Co-Founder of North Carolina’s “Startup Summit” says area’s secret sauce is not what many think it is
WRAL TechWire recently posted a guest column by Mark Bavisotto, one of the Co-Founders of the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill region’s “Startup Summit.” He arrived in the area four years ago and set about to become very actively engaged in the entrepreneurial community.
What’s this have to do with other regions such as Knoxville and Oak Rudge? Many people assume that the area frequently referred to as Research Triangle is so successful because of its great universities. They are not what Bavisotto thinks is the area’s secret sauce. He writes that it is “everyone’s willingness to help each other become successful. It doesn’t matter if you’re a first-time founder or a serial entrepreneur, this ecosystem treats everyone the same. I never understood what southern hospitality meant, but if you spend one day in our area, you will quickly learn why this mentality has been the key to our explosion as a startup ecosystem. Yes, we have amazing universities, a great cost of living, and more resources than any founder would ever need, but the one thing we have that no other ecosystem has is our willingness to help each other or what we like to call Southern Hospitality.”
That’s a powerful message for all aspiring entrepreneurial ecosystems and those who inhabit them. Click here for the full column.
