Sep Telluride Venture Network: Final Weekend Workshop, 10/6-10/7 & More!

Don’t miss the final workshop in the Telluride Venture Network’s (TVN) 5-year rural entrepreneurship series.  Course is led by industry legends Erick Mueller and Brad Werner, award-winning professors from Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado.

Questions regarding the TVN? Contact Annemarie Jodlowski at annemarie@telluridefoundation.org.

Go here for more about the Telluride Foundation.

The following is a note from TVN.

Whether you have a business idea you’ve wanted to flesh out, you are looking to scale your business, or you are a rural business leader who wants to support aspiring entrepreneurs – this is the program for YOU!

Join the TVN  Friday evening for a reception and panel featuring local business founders Stephanie Breedlove, Kelly Watters, and Olivia Pedersen, and then get down to business on Saturday with a full-day workshop.

Details
Friday, October 6th – Ah Haa School for the Arts (3rd Floor) – 5:30pm-7:30pm.
Saturday, October 7th – Wilkinson Public Library 9:00am-4:30pm

The $50 registration fee includes reception, breakfast, and lunch. Please reach out to annemarie@telluridefoundation.org should you need a scholarship.

Goodbye, Bonnie! 

Letter from Managing Director, Bonnie Watson

I have some bittersweet news to share. I am embarking on a new chapter as I transition from my role as Managing Director of the Telluride Venture Network.

This decision was not made lightly. My time with the Telluride Venture Fund has been an incredibly rewarding journey. Over the past five years, I’ve had the privilege to collaborate with brilliant entrepreneurs and cultivate a network of mentors and friends who will remain a cherished part of my life. I take pride in our remarkable progress during the past decade at TVN. Thanks to your invaluable time and support, we’ve cultivated an ecosystem that nurtures over 100 entrepreneurs across Colorado. We’ve provided crucial funding to numerous companies and steered countless startups towards a brighter future and we couldn’t have done with work without you!

Recently, an exciting new opportunity presented itself and it aligns closely with my professional goals and my desire to support entrepreneurs in Colorado. I have been offered the position of CEO at Energize Colorado. Like TVN, Energize Colorado is dedicated to impacting the entrepreneurial ecosystem. However, this role offers a unique opportunity to amplify that impact on a statewide scale. With our pursuit of a CDFI status and the planned deployment of tens of millions of dollars directly into the hands of entrepreneurs, bolstering Colorado’s economy, I am excited about the impact we will make.

After I leave, I would love to stay in touch so please feel free to reach me at my email at bonnie.watson.colorado@gmail.com.

Again, thank you for the past five years. They have been genuinely wonderful. Take care!

Portfolio Highlight – Phoenix Tailings

Phoenix Tailings, a startup business that graduated from TVN’s 2021 Mining Reclamation and Clean Water Bootcamp, is lighting up the climate tech space. They received $1.2M in 2022 from the U.S. Department of Energy to extract rare earth from mining waste using carbon-negative technology. And just last month the company raised a financing round from clean energy investors to scale up its proprietary technology and fund ongoing expansion to meet the surging demand for critical materials.

We look forward to watching this incredible team as they revolutionize mining and critical mental processing!

How to Build a Business Bootcamp

It’s Fall which means crisp weather, bluebird skies, and the return of Cómo Construir Un Negocio! TVN’s Bootcamp geared towards Spanish speakers is now in its 3rd year, and last week we welcomed 13 entrepreneurs to the program.

The cohort is comprised of existing business owners who are looking to grow and individuals who are contemplating starting a business and want to make sure they have the technical assistance and resources necessary to do so.

TVN is fortunate to welcome a mix of subject matter experts who volunteer their time to present on Wednesday evenings in person or via Zoom. The program follows the Lean Canvas business model and includes topics such as customer development, product-market fit, online marketing, unit economics, business structures, customer acquisition, and financial forecasting.

Would you like to support these courageous entrepreneurs taking a leap of faith? Then mark your calendar for November 15th at 5:30 p.m. The cohort will participate in the Showcase where they will present their businesses to an audience at the Wilkinson Public Library. Community members and local leaders can help entrepreneurs get traction by spreading the word about their new businesses and introducing them to potential customers.

Hope to see you there!