Andrew Yang will deliver the keynote address at Demo Day for FlashStarts, a startup accelerator training entrepreneurs on Playhouse Square.
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Jennifer Neundorfer and Charles Stack recruited a kindred spirit, Andrew Yang, to help them showcase Cleveland's newest crop of entrepreneurs.Andrew Yang, whom Fast Company magazine named one of the most creative people in business in 2012, will help introduce the work of Cleveland's newest business incubator.
The nationally renowned entrepreneur will deliver the keynote address at the first product showcase of FlashStarts, a startup accelerator training entrepreneurs in Playhouse Square.
The timing of Demo Day, Sept. 23, is auspicious. New securities regulations kick in that day designed to make it easier for young companies to attract investors. The relaxed regulatory rules are expected to boost entrepreneurism in cities like Cleveland and Akron, where venture capital can be hard to find.
Yang, 38, champions entrepreneurship as the chief executive of Venture for America, a New York City-based nonprofit group that steers enterprising young people to cities with emerging start-up cultures. It recently expanded its network to Greater Cleveland.
Yang's crusade makes him a natural choice for the debut of Demo Day, said Jennifer Neundorfer, the managing partner and co-founder of FlashStarts, upon announcing his coming appearance Tuesday morning.
"There's a lot of nice synergy between what they do and what we're doing," agreed her partner, Charles Stack.
Stack and Neundorfer, both experienced entrepreneurs, co-founded FlashStarts last fall. It joined Dan Gilbert's Bizdom and Shaker Launch House practicing the accelerator model of business development in Northeast Ohio.
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Andrew YangFlashStarts invites people with a business idea to apply for its business accelerator, which offers free office space, training, connections and modest start-up capital. This summer, 20 aspiring entrepreneurs representing 10 companies are at work at FlashStarts offices at the top of the Keith Building on Euclid Avenue.
At Demo Day, they will showcase their products and services to potential investors, fellow entrepreneurs and members of the media. The event will begin with an address by Yang, one of the emerging rock stars of the innovation economy.
A lawyer turned entrepreneur, Yang, 38, argues that too much young talent is funneled into finance and consulting jobs in a handful of cities while much of the nation thirsts for job-creating companies.
Despite an economics degree from Brown University and a law degree from Columbia, he has spent much of his career running early-stage companies. He hit the jackpot with Manhattan GMAT, a test-preparation company bought by The Washington Post Co./Kaplan in 2009.
In 2012, Yang co-founded Venture for America to try to reroute young talent from Wall Street to Main Street.
"We believe entrepreneurship is the engine of growth for our economy and our goal is to expose university graduates to the start-up world earlier on in their careers," he explained in a statement.
Venture for America selects graduates from elite colleges and trains them for jobs at start-ups. It then dispatches them to positions in cities striving to advance into the new economy.
"Cleveland has a strong and growing entrepreneurial community, which is why we're excited to expand our program there this year," Yang said.
Seven Venture for America fellows arrived in Cleveland this summer and are working for young companies.
Stack said the contribution is significant. The fellows arrive with needed skills -- having been put through a boot camp at Brown. They tend to be smart and energetic and their salaries are subsidized by Venture for America.
"So it's a pretty good deal," Stack said. "We need all the help we can get."
He expects Demo Day to showcase the potential of such entrepreneurs. The event begins at 11:30 a.m. Monday, Sept. 23 in the Westfield Theater of the Idea Center, 1375 Euclid Avenue. To request a ticket or to learn more, go to the website of FlashStarts, www.flashstarts.com/demoday.