Yearly Archives - 2020

September 17By Comments OffRead more...

Early Stage Investments in Tarrant County at the Municipal Level

In this blog we're going to take a look at all the early stage investment deals in Tarrant County since 2015, including a breakdown at the individual municipality (town or city) level. While most of our prior data-heavy blog posts have focused on Fort Worth as a city and how it compares to fellow Texas cities, this time around we wanted to look locally, at the greater Fort Worth area: Tarrant County. There are 41 Tarrant County municipalities stretching from Keller, to White Settlement, to Burleson, to Arlington, and everywhere in between. Tarrant County’s estimated 2020 population is...

September 8By Comments OffRead more...

What I Learned This Summer

I will forever be grateful for all the experience I gained, the knowledge I attained, the connections I found, and the memories I made. In honor of my departure, I wanted to share a few things I’ve learned throughout my time the past few months.

August 11By Comments OffRead more...

Innovator Spotlight: Kari Crowe-Seher of Melt Ice Creams

A new episode of the Innovate Fort Worth podcast dropped last Tuesday with Kari Crowe-Seher, the founder of Melt Ice Creams. Most everyone likes, and dare I say, loves ice cream. Most people would also agree that eating ice cream brings them a certain amount of happiness. Kari Crowe-Seher has used these common sentiments to form the backbone of her business and even took it a step further, creating the mission statement “To serve happy ice cream” to reflect it. I could try to explain just how passionate Kari is about this idea of spreading joy with her product, but...

August 5By Comments OffRead more...

10 Things You Should Know About Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship. It's a big, scary word that's impossible to spell correctly. What does it mean? According to the Oxford dictionary, it means “ the activity of setting up a business”, but entrepreneurship, and being an entrepreneur means a lot more than that. Read more to learn about 10 things you should know about entrepreneurship. 1. You need to pursue something you are passionate about. Being an entrepreneur is a lot of hard work. And some days, you’ll want to quit, throw in the towel. That is why it is so important to find something you are passionate about. It will keep you motivated...

July 28By Comments OffRead more...

Innovator Spotlight: Goran Krndija and Gabe Deale of Gozova

A new episode of the Innovate Fort Worth podcast dropped last Tuesday with guests Goran Krndija, Founder and CEO of Gozova, and Gabe Deale, COO. What is Gozova? Gozova is not your typical hauling and delivery service. Instead of overpaying for a professional moving service or dealing with the hassle of doing it yourself, Gozova provides a simple alternative solution: “A truck when you need it.” Whether you need to put a few items into storage, move from residence to residence, or even deliver a large item from store to home, Gozova...

July 23By Comments OffRead more...

Texas Startup Indicators: How does Fort Worth Compare?

Over the past few months, we have been compiling data from PitchBook, a proprietary research tool that focuses on early stage investment data, and turning that data into charts that help showcase Fort Worth’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here are seven thousand. These charts paint a rather solemn picture of Fort Worth’s current startup landscape, as Cowtown ranks last in all categories when compared to other large Texas cities. Just because Fort Worth is currently lagging behind doesn’t mean we have to stay behind. The real failure would be for...

July 16By Comments OffRead more...

A Conversation with Local Artist-Entrepreneur CHoKe, Part 2

Part 2: Social Justice

This conservation is the second of a two part series with the Fort Worth-based artist CHoKe. Check out Part 1 here. In our last conversation, CHoKe talked about her humble beginnings, from selling candy and customized clothes to her classmates, to hustling on the streets of Washington, DC and Baltimore selling her art, to moving around the country pursuing her passion. We also discussed her journey and lessons learned as an entrepreneur and how she has balanced managing her business while still producing content, along with her drive and tenacity for her craft. Today we’re focusing on...

July 14By Comments OffRead more...

A Conversation with Local Artist-Entrepreneur CHoKe, Part 1

Part 1: Artist Entrepreneur

This conversation is the first of a two part series with the Fort Worth-based artist. Click here to read Part II of this conversation. Sparkyard recently sat down (virtually) with one of Fort Worth’s most interesting and talented young artists, “CHoKe” (Creating Her Own Kinetic Energy), whose artwork spans Fort Worth and the globe. CHoKe has been an artist her whole life, and from an early age growing up in the Washington D.C. area, she knew art was her true calling. As with many artists, CHoKe blurred the lines of art and entrepreneurship, constantly hustling and taking on side projects,...