Venture Asheville

As a statewide entrepreneurial ecosystem, we have an opportunity to come together in support of our friends in the West during this challenging time. Join Jeffrey Kaplan from Venture Asheville on Day? 2 of our #2024EcosystemSummit as he moderates the ‘The Resiliency of Western NC’ breakout session. Panelists will describe challenges the local ecosystem has faced, along with the remarkable ways they have united to rebuild and support one another. Learn what’s next for Western North Carolina and how the broader ecosystem can support its #entrepreneurs at our #2024EcosystemSummit. Reserve your ticket: ncidea.org/summit #NCIDEA #2024EcosystemSummit #ecosysteming #CharlotteNC

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation has launched the Small Business Hurricane Recovery grant program in partnership with American Express to support small businesses impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The program will provide $5 million in funding, distributing $5,000 grants to 1,000 eligible small businesses across the Southeast to support their recovery and help them build resilience against future disasters. Eligible small businesses can apply now until Sunday, November 17, 2024, at 11:59pm ET. See eligibility requirements & apply here: https://lnkd.in/dxwGq47r

We've got some exciting new offerings at our Business Recovery Center in the Asheville Visitor Center to help our local businesses bounce back from Hurricane Helene. Our Business Recovery Workspace is a FREE temporary workspace, sponsored by Lenoir-Rhyne University, available on the second floor for displaced business owners, nonprofits, and employees. ?? Open Monday-Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM through December 30th ?? Bring your laptop and take advantage of this dedicated space to keep your operations running smoothly! First come, first serve. Plus, we've added some other valuable in-person services on the first floor - Kudzu Brands & Western Women's Business Center have joined U.S. Small Business Administration, Colton Groome Financial, NC SBTDC and Mountain BizWorks to provide essential support, from marketing and financial planning to disaster loan assistance. Find out more and access all our recovery resources at https://lnkd.in/ez49xZrv. #MountainStrong #MtnStrong4Biz #BusinessRecoveryCenter #AshevilleChamber

Hurricane Helene has devastated our community—many businesses in Asheville and Buncombe County have been left in ruins, with some wiped off the map entirely. As we begin the long road to recovery, your support is more important than ever. If you’d like to help our local businesses rebuild, please consider making a donation to the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce Community Betterment Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are tax-deductible, and you will receive an email confirming the value of your donation. Donate here: https://lnkd.in/e89wqbpz or go to https://lnkd.in/e2fha8QE to find resources and a link to donate. Thank you for standing with us during this challenging time. Together, we will rebuild and restore what has been lost.

It almost goes without saying that Hurricane Helene has ravaged our community—Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, Haywood, are just a few of the counties where devastation visited. The impact on families is mind boggling. The damaged infrastructure will take years, perhaps decades to fully rebuild. So how does an entrepreneurial support foundation like Hatch respond? First, we need to provide relief and support to those immediately in front of us—our neighbors and members of the Hatch community (including those who seek our services,?volunteer and mentor for Hatch, rent space from?Hatchworks Coworking,?and those who don’t). Taking care of “our own” is not selfish but sensible. Specifically, Hatch will be working to identify needs and match those needs with resources available in the community; we will be setting up referral sites online to help people find what they need and make what they have available. Second, we need to pivot in the services we offer. We will not back off of our commitment to startups and scale ups. However, a new priority has emerged from the destruction: the need and opportunity to help existing companies survive. There is no value in starting new companies while letting those businesses already running collapse. Again, specifically, we will be building on the resource sites to match needs and solutions and we will partner even more closely with other like-minded agencies in the area to maximize support. Groups like?Venture Asheville,?Mountain BizWorks,Eagle Market Streets Development Corporation,?Black Wall Street AVL, and others can achieve more by working together, avoiding duplication, and fostering communication and collaboration as we rebuild our economic ecosystem. We will focus on what we do best—education and connection. We will source business recovery expertise (mostly online) and double down on our Founder Roundtables to provide forums for owners and leaders to share ideas, encourage each other, pool resources, and bring their businesses back. Friends, this is a historic time and historic opportunity. We are knocked down but we are not knocked out. Our region will rise and rebuild. There is a lot of work to do and we certainly don’t have all the details worked out. However, we do want to let you and the community know our direction and response. ? For more information, we encourage you to visit the Hatch site,?www.hatchinnovationhub.org?or contact us at?[email protected]. ? Sincerely, ? Mike Baer, Hatch Chair Maui Vang, CFP?, Hatch Vice Chair

We are now hosting a Business Recovery Center with the U.S. Small Business Administration at the Visitor Center (36 Montford Ave) to support businesses impacted by Hurricane Helene. Open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the center offers SBA disaster loan assistance, guidance, and resources for recovery. We’ve also added five portable toilets and handwashing stations for those in need. Walk-ins welcome! Let's rebuild together! Learn more about the recovery center and find a helpful factsheet here: https://bit.ly/4exPxG8 Just want to do it online? Head to sba.gov/hurricane-helene. #HurricaneHelene #AshevilleChamber #SBA

Want to win a $100 gift card AND improve the future of Buncombe for years to come? Share your thoughts on what you’d like to see for our economy and jobs in Buncombe County. Take our Community Survey and enter our drawing for a $100 gift card. Your input will help us update our AVL 5x5 strategies that will steer economic development for the coming five years. Learn more & take the survey: https://bit.ly/3XsmpZs

We have so many events next week during Asheville Entrepreneurship Week. But only one feature's The Onion's Jordan LaFlure and Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams/Amok Consumer Growth Fund's John Lowe. This is an event you do not want to miss! https://lnkd.in/gkybg6Es

Join us on Wednesday for the Fall NC IDEA Grant info session and find out how to win $10K and $50K non-dilutive grants. https://lnkd.in/eMN_Udyt

7 days left to support Hippo Pottery - a social venture from one of our mentors, Ian Randall https://lnkd.in/gaRxkK-w