Richmond accelerator Lighthouse Labs has named entrepreneur Art Espey as its new managing director. He replaces Paul Nolde, who is leaving to take a similar role with the 757 Collab and 757 Angels in Norfolk.
Espey has been involved with Lighthouse Labs since its founding, serving as founding board chair from 2015 to 2018 and then recently rejoining the board. He’s been a serial entrepreneur for the last decade-plus in the Richmond area, working at compostable cutlery company Green Duck and founding Rivata Health LLC, which offered a platform for pain management. Espey’s LinkedIn page lists him as currently holding roles as a strategic adviser at Richmond diversity and inclusion firm TMI Consulting Inc. and as a managing director at Paladin Global Services LLC, an advisory for startups.
“After a decade, Lighthouse Labs is at an inflection point, with an opportunity to think big and reinvent our work with founders, investors, and the area’s innovation ecosystem,” Espey said in a statement. “I’m pleased to have the chance to build on the work previous leaders and the team have accomplished and look forward to continued success. I envision new and creative partnering opportunities with Paul and 757 Collab to foster innovation across the entire RVA757 megaregion.”
Espey earned degrees from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Eastern Michigan University and the University of Virginia. He’s a former Marine Corps officer and currently sits on the board of the Virginia Bio+Tech Partnership Authority.
Lighthouse Labs said Nolde will continue with the accelerator through the spring session for its current cohort of startups, which ends May 30. It said Espey has already started working with the Lighthouse Labs team to help with the transition.
The accelerator has helped more than 100 startups with its programs since its founding in 2013, investing more than $2 million to date.
Nolde took the reins of Lighthouse Labs in May of last year, replacing Erin Powell, who stepped down to join Blue Ocean Brain, an online professional training startup that came through the accelerator.
