Covenant College

Co-Founder / Director, Chattanooga FC

One of a handful of co-founders for Chattanooga FC...proud to say we are one of the most successful clubs in US soccer history (and we are just getting started!). One national championship, seven Southeast Conference championships and four NPSL runner ups in ten seasons.Chattanooga FC has joined the professional ranks of soccer in the US and will play the 2020 season in the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA). We are also the first club in the US to offer our supporters the opportunity to own stock directly in the club!

Chattanooga Football Club

Co-Founder / Director

Blank Slate Ventures is a seed fund designed specifically for pre-revenue startups in the Chattanooga region. We are looking to invest in teams of entrepreneurs who are building companies that have the potential to disrupt their respective industries. In June 2011, Blank Slate Ventures Fund 1's first investment was made in Quickcue, LLC. We helped the founder take his idea "off of a napkin" and turn it into a real business. In December 2013, Quickcue was sold to OpenTable, Inc. We are fully invested at this point and are not looking for any additional investments.

Blank Slate Ventures

Director

Our team at CO.LAB, led by Enoch Elwell and Rebekah Marr, created CO.STARTERS as an answer to the emerging needs of creative entrepreneurs and small business owners in Chattanooga. We took the best of what we had learned from building a strong startup community in our city, and combined it with the best of the high growth startup methodologies that have changed the way the world views business. By packaging up these proven tools in a simple and intuitive way, CO.STARTERS makes the best resources and processes out there accessible to grassroots local leaders, equipping them to support a diverse group of starters in communities everywhere. We're taking the best of the high growth startup world, stripping out the MBA-speak, and giving it to small business. The big vision? We're providing a platform for communities to build the strongest support network for local small businesses to thrive, and to connect these innovative community leaders in a way that gives them access to the best people, practices, and processes that exist, improving their personal lives, providing an outlet for local starters to share their passions, making their communities thrive.

CO.STARTERS

Co-Founder

Very

In August of 2017, ReadyCart was acquired by Grapevine Logic. We are really excited about Grapevine's leadership and vision for helping creators! Looking forward to seeing how they leverage what we built to now help build their business.

ReadyCart (acquired by Grapevine Inc.)

Co-Founder / Head of Product

Helping start new companies in Chattanooga on the largest gigabit fiber optic network in the US. We've worked with companies in connected health, manufacturing, gaming and retail as well as many other industries.

GIGTANK

SupplyHog Inc. (acquired)

Board of Directors

Quickcue was acquired by OpenTable in December 2013!I had the chance to work with Founder Aaron Welch from before day one to help him envision the concept in April 2011 and convinced him to work on the prototype at 48Hour Launch in Chattanooga. In June 2011, Blank Slate Ventures invested $100,000 and quickcue was born. Over the first four months, I worked every day with Aaron to focus on getting validation from his customers. In September of 2011, I introduced Aaron to Bo Ferger, who became the quickcue CEO only a couple months later. Soon after that, we put together a $2.7 million round to begin to build the product and launch sales efforts.Honored to have played a role in this company from the beginning. It's one of the best teams ever assembled in Chattanooga.

Quickcue (acquired by OpenTable)

We help entrepreneurs and innovators figure out their next steps and ultimately get their venture off the ground. As of December 31st, 2013, I am no longer working in a day-to-day role at The Company Lab, though I will always be the founder and they can't get rid of me. :)

Sheldon Grizzle