Drew's News
Vol: 8
October 21, 2025
Greetings from Chattanooga - I’m going to be a little light on connections this week, mainly because I’ve got some of my own Drew’s News: My wife and I are under LOI on a local business. Apparently, small business ownership is a bit, um, addictive. I can’t divulge too much now, but as anyone who may know about the due diligence process, it’s a ton of work, and eating up much of my hours in the day. I can’t wait to share more with you, in time. As for my mission of connecting our small business and startup community, I'm still all in. If you'd like to connect, reply back to this email and let's grab coffee. Best,
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In case you missed it…
Congrats to @Sammy Loudermilk on being named the new President of The Enterprise Center. I'm hopeful with new leadership and a new location comes a renewed focus on collaboration within the small business and startup ecosystems, and the non-profits who support them.
Launch Tennessee released their Q2 Deal Report last week. Tennessee logged 131 venture deals in the first half of 2025, already surpassing all of 2024 and outpacing growth across the Southeast and U.S. Despite a typical Q2 slowdown, investors deployed $771 million statewide — nearly double the first half of last year — with larger check sizes and higher conviction rounds. Fewer investors per deal and steady follow-on support point to deal selectivity rather than deal slowdown, with Health Tech remaining steady through both Q1 and Q2 2025.
BIP Ventures also released their State of Startups in the Southeast last week at Venture Atlanta.The report says the Southeast’s venture scene has entered a phase of stability and selectivity, with fewer deals but larger checks going to stronger, more proven companies. (aligning with Launch Tennessee's findings). AI is now viewed as core infrastructure rather than a novelty, and investors seem to be focusing on fundamentals over hype. Tennessee continues to outperform the Southeast.
For Chattanooga, that means startups with real traction and capital efficiency are well-positioned to attract the next wave of high-intent capital. VentureSouth is leading the Southeast Angel category with 85 deals since 2018. In the Government Backed category, Launch Tennessee is second (58 deals) and Co:Lab is seventh (20 deals).
Cultra launched their software platform this week. Founded by @Jack Washburn, @Ethan Poliner and @Cooper Martin, and backed by Brickyard, Cultra is building a nutrient management platform for farmers, filling a gap between lagging data and actionable field insights. Learn more here.
Congrats to @Carter Fowler and the Totem Labs team for meeting a crowd adoption milestone at the Lost Lands Music Festival. Based in Chattanooga, Totem is developing wearables that connect festival goers using a proprietary Unity Mesh Network, without the need for spotty cell or bluetooth service. In February, they announced a pre-seed round of $1.3M. Learn more about Totem here.
Talent // Connections Bolt Family Treehouse is hiring an Executive Operations Coordinator. LINK Chattanooga Football Club (CFC) is hiring a Chief Business Officer. Learn more here. Public Education Foundation (PEF) is hiring for a Director of Development. Learn more here. |
Capital // Connections
TVFCU Idea Leap Loans and Grants- LINK
Applications open Sept 26, 9am - TVFCU's Idea Leap initiative is distributing $225,000 in grants of up to $30,000 each to qualified small businesses. Eligibility requirements include: 2-25 employees (owner included), maximum annual revenue of $2.5 million, at least 12 months of operational history with proven revenue generation, and location within TVFCU's 17-county service area.
InvestTN Regional Seed Fund - LINK
This is a $28M Tennessee-focused initiative investing in startups served by 7 Regional Entrepreneur Centers across all 95 counties. Investments range from $25,000 to $250,000.
Small Business Innovation Research Program - LINK
Transform your innovations into market-ready solutions with the SBIR Program. This strategic federal funding initiative empowers small businesses to commercialize cutting-edge research and technology. Whether you're developing next-generation solutions or pioneering scientific breakthroughs, SBIR provides the capital and resources to accelerate your journey from concept to commercialization.
Morgan Stanley Inclusive & Sustainable Ventures - LINK
Morgan Stanley provide early-stage innovators with access to capital and resources to help them develop and scale. The mission is to foster a more equitable and sustainable investment landscape.
Connections + Events
Future of Freight Festival, October 21-22, 2025
Celebrate all things freight while exploring what the future holds with a glimpse into the latest FreightTech and inside knowledge into the freight markets. LEARN MORE
Chattanooga Founders Forum, October 23, 12pm. We will tour the facility, hear Morgan’s story, and see firsthand how he’s scaling a business that blends environmental impact with entrepreneurship. RSVP here.
Co:Lab's Sustainability Mobility Showcase, Thursday, October 23rd at 5pm. RSVP here.
Have an event? Reply to this email.
What I’m Reading (listening to...) 1929 by Andrew Ross Sorkin Sorkin provides a detailed account of Wall Street Crash of 1929, and what parallels he sees now. |
Footnotes My mission is to cultivate the startup community through connection. I'm a big believer in building this newsletter in public, so if you have ideas on how to further this ecosystem initiative, reply back to this email and let's work on this together. This community is made up of small business owners, investment bankers, organizers, investors and economic development leaders who all share a belief that a rising tide lifts all boats. Share this email to someone who will provide value to this community. We are (slowly) building a database for Chattanooga that will be published soon for free. Have you submitted your startup? Help me build this community resource here. I'm also building a curated database of businesses for sale. More later. |