Congratulations to Capacitech Energy LLC for receiving 2^nd Place at the Florida Venture Forum (2019). Founded by CEO, Joe Sleppy, Capacitech Energy is an Orlando-based company that specializes in advanced energy storage technology. Capacitech Energy’s cable-based capacitor technology (CBC) is an energy storage component that is unique because it looks like a wire and stores energy. The CBC can be customized, giving it an exclusive value. Capacitech Energy was one of three Orlando-based companies to participate in this year’s Florida Venture Forum. This was their second consecutive year of participating.

The Florida Venture Forum is the largest statewide support organization for entrepreneurs and investors in Florida. It helps growing companies to connect with investors and sources of capital from all around the country.

We received an update from local food entrepreneur Jesse Wolfe this evening, which can be seen below. It is great to see how he and his business, O’Dang Hummus, is progressing.

Several months back Jesse sat down with Josh Wilson, our podcast host for an interview that you don’t want to miss. During this podcast Jesse shared his experience starting and scaling his business, his pitch on ABC’s SharkTank, and the lessons learned throughout his entrepreneurial journey.

April 17th, 2019 update via Jesse Wolfe

Monday I had the absolute honor of speaking at the 2019 Walmart Pre-Open Call Summit.

Just two short years ago I filled out the application for Walmart Open Call, and was selected to Pitch O’Dang to their team. That event changed everything, and allowed us to become one of the fastest growing food companies in the world today. Getting to speak and give back to fellow entrepreneurs embarking on the journey was absolutely incredible, and truly humbling.

Thanks to Walmart for being such an awesome partner for small business.

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My $.02s

It has been great to see Jesse and O’Dang Hummus progress. They’ve come a very long way from pitching O’dang at the UCF Business Plan Competition many years ago as a student, to landing a deal on SharkTank, getting into Walmart…and now being asked to share his lessons and journey with Walmart with other hopeful and aspiring entrepreneurs.

Keep rocking Jesse! We’re proud of you – David Brim

We are excited to share that local energy startup Capacitech has received funding from Varnadore Financial.

We received word about this funding from Joe Sleppy, CEO of Capacitech Energy, and learned more from a press release published on the UCF Incubator website (content included below).

Congrats Joe and team! Keep rocking and making Orlando proud.

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Orlando, Fla. (April 10, 2019) – As Orlando’s Capacitech Energy looks to scale its wire-shaped capacitor innovation, the firm has entered into a partnership with Varnadore Financial to expand its company.

Varnadore has provided funding for Capacitech. This will enable the company to nearly quadruple production.

“Establishing manufacturing is one of the largest remaining bottlenecks for the company to start manufacturing our innovation and generating revenue” says Joe Sleppy, CEO, Capacitech Energy. “Plus, we are very excited to expand our operations in Central Florida, helping us work with more local partners and build the infrastructure to support manufacturing jobs in the near future.”

Capacitech will be using RTP Systems in Melbourne to build the equipment and tools needed for the expansion. It will be housed in Orlando’s Sisom Thin Films, which is building prototypes, and KCP Products for manufacturing. Sisom and RTP Systems will also be supplying the raw materials.

Varnadore was formed in 2011 as a small-business consulting and accounting firm. In 2016, it increased its services to also be a private equity investment firm. It is owned by David and Seth Varnadore , who are father and son.

“When Capacitech came to our attention, we were immediately interested, because it is an exciting startup with forward thinking ambition,” says Seth Varnadore , founder, Varnadore Financial. “Once we met Joe Sleppy and his management team, we knew we wanted to be involved with Capacitech and we look forward to a long, productive relationship with Joe and his team.”

Capacitech Energy was formed to bring the development of a cable-based Capacitor to market. That technology was developed at the University of Central Florida in 2014.

There are many applications for this technology. Capacitech is currently focused on building the cable-based capacitor inside DC power cords to help batteries in solar power systems and IT backup power systems last longer. It can also help miniaturize electronics and could greatly enhance the energy, automotive, healthcare and IT industries.

Once brought to market, the National Science Foundation calls the technology transformative.

“Adding energy storage capability to these cables is transformative and has the potential to be employed in a myriad of electrical and electronic applications,” the National Science Foundation wrote in its abstract of a recent grant award.

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For more information media should contact –

Joe Sleppy, CEO, Capacitech Energy, 727-434-1229, joe.sleppy@capacitechenergy.com

Carol Ann Dykes Logue, Site Manager, UCF Business Incubation Program, 407-207-7426, Carolann.dykeslogue@ucf.edu

Alan Byrd, Alan Byrd & Associates, 407-415-8470, Alan@ByrdConnections.com

About Capacitech Energy: Capacitech is bringing a new type of capacitor to market. This capacitor, unlike traditional capacitors, is shaped like a wire rather than a soda can. This unique form factor has a plethora of advantages. Most significantly, its thin and flexile nature gives way to embed Capacitech’s Cable-Based Capacitor (CBC) inside power cords. This enables Capacitech’s customers to build capacitive, high-power density energy storage into the infrastructure of systems to improve power quality and complement batteries up without needing to change circuit designs. We are initially targeting the residential solar power market and will scale to IT backup power systems, EVs, wind turbines, and more in the future.  For more information, visit capacitechenergy.com

About the UCF Business Incubation Program: The University of Central Florida Business Incubation Program is a community resource that provides early-stage companies with the tools, training and infrastructure to become financially stable, high growth/impact enterprises. Since 1999, this award-winning program has helped over 390 local startup companies reach their potential faster by providing vital business development resources.

With seven facilities throughout the region, the UCF Business Incubation Program is an economic development partnership between the University of Central Florida, the Corridor, Orange, Osceola, Seminole and Volusia counties, and the cities of Apopka, Kissimmee, Orlando and Winter Springs. For the 2016/17 and 2017 /18 fiscal years, the activities of these participating firms have helped sustain more than 6,275 local jobs and have had a cumulative impact of more than $888 million on regional GDP and more than $1.59 billion on regional sales. During the same period, the program has returned $12.03 for every $1 invested in the program. For more information, visit www.incubator.ucf.edu

Senior Rafaela Frota developed the idea for Wawwe, Inc. (We Are What We Eat) when she was 14. Now she’s achieved major praise for her nutrition-assistance app .

Source: today.ucf.edu

My $.02s…

Big props to WAWWE for winning the 2019 JOUST new venture competition. UCF is one of the largest Universities in the country. Winning this competition is a great testimony to the potential viability of the idea, your plan and the traction you’ve had to date.

I am very familiar with UCF’s JOUST. While I was a student I won the competition twice (2007 & 2008). To date I am the only two time winner! I have also judged the JOUST competition numerous times and have been a screener / judge for the submissions for the last few years.
BIG props to WAWWE, which stands for “We are What We Eat” and their founder Rafaela for taking home first place and $12,000.

CEO Quick Pitch: “When it comes to nutrition, what to eat and what not to eat, many people are very lacking in awareness,” says Frota, a photonic science and engineering major in her senior year. “The hope is that Wawwe can be a tool to help navigate that. Whether it’s a recent diagnosis or a dietary choice, people can use Wawwe as a tool to help find something to eat without having to do extensive research.”

I’m excited to see the great things that you continue to do with this momentum.
Keep rocking Rafaela! Congratulations.
DB

Orlando, Fla. – March 25, 2019 – PlanSource, a leading provider of cloud-based benefits administration technology, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Vista Equity Partners (Vista), a leading investment firm focused on enterprise software, data and technology-enabled businesses. Vista partners with management teams to foster operational excellence, paving the way for sustainable growth opportunities, innovation and impact in the markets they serve. Vista’s acquisition of PlanSource marks the beginning of a new phase of growth for the software provider.

Source: plansource.com

My $.02s:

A big congratulations goes out to the PlanSource team for their recent exit.

You are a shining example to other local entrepreneurs on what is possible if you have the right idea, team and execution.

We look forward to connecting with you and your team to share your story in the upcoming weeks. There are a lot of lessons you have learned through your journey from start, to scale, to exit, that can inspire the next round of successful Orlando Entrepreneurs. You are an inspiration.

Well done!

David

By Marco Santana

The traveling road show that will come through Orlando this month and reward tech startup with $100,000 has named the eight finalists that will vie for the prize.

Officials with former AOL CEO Steve Case’s “Rise of the Rest” tour, so-named because of Case’s belief that the next big tech company won’t necessarily come from Silicon Valley, released the names Tuesday.

Read more of the Original Article on the Orlando Sentinel website.

Source: www.orlandosentinel.com

My $.02s

Steve Case’s Rise of the Rest competition is a great way for investors outside of Orlando, as well as non-traditional startup investors, to see that Orlando truly has investable companies worth scaling and celebrating.  There has been a lot of energy surrounding the competition and we are looking forward to seeing each company represent Central Florida as they duel for dollars.

Our community is also excited to learn the 8 companies selected out of 150+ that applied.

A Big congratulations goes out to Orlando’s Elite 8:

• AireHealth: Drug delivery for respiratory illnesses through a portable and connected nebulizer.
• Alertgy: The company has developed a blood-glucose monitor and alert system.
• Doghead Simulations: The company’s Rumii platform is a social VR product that conducts virtual meetings in a simulated 3D environment.
• Edukate: Financial wellness platform has personalized guidance and benefits information.
•  FleetZoo: A platform for vehicle fleet owners to track their assets.
•  InitWeather: Using artificial intelligence, InitWeather has developed weather forecasting products for the energy and finance industries.
• Millebot: This company specializes in large-scale 3D printing for on-demand production.
•  Pangian: An AI-powered social network for telecommuters.

Good luck everyone!

Your success is the communities success as well. Keep rocking!

David Brim

GuideWell Innovation is pleased to announce that Kirstie McCool-Chadwick has joined the organization as Executive Director. Kirstie’s role will be to connect Florida’s health and wellness entrepreneurial ecosystems into the state’s health care spectrum, and to lead the award-winning GuideWell Innovation Center in Lake Nona, Fla. The GuideWell Innovation Center, which opened in 2016, is nationally recognized as an industry leading health innovation hub for entrepreneurs. Kirstie’s focus will be to expand GuideWell Innovation’s strategic partnerships, design and execute curated programs for entrepreneurs in the health and wellness sectors, engage industry stakeholders, and advance a state-wide network that connects health innovators and stakeholders.

Before joining GuideWell Innovation, Kirstie served as the President and CEO of the International Business Innovation Association (InBIA), a non-profit serving over 600 business incubators, technology accelerators and entrepreneurial economic development organizations in over 60 countries. Kirstie was also the Executive Director of two Florida-based technology accelerators, Starter Studio and Igniting Innovation, that collectively mentored more than 150 companies that have since raised over $60 million in equity capital. She also led four Central Florida collaborations that resulted in over $7 million in operational funding for high impact entrepreneurship hubs across Central Florida that include Starter Studio, Tampa Bay Wave and UCF’s Maker Space.

Kirstie was founding director of Startup Florida under President Obama’s Startup America initiative, and was the Director of the University of Central Florida’s Venture Lab, where she facilitated the spin-out of several technology companies based on faculty inventions, and mentored hundreds of local entrepreneurs. Kirstie also served as the Executive Director of the Winter Park Angels, and was the co-founder and CEO of DigitalOwl where she raised over $13 million in venture capital.

Kirstie was the recipient of the Orlando Business Journal’s Women Who Mean Business Award, the Working Woman Entrepreneurial Excellence Award, and the Dr. W. Judson King Entrepreneurship Memorial Award. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BS in Computer Science from the University of Central Florida (UCF), and holds an MBA from UCF.

“We are very excited to have Kirstie join GuideWell. She brings passion and broad experience in creating high impact entrepreneurial programs and ecosystems, and will leverage this expertise to help develop high-growth health tech companies across Florida,” said Tamara StClaire, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at GuideWell. “Kirstie’s start-up wisdom and industry track record in accelerating early-stage companies will be invaluable, and she is passionate about providing entrepreneurs with programs and resources to help them build impactful companies that serve today’s complex health industry.”

About GuideWell Innovation

GuideWell Innovation, a subsidiary of GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation (GuideWell), drives collaborative innovation for the family of forward-thinking companies that make up GuideWell. Headquartered in OrlandoLake Nona Medical City at the GuideWell Innovation CoRE (Collaborative Resources Ecosystem), GuideWell Innovation focuses on transforming the health system into a more integral and useful part of people’s everyday lives by fast tracking the delivery of next-generation health solutions. For more information, visit GuideWellInnovation.com.

Nintex, which develops an intelligent automation suite used by more than 8,000 clients across 90 countries, today announced that it has acquired Orlando, Florida-based robotic process automation (RPA) provider EnableSoft for an undisclosed sum.

Foxtrot’s roughly 20-person workforce will join the Nintex team “as quickly as possible,” Nintex CEO Eric Johnson said, bringing the latter to over 500 employees globally.

“Acquiring EnableSoft … delivers on Nintex’s strategic plan for offering the industry’s most complete process platform to manage, automate, and optimize business processes across all departments and industries,” he said, adding that he expects the deal will help Nintex’s revenue top $150 million this calendar year. “[It] aligns perfectly with our product design principles: to make solutions that are powerful and easy-to-use, drive fast time-to-value, lowest total cost of ownership, and incredible satisfaction.”

Source: venturebeat.com

My $.02s…

I am very pleased to hear about the acquisition by Nintex.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Richard, the CEO of EnableSoft, and his family for years. He is an exceptional guy and very down to earth. He has a lot of wisdom to share, some of which he did through a recent interview on our Orlando Entrepreneurs Podcast.

Congratulations Richard and team!

Way to inspire so many of our local entrepreneurs and make Orlando proud.

DB

Orlando’s startup community received a boost Friday in its effort to shift the city’s business image from one that highlights tourism into one known more for technology.

Former America Online CEO and Chairman Steve Case announced that he had chosen Orlando as the kickoff location for the latest version of his Rise of the Rest five-city tour, which awards $100,000 to a startup at each stop.

The eighth tour, which includes stops in Orlando, Tampa, Miami, the Space Coast and San Juan, Puerto Rico launches April 29.

“We want to reposition [Orlando] as not just about hospitality and Disney but also about building businesses and startups,” said Case, who has been leading his Rise of the Rest tour since 2014. “There is a lot of excitement but it needs a catalyst to get more people investing.”

Source: www.orlandosentinel.com

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My $.02s…

I am very excited that Steve Case has recognized Orlando’s startup community to be one worthy of attention and investment. Orlando does have investment-worthy startups and has been able to attract investors, even though many of these investments often go unnoticed by the media and general public. I’m noticing an increase in attention overall, even though we still have a long way to go to catch up to Silicon Valley, Boston, Atlanta, or even Miami.

The press that the Rise of the Rest initiative, organized by the former CEO of AOL Steve Case, has been able to attract locally also is great for our startup ecosystem. It shows other investors that may be conditioned to focus on other asset classes that a highly respected national business figure does indeed see Orlando’s startup community as a viable and fertile location for investment.
I’m looking forward to seeing the pitch contests and what company will earn the $100k investment.

Keep rocking Orlando! Onward and upward.
Cheers,
David