Wichita's Groover Labs will host a networking event next week that will connect local entrepreneurs, investors and startups with experienced venture capitalists.
Groover Labs co-founder Curt Gridley says the VC Huddle on June 22 and 23 will be the first of many planned programs at the collaborative maker space aiming to support the growth of local startup activity in Wichita.
“Increasingly, venture capital funds seek to invest in high-growth startups away from the coasts and are actively looking to nurture startup ecosystems in the Heartland,” Gridley said in a news release. “Groover Labs is excited to be introducing these seasoned investors, founders and mentors from around the country to the Wichita ecosystem."
The two-day event is open to the public, and will begin with a founders forum from 5 to 7 p.m. on June 22. It will be a networking event in which local founders and entrepreneurs are invited to connect and build relationships with other, well-established entrepreneurs as well as members of the investment community.
The investors forum, meanwhile, invites local, accredited investors to hear about the experiences and key insights from knowledgeable tech investors. It will last from 5 to 7 p.m. on June 23.
A number of mentors and venture capitalists will participate, including Mary Kate Love, director of engagement for Koch Disruptive Technologies; Dave Cunningham, CEO and founder of Flint Hills Group; and a couple of partners from an Atlanta-based seed fund focused on emerging science and technology business models called Kubera Venture Capital.
"I think for the investors, if you've not participated in early-stage investing, that it's a place that you could learn from others," said Josh Oeding, president and CEO of NXTUS, and founder and manager member of an angel investment syndicate called Accelerate Venture Partners. "If they've not participated in (high-risk investing) before, it would be a place to come learn and ask questions, meet some other investors, both angels and venture."
And for the entrepreneurs: "Just know that there are folks frankly from across the U.S. or locally that are investing or are trying to invest," said Oeding, who will also attend as a mentor. "And that there are groups like Groover (Labs) and others that are trying to help build bridges to more investors."
Groover Labs, a 42,000 square-foot facility at 334 N. St. Francis Ave., features a variety of work and meeting spaces, a large event venue, classrooms and a maker and prototyping space.
Tickets to each of the VC Huddle forums cost $10 and can be purchased online at grooverlabs.org/vchuddle.
