The Idea Village Announces Entrepreneurs Selected For Its 2017-2018 Accelerator Program

NEW ORLEANS – The Idea Village announced 14 new local ventures have been selected to participate in the IDEAx accelerator program. IDEAx is a 6-month-long accelerator program for early stage, high-growth startups. The program will run from October 2017 to April 2018.

         “Igniting homegrown talent is what we do best,” said John Payne, chairman of the board of The Idea Village, and CEO of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company, “and we continue to help as many companies as possible scale so that they can create quality jobs in our community.”

         The Idea Village solicited applications from local startup companies and, with the help of a committee of community stakeholders, selected a strong portfolio of companies across a wide range of industries, including hospitality/tourism, healthcare, technology, arts and culture, consumer goods, and sports.

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         The members of the 2017-2018 IDEAx accelerator program include the following companies:

 

• AxoSim – Lowry Curley, PhD, Michael Moore, PhD, Ben Cappiello, Drew Mouton

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Sunni LeBeouf

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         AxoSim's Nerve-on-a-Chip platform is changing the way new drugs are tested using engineered human nerve tissue that looks and functions like real human nerves, allowing pharmaceutical companies to develop safer and more effective drugs before they ever do a clinical trial.

 

• Brass City Shrub & Soda – Benton Bourgeois, Danielle Hammett, Matthew Gardner, Sarah Pearson

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         Makers of Huhu's Ginger Brew, Brass City will offer seasonal shrubs and sodas, and strive to strengthen New Orleans' reputation as a premier food and beverage city in the U.S.

 

• Fanalysis – Ryan Redfearn

         Fanalysis is a mobile application for IOS that will add a new dynamic to sports fandom by allowing users to create, track, and analyze their own "fan stats," flipping the current sports statistical model on its head by making sports statistics fan-centric rather than team-centric or player-centric.

 

• Fetch – Leigh Isaacson, Casey Isaacson, Keith Isaacson

         Fetch is the dog person's dating app for dog owners who consider their dog-forward lifestyle as a principal attribute.

 

• Free Your Tea – Knud E. Berthelsen

         Free Your Tea is a tea-as-a-service company that discovers and delivers teas tailored to the tastes of customers, helping them drink better, and more, tea.

 

• The French Library – Katrina Gree

         The French Library is a children’s book shop and magical play and party space in Uptown, New Orleans, specializing in French and English language books, games, toys and joyful lifestyles.

 

• Lily Reign – Erica A. Day

         Lily Reign is an innovative group travel company dedicated to reconnecting people to each other and our planet.

 

• Navé – John McCann Jr.

         Navé is a socially responsible, urban wear fashion brand that provides premium clothing while allowing our customers to send a free customized Navé item to a friend, family member, or youth in need at the time of their purchase.

 

• Pang Wangle – Jennifer John

         Pang Wangle is an optimistic outdoor apparel brand, creating soft, ultra-light, UV-protection clothing for subtropical adventures.

 

• Pet Krewe – Allison Albert

         Pet Krewe is the No. 1 source for pet costumes online.

 

• ProductMatchr – Andrew Ryan, Kevin Truong

         ProductMatchr helps big and tall men find clothing and shoes that fit by matching them to everything that is in stock in their size across numerous online stores.

 

• SunStop – Sean McCloskey

         SunStop develops an automated sunscreen dispenser that provides access to single-serve sunscreen on the go.

 

• Vizzit – Arthur Bart-Williams, Samuel Bart-Williams

         Vizzit is a location-aware content platform that provides self-guided experiences and enables brands to connect with audiences through stories at the places they visit.

 

• VR Arcade NOLA – David Denny, Devin Regan

         VR Arcade NOLA provides Virtual Reality (VR) entertainment and engagement services for meetings, conventions, trade shows, and events throughout the nation.

 

         “Our team is really energized to work with such a dynamic group of entrepreneurs at varying stages of development, and we look forward to having them join our network,” said Emily Egan, director of entrepreneur services for The Idea Village.

         The IDEAx accelerator program is supported by a team of two Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIR): Sloan Miller, a creative and technology industry veteran with a passion for community engagement, and Eugene Brill, a business strategy advisor with more than 20 years of experience in business plan development.

         Founded in 2000, The Idea Village is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in New Orleans that provides direct service to high impact entrepreneurs, convenes the ecosystem through New Orleans Entrepreneur Week, and supports initiatives that strengthen the city’s entrepreneurial infrastructure.

         For more information

 

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