1809 Capital Attends and Sponsors Redhawk 50

Last Friday, March 15th, 1809 Capital had the honor of sponsoring the inaugural Redhawk50 celebration of the 50 fastest-growing private companies around the world founded or led by former students of Miami University. It was motivating to gather with over 300 alumni, faculty, students, and supporters at Cincinnati’s historic Music Hall in support of Miami’s exceptional entrepreneur programs and DNA embedded across all majors.

The program plays an important role in identifying, engaging, and celebrating accomplished Miamians in business. It also reinforces Miami University and the John W. Altman Institute for Entrepreneurship as the “Cradle of Founders” and serves as a vehicle for Miami graduates and former students who lead these companies to pass lessons learned to the next generation of Miami entrepreneurs.

A highlight of the evening was an update from Miami University President Gregory Crawford, highlighting the entrepreneurial spirit and perseverance of the RedHawk50 honorees. We’d like to extend our congratulations to our student venture fund partner, RedHawk Ventures and three of their portfolio companies recognized at the event: OROS, Pieces for Developers, and Mad Rabbit.

Thank you to Randi Thomas, Michelle Thomas, Anthony L Longi, Jr., VaLanDria Smith-Lash, Chris Lawson, Jack Marks, and Katherine McIntosh for representing 1809 Capital, Redhawk Ventures and Fisher Innovation College@Elm at the event.

Successful Cincinnati Networking Breakfast!

On Friday Morning, March 1st, 1809 Capital continued our national venture and innovation forum series hosting an engaging morning at Union Hall in Cincinnati. The Generative Al Impact for Investors and Founders Panel dove deep into discussions on the current state of the Venture Capital Market, highlighting the essential qualities of successful founders in deep tech.

Exemplary entrepreneurship from Miami University was showcased today. A big thank you to Tim Holcomb, Department Chair of Miami’s nationally ranked undergraduate Entrepreneurship program, for his uplifting update.

Special shout out to Max Dworin at Cintrifuse Capital, Peter Schmidt at Refinery Ventures, Kevin Gusweiler at eGateway Capital, Caitlyn Truong at Zengines, Andrew Wolfe at BloomFilter, and Jeff Wilson at Soundtrace for their invaluable contributions to our panel conversation.

Speed Mentoring Day Hosted by 1809 Capital and Redhawk Ventures

Yesterday 3/12/24, we continued the Fisher Innovation College@Elm Speed #Mentoring program, a collaborative initiative co-hosted by 1809 Capital and @Redhawk Ventures. This session focused on connecting the teams of students currently enrolled in the ESP 401: New Ventures capstone course to receive tailored feedback on their business concepts prior to the RedHawk Venture Pitch Competition, in May.

Participants had the unique opportunity to engage with experienced #mentors from our #VentureCapital network, gaining invaluable advice and insights that are sure to make a significant difference on the competition day.

A huge thanks go out to all the mentors who contributed their time and expertise. Your involvement is crucial in fostering a spirit of community and learning within the Miami area.

In 2024, mentoring has continued to expand as a core Fisher Innovation College resource assisting all Miami colleges and students to explore and execute on innovation commercialization opportunities.