Teens interested in running their own business someday will have the opportunity to interact with two of Colorado’s most influential business leaders and two up-and-coming entrepreneurs through the Colorado Business Hall of Fame Summit, a virtual Q&A produced by Junior Achievement Rocky Mountain, the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce and Techstars. The event will be moderated by Denver7’s Brian Sanders.
Two past inductees of the Colorado Business Hall of Fame, which has honored Colorado business leaders since 1990, will be answering questions from teens interested in entrepreneurship:
· Jim Johnson is president & CEO of G.E. Johnson, which was founded by Jim’s father, Gil. Through the years, G.E. Johnson has either built, expanded or renovated all or portions of some of the highest profile structures in Colorado Springs, including The Broadmoor, World Arena, Pikes Peak Center, Pikes Peak Community College, Fountain Valley School, Air Force Academy, Penrose Hospital and El Paso County Justice Center.
· Larry Kendall is a founding partner of the Fort-Collins-based real estate firm, The Group, Inc. Additionally, he is co-creator of the Ninja Selling System, used by more than 80,000 real estate and other sales professionals worldwide. His book, Ninja Selling: Subtle Skills. Big Results. was an Amazon best seller and number one new release in its first week.
They will be joined by two Gen Z entrepreneurs from Colorado who are poised to make a big impact.
· David Potter is CEO and co-founder of Curu, a company setting out to make financial products more accessible to underrepresented applicants by creating a more inclusive credit system. The inspiration for his company came when he and his roommate kept getting rejected from student apartment complexes because they did not have established credit.
· Alana Vaughn Phillips is co-founder & chief development officer of BobaVida, the first and only producer of popping boba in the Americas using healthy, clean and responsibly sourced ingredients. She is also head of strategic partnerships at Go! Running Tours, which provides guided running tours in cities all over the world.
Through the Colorado Business Hall of Fame, Junior Achievement and the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce pay tribute to Colorado's most distinguished business leaders for their commitment to and investment in the community. Colorado Business Hall of Fame laureates are part of a league of outstanding individuals who have experienced a lifetime of business success and have set powerful examples for others to follow.
“During this virtual time in our lives, a new partnership with the company Techstars is giving us a way to share with teens the legendary stories of Hall of Fame inductees as well as entrepreneurs who were in these students’ shoes not long ago,” said Junior Achievement Rocky Mountain President and CEO Robin Wise. “We think this event will fuel their desire to innovate and give them optimism for the future.”
The Colorado Business Hall of Fame Summit will be available on the Denver7 streaming app – available by searching “Denver7” on your Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple TV or Android device -- beginning on Feb. 15. Teens who are interested in participating in the event can register for free at www.jacolorado.org/e-summit.
About Junior Achievement Rocky Mountain
Junior Achievement prepares young people to thrive in the 21st century workplace and global economy by inspiring a passion in free enterprise and entrepreneurship and instilling an understanding of personal financial literacy. On average, Junior Achievement programs serve 100,000 students annually in Colorado and Wyoming. These programs are always free to schools thanks to 6,000 volunteers and the generous support of donors. For more information, visit www.JAColorado.org.
About the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce For more than 150 years, the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce has been a leading voice for Colorado’s business community. With a membership that spans the state and includes 3,000 businesses and their 300,000 employees, the Chamber is an effective advocate for small and large businesses. For more information, visit www.denverchamber.org.
About Techstars
The Techstars worldwide network helps entrepreneurs succeed. Founded in 2006, Techstars began with three simple ideas — entrepreneurs create a better future for everyone, collaboration drives innovation, and great ideas can come from anywhere. Now they are on a mission to enable every person on the planet to contribute to, and benefit from, the success of entrepreneurs. In addition to operating accelerator programs and venture capital funds, they do this by connecting startups, investors, corporations, and cities to help build thriving startup communities. Techstars has invested in more than 2,300 companies that today have a combined market cap valuation of more than $185 billion.