Shmerling says his mission is to “get entrepreneurs funded”
Phillip Shmerling says his mission in life right now is to “get entrepreneurs funded.”
The Nashvillian comes by the passion for entrepreneurship naturally; it’s part of his family’s DNA. “My uncle is a serial entrepreneur,” he says.
With the recent passage of the Jumpstart Our Business Start-ups (JOBS) Act, Shmerling found the opportunity to start his own company – InCrowd Capital, LLC – to help entrepreneurs take advantage of the crowdfunding provision in the act.
Shmerling told teknovation.biz during a recent interview that he could not divulge too much of his business plan until the final JOBS Act rules on non-accredited investors are issued by the federal government.
“We are working on a model for accredited investors only for now,” he says.
Shmerling does believe his approach is disruptive.
“The big differentiator is the technology we are using,” he explained, adding that his concept is like an angel network, but “the functionality is very original.”
His company’s web page – http://www.incrowdcapital.com/ – does offer some insights into his focus which is on investors looking for opportunities, entrepreneurs seeking investors, and educational and other organizations running accelerators.
We first met Shmerling in early June when he attended the semi-finals for the local “What’s the Big Idea?” competition. He was in town for meetings with local individuals in the technology, investment and start-up space. Shmerling went from Knoxville to Chattanooga and has also travelled to other cities, both in Tennessee and surrounding states, as he is fine tuning his strategies.
“My focus is on underserved communities in the Southeast and Midwest,” he said. “We want to grow and promote entrepreneurial communities.”
Shmerling describes himself as an “accounting and finance nerd who has always been interested in entrepreneurship.” After graduating from college, he served about three years as an analyst with Morgan Keegan where “I had a lot of customers who were entrepreneurs.”
During his Morgan Keegan years, Shmerling learned about private equity and venture capital and was exposed to the Kickstarter model. He wanted to personally invest in start-ups, but found it challenging “due to existing laws.” When the JOBS Act passed, he saw his opportunity.
Shmerling almost simultaneously quit his job, got married, went on his honeymoon, and started InCrowd Capital.
We expect to learn more in the weeks ahead as InCrowd Capital makes several anticipated proud announcements.
