Editor’s note: Keith Washo and Mark Bavisotto are the co-founders of Startup Summit, an event series for local entrepreneurs and investors that is taking place today in Research Triangle Park. In this exclusive blog for WRAL TechWire, Bavisotto writes about what he has learned as a tech entrepreneur in the Triangle. Two future blogs will be published in the near future.
RALEIGH – Four years ago, I moved to the Triangle because my family wanted to escape the snow, but more importantly I saw the startup scene was on the cusp of exploding. My brothers have been in the area for many years and they always sent me articles on how this was one of the best places to start a business. After doing a ton of research, and presenting it to my wife, we decided that it was time to pick up and move.
When we finally settled after a couple of weeks, my mission was to figure out the quickest way possible to engrain myself within the startup ecosystem. Instead of jumping from event to event, I thought it was a lot more efficient to start my own event so I can get a bird’s eye view of what this ecosystem was all about. I hooked up with the folks at Startup Grind and we were off to the races. During my three years at Startup Grind and my newest operation Startup Summit, I’ve had an amazing view of the growth of our ecosystem.
The first person I met with when moving to the area was David Gardner. I connected with him on LinkedIn before I moved and asked if he would be willing to meet. He replied to my email in less than 24 hours and said when you get in, stop by the office. In the northeast, it’s like pulling teeth to set meetings, so I was blown away that it was this easy.
I thought the whole time before I moved, that this David Gardner character must not be who he said he was on his profile. My first week here, I emailed him and we met for the first time and I couldn’t have been more wrong about a person. From that day forward, David has been super instrumental in both the success of Startup Grind and Startup Summit.
Big names top Startup Summit lineup; event founders have plans to expand
Then, I was introduced to Todd Olson, Founder and CEO of Pendo, when they were a small startup (less than 5 people) at HQ raleigh. I came away from that conversation completely blown away by not only him as a person, but his conviction on what Pendo was going to become.
Fast forward and we are seeing first hand what Pendo is becoming. The thing that really stood out, was his willingness to help me. I was this person he has never met before, but didn’t hesitate to offer help and advice. Even with his success, he’s still answers all my emails, even though it’s a bit slower these days 🙂
Interview after interview, meeting after meeting, I saw the same thing from our ecosystem. Everyone’s willingness to help each other become successful.
https://wraltechwire.com/event/startup-summit-2019/
It doesn’t matter if you’re a first time founder or a serial entrepreneur, this ecosystem treats everyone the same. I never understood what southern hospitality meant, but if you spend one day in our area, you will quickly learn why this mentality has been the key to our explosion as a startup ecosystem. Yes, we have amazing universities, a great cost of living, and more resources than any founder would ever need, but the one thing we have that no other ecosystem has is our willingness to help each other or what we like to call Southern Hospitality.
I know it may sound cliche, but being from New York and visiting other ecosystems, our help first mentality is what sets us apart from many other regions around the country.
