Creating Northwest Arkansas' Entrepreneurial Ecosystem with Jeff Amerine of Startup Junkie

Summary

On this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell is joined by Jeff Amerine, founder and managing director of Startup Junkie, a consulting service that supports, inspires, and educates entrepreneurs at no cost. With thirty years of experience, Jeff has an extensive background in business leadership and early-stage investments. Throughout the episode, James and Jeff discuss the startup community in Northwest Arkansas and how Startup Junkie assists entrepreneurs.

Thanks for tuning in!

Show Notes:

(0:57) Introduction to Jeff

(1:35) Jeff’s Background

(3:08) About Startup Junkie

(5:49) Surprising Success Story

(8:33) Favorite Startups

(12:07) How Startup Junkie Helps Entrepreneurs

(16:13) About the Startup Junkie Podcast

(22:15) The Best Version of Tomorrow

(24:55) Why Businesses Should Be Founded in Bentonville

(29:33) How the Startup Community Has Evolved

(33:21) What’s Next for Startup Junkie

(37:11) Closing Questions

‍Links

Bentonville Economic Development | James Bell

Startup Junkie | Jeff Amerine Caleb Talley Martha Londagin

Fuel Accelerator | Kiva Northwest Arkansas | Startup Junkies Podcast

RevUnit | Michael Paladino Joe Saumweber

Ox | Charu Thomas

NWA Workplaces | Jon Cadieux

EforAll Northwest Arkansas

Rise of the Rest | Steve Case Jamie Rodota

Phil Libin

University of Arkansas Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation | Sarah Goforth

Atento Capital 412 Angels Cadron Capital Partners NewRoad Capital Partners

Blue Marlin Partners | Becca Shaddox

Permjot Valia

Quotes

“We’re at the point where I often hear Bentonville is the next Austin and that’s one of those things I both love and hate. My response is always, ‘We don’t want to be the next Austin, we want to be the next best version of ourselves.’” - James Bell, (21:26)

“These people are accessible. It’s not like you have to get a decree to see them. You’re going to run across them on a bike trail or in a coffee shop. So, proximity to great people would be a benefit.” - Jeff Amerine, (25:25)

“People here are by nature entrepreneurial and helpful. They had to band together. So when people come here from elsewhere, they’ve captured that, they’ve built on that, and it’s gotten even better.” - Jeff Amerine, (26:41)

“You can walk out any door in any one of these cities on any given day of the week and there’s something small business or startup going on. So that regular cadence of activity and engagement is really something.” - Jeff Amerine, (32:13)