by First Avenue Ventures | Oct 27, 2022 | 2022, Advising, Alabama, Birmingham, Economic Development, Entrepreneurialism, Life Science Fund, Start-Ups, Technology
First Avenue Ventures proudly received the 2022 Innovation Award for Community Partnership of the Year. The Innovation Awards, given by the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Bill L. Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (HIIE), recognize UAB...
by Mike Goodrich | Sep 29, 2022 | 2022, Business Lessons, Entrepreneurialism, Founders, Mission-Driven Businesses, Social Capital and Social Entrepreneurialism, Social Capital Series
Social capital is a topic I have spent a lot of time with, both in my writing on this blog and website and in my own thinking. One pivotal moment for me was the SOCAP Conference in San Francisco, which is coming back in person this year (though I unfortunately will...
by First Avenue Ventures | Aug 3, 2022 | 2022, Alabama, Birmingham, Birmingham Funded Start-Ups List, Economic Development, Entrepreneurialism, Start-Ups, World Games
The best analogy that I have for start-ups and early stage companies in this time of tumultuous public markets is one of a submarine. A start-up shares the key benefit of being able to float beneath the surface — unaware and, to an extent, untroubled by the...
by First Avenue Ventures | Jul 19, 2022 | 2022, Birmingham, Business Lessons, Competition, Entrepreneurialism, Founders, Marketing, Podcast, Sales, Small and Medium-Sized Businesses, Start-Ups, The Structured Start-Up Podcast
The fifth and final episode of The Structured Start-Up Podcast is all about the competitive landscape. For this episode, we turned to Lee Ross, the CEO of SlateXP, a Birmingham-based student safety software company. Ross has successfully launched two companies in...
by First Avenue Ventures | Jun 28, 2022 | 2022, Birmingham, Business Lessons, Entrepreneurialism, Football, Founders, Marketing, Podcast, Sales, Small and Medium-Sized Businesses, Start-Ups, The Structured Start-Up Podcast
The fourth episode of The Structured Start-Up podcast focuses on the importance of finding your entrepreneurial story. As Mike Goodrich, the principal of First Avenue Ventures, says, “If you don’t have a compelling narrative that people will buy into, your...
by First Avenue Ventures | Jun 23, 2022 | 2022, Alabama, Birmingham, Business Lessons, COVID-19, Entrepreneurialism, Founders, Small and Medium-Sized Businesses, Start-Ups, World Games
“And you may ask yourself, ‘Well, how did I get here?'”– The Talking Heads, “Once in a Lifetime” As Randall Woodfin and Protective Stadium get ready to welcome the world to Birmingham, we need to to remember that the journey towards...
by First Avenue Ventures | Jun 7, 2022 | 2022, Advising, Alabama, Birmingham, Business Lessons, Entrepreneurialism, Founders, Marketing, Podcast, Sales, Small and Medium-Sized Businesses, Start-Ups, The Structured Start-Up Podcast
We were lucky to have the opportunity to speak with Jeff Gale of TicketBiscuit for The Structured Start-Up podcast. Drawing on his experience building a successful full-service ticketing company, Gale shared his tips for marketing, growth hacking, and other sales...
by Mike Goodrich | May 18, 2022 | 2022, Advising, Birmingham, Business Lessons, Entrepreneurialism, Founders, Marketing, Revenue, Sales, Small and Medium-Sized Businesses, Start-Ups, The Structured Start-Up Podcast, World Games
Blog 2 of 2 (unless I can work in a Sumo Wrestling or Drone Racing analogy) I recently had two entrepreneurs share with me that they are considering and under consideration for selling their wares at the World Games. I gave one an enthusiastic thumbs up, as it was an...
by Mike Goodrich | Apr 27, 2022 | 2022, Birmingham, Business Lessons, Entrepreneurialism, Start-Ups, World Games
If you follow this blog, you know I love an analogy: a story that helps provide context and, hopefully, clarity for those in, on, and around the entrepreneurial journey. You probably also know that I love Birmingham — all of it, the good, bad, and ugly – and...
by Mike Goodrich | Apr 13, 2022 | 2022, Alabama, Birmingham, Economic Development, Entrepreneurialism, Legislation
Business blogs and LinkedIn are places for business discussion, and I respect that. So without comment on the merits of HB 322 (Alabama’s version of the “Don’t Say Gay Bill”), which was recently signed into law by Governor Ivey, I ask: 1. ...
