Welcome to the Refinery Ventures Newsletter! We’re excited to bring you an invitation to join us at Startup Cincy Week and a recap of some of our recent events. You’ll also find the latest updates on our team and portfolio companies. Enjoy this month’s edition!
Hosting Two Events for the Upcoming Startup Cincy Week!
Growing our Region Through Culture Discussion
Thursday, October 10th, 2024 | 1PM | Washington Park
Join us for an inspiring session on what growth looks like for Cincinnati. We believe that the best way to build Cincinnati is through culture and we’re excited to bring together leaders across our community to hear their view on leadership and culture. Tim will be joined by Kristen Schlotman of Film Cincinnati, Chad Munitz of FC Cincinnati, Dan Reynolds of Blink, and Natasha Williams of BLK Wine Fest. Come connect with us, enjoy a drink, and engage in meaningful conversations about growth and community.
Hypergrowth Panel
Tuesday, October 8th, 2024 | 3PM | Union Hall
We are bringing together three of our X15 hypergrowth leaders to help entrepreneurs understand hypergrowth and equip them with the leadership skills needed to drive it by sharing personal anecdotes and lessons of their hypergrowth experience. We are looking forward to having Sean Morris, Zachary Hensley, Kyle Grimslid share their insights.
Refinery on the Move
Our team was busy traveling around the country in September. Peter went to NYC to present at Coolwater Captial’s Demo Day, and had a great time sharing Refinery’s values. Tim traveled to Milwaukee for the + Venture North Conference hosted by NVNG Investment Advisors, some fun with the second annual Innovators Jam, and dinner with Top Chef Omar Shaikh. In Chicago, Peter partook in the largest annual gathering of VCs in the Midwest at the M25 Summit. Tim joined up with friends in Detroit for Michigan Tech Week and UnDemo Day with Renaissance Venture Capital.
Catch them next as they travel to Dallas (Oct. 15-17th), Nashville (Oct. 22-23rd), Pittsburgh (Oct. 29-30th) and the Bay Area (Nov. 7) this month.
Founders + Funders Event
Tim and Peter enjoyed attending the University of Cincinnati Center for Entrepreneurship’s second annual Founders + Funders event. Peter graduated from UC in 2015 with degrees in Finance and Economics, and Tim is a proud Bearcat Dad. The event brought together the entrepreneurial ecosystem for stimulating discussions around Health Tech, Unicorn Building, Branding, and more. Tim led a discussion about the changing landscape of venture capital with Byron Hill, Partner of Silicon Valley Social Ventures, Elizabeth Edwards, Founder and Managing Partner of H Venture Partners, and Chris Hjelm, General Partner and Head of Venture Investments for Connetic Ventures.
Welcoming our Fall 2024 Interns!
Welcome Riley!
Content Marketing Intern
Riley Higgins is a third-year University of Cincinnati student from Liberty Township, Ohio. She is currently studying Marketing and Operations Management with a minor in Spanish. Joining the Refinery team, she is excited to dive into the venture world and build the Refinery brand.
Welcome Martine!
Financial Analyst Intern
Martine Hue is a third-year University of Cincinnati student from Cincinnati majoring in Finance and Marketing. This fall, she is looking forward to coming back for her second rotation at Refinery to continue learning about the startup ecosystem and aid in all things deal flow.
Forbes 30 Under 30 Dinner
On September 23rd, Refinery partnered with JobsOhio for an exclusive salon dinner curated with a bourbon tasting experience for the Forbes 30 under 30 listers.
Hypergrowth leader Raf Garcia joined Tim and Patrick to dive into critical topics like constructing a support network and generating a vision for the future. They discussed the traps of letting the fluctuations of growth dictate short-term culture changes. Both shared their experiences facing adversity across people management, and the culture impact those challenges have on short and long term goals. Their experience emphasized how important it is to surround yourself with growth minded peers and mentors who can be a sounding board in a meaningful way.
News Across the Portfolio
Astro Observe Announced
Astronomer announced their new product, Astro Observe, that provides unified full-stack data orchestration and observability.
Carahsoft Partnership for Public Sector
Portal26 announced a new partnership with Carahsoft, a government IT solutions provider, to make GenAI risk mitigation widely available to the Public Sector.
Featured in FinTech Magazine
TealBook was recently featured in FinTech Magazine being highlighted as “The Trusted Source of AI-Driven Supplier Data.”
Launched New Nano Drone
Vantage Robotics has released their new nano drone, Trace, designed to meet the pressing needs of national security, law enforcement, and critical infrastructure management.
