MORTAR winner wants to help single moms
(Don’t miss our full photo gallery below! Credit: Meghan Meeker) On November 30, eight entrepreneurs walked the stage at Bounce to graduate from our 15-week MORTAR at Bounce business accelerator program. Five of the grads also competed in the Life’s a Pitch! competition for $3,000. Helping Single Moms Markia Sims, owner and founder of Zoe […]
Local Podcasting Network Provides Outlet for Akron’s Black Voices
Podcasting has become one of the most popular ways for individuals to share their passions. Whether discussing relationships, politics, sports or music, podcasting is everywhere. Currently, there are over two million podcasts and more than 48 million podcast episodes. This growing medium inspired Ace Epps, director of inclusive entrepreneurship at Bounce Innovation Hub, to develop […]
MORTAR Pitch Winner is Maker of Artisanal Treats
On Aug. 3, seven entrepreneurs from MORTAR at Bounce cohort 4 graduated and competed in the Life’s a Pitch competition for $3,000. Everyone truly raised the bar and delivered incredible pitches. In the end, congratulations goes to Jacqueline Achadu from Hunny Bunnys Confections. Congratulations are also in order for Lori Julien of Marigold Sol who […]
GROW Spotlight: LaQuata Williams, Owner, White Glove Cleaning
LaQuata Williams tapped into the invaluable resources at Bounce Innovation Hub when she was starting her business—White Glove Cleaning Solutions, LLC, that provides residential and commercial cleaning and sanitary services. Now White Glove is part of the Next Level Incubator for established small businesses, part of the GROW program at Bounce. The company is also […]
GROW Spotlight: Scott Roger, owner, Picked Proteins
Scott Roger had an idea for a plant-based food company; as a vegan, he understood the struggle to find delicious, natural and fulfilling meat substitutes that weren’t overly processed. His wife, Meghan, suggested he check out Bounce’s Aspiring Entrepreneur program and from that, Picked Proteins was born. Scott says the AE program was instrumental in […]
GROW Spotlight: Billy Taylor, CEO, LinkedXL
Billy Taylor, CEO of LinkedXL has found at Bounce much more than a space to rent an office and conference rooms. LinkedXL is involved with two programs at Bounce – the GROW Next Level Incubator and the Software Accelerator. At Bounce, Billy has discovered a network of people and resources to help him with fundamental […]
Plant-based ice cream entrepreneur wins MORTAR pitch competition
Denise Williams, owner and founder of Diva De La Creme plant-based ice cream company, was the big winner at the MORTAR at Bounce Life’s a Pitch event on April 20. Our finalists presented their pitches to five judges in pursuit of a $3,000 business grant. The pitch competition and graduation ceremony was held in person […]
History of Black entrepreneurship inspires GROW program
For Black people living in the Mississippi Delta in the late 1950s, the prospects of work were limited, so many worked long, hot days in the cotton fields. One man, Cleve Mormon, had another idea – selling ice to those toiling under the hot sun. In solving this simple problem, Mormon became an unlikely – […]
Entrepreneur turns passion into growing artisanal food company
Tanya Green, who founded Julia Belles’ Seasonings in 2015, admits that she didn’t follow the usual path of starting a new business. “I had products and a customer base before I had business and marketing plans or a logo and product packaging,” she said. Green, who works full-time as a new product development researcher, has […]