A startup that relocated its headquarters to Louisville last year was recently selected for the Techstars accelerator in Chicago.
SplitPass, formerly known as SplitGym, was one of four startups from outside of the Louisville region that came here as a result of the Render Competition. The competition, held for the first time last year, awarded $100,000 to each company and required them to relocate their headquarters and at least one full-time founder to Louisville for a year.
SplitPass, which has six full-time employees, has created a marketplace to buy and sell unused memberships, packages and subscriptions, which in turn enables businesses like fitness studios to acquire more clients, grow revenue and retain existing clients longer.
Alex Plonsker, founder and CEO of SplitPass, told me he's found Louisville to be very welcoming since he moved to the city in November.
"It just struck me how nice everybody was and everybody was so supportive and was rooting for you," the Chicago native said. "That was really the first time we had an external support network up to that point."
Prior to the Render Competition, SplitPass had just launched a pilot program with a group of gyms in Manhattan just before the start of the coronavirus pandemic. During the pandemic shutdown, the startup was rebuilding the product based on the feedback it had gotten through the pilot.
Through Render Capital, Plonsker was paired with a mentor, Alli Truttman, founder and CEO of Wicked Sheets. The program also connected SplitPass with a network of consultants with development, design, marketing and legal resources.
"Render came in at a really crucial time and really helped us bridge the chasm, the Death Valley that startups go through where you might have a product and a little traction, but you're not producing significant revenue," Plonsker said. "They took a bet on us."
SplitPass has since launched with a handful of larger partners in a few cities, with a focus on Chicago now with the three-month Techstars program. While Plonsker was required to come to Louisville for a year as a part of the Render Competition, he's in no rush to leave.
"I love Louisville and I do feel comfortable here," he said. "A lot of our engineers are in Chicago and that's going to be at least a presence, but I definitely want to maintain all the relationships I have here."
The next cohort of Render Competition winners will be announced Sept. 23 at Lynn Family Stadium. You can find more details and RSVP here.
