On July 17, 2016, Port City Daily reporter Hilary Snow previewed an event for veterans starting businesses in Wilmington, North Carolina. It was set for Thursday, August 18, 2016, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at Ironclad Brewery, 115 N. Second St., downtown. The featured guest speaker was Michael Penney of Bunker Labs RDU.
An upcoming entrepreneurial event will serve those who have served their country.
Hilary Snow, Port City Daily, July 2016
What was on the program
The host was Jim Roberts. He had led UNCW’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and was running the Network for Entrepreneurs in Wilmington (NEW). The article laid out the program:
- Short pitches from local veterans who had launched start-ups
- A talk from guest speaker Michael Penney of Bunker Labs’ RDU branch
- A panel on resources and opportunities for former service members, followed by networking
The panel included:
- Dean Bundschu, executive director of Bunker Labs RDU
- Stephen Clossick, who manages an angel investing group in the Triangle
- Chris Kelly, former head of Durham’s First Flight Venture Center
Clare Pozek, a venture capital specialist and military spouse, was listed as moderator.
The event was free. Veterans and their spouses were welcome, and registration was encouraged because seating was limited. When the article ran, 55 seats were left.
Why it mattered then
Bunker Labs started as a Chicago-based national nonprofit that helps veterans use their military experience to start businesses. In 2016 it was expanding into the Triangle. Taking the RDU team down to Wilmington pushed that work past Raleigh-Durham to the coast.
Roberts told the paper the visit was especially relevant because Wilmington had a reputation for veteran-founded companies. The article named some of them:
- Andrew Williams of Elite Innovations
- Edward Hall of Petrics
- Jeremy Tomlinson, co-creator of Port City Brew Bus
For a veteran in eastern North Carolina with a business idea, the evening put a local investor, a venture-center veteran and the Bunker Labs team in one room.
This archive entry is based on the advance coverage. We have not found a separate write-up of the event as it happened.
Looking back
Two months later, the Veteran On the Move podcast introduced Michael with the line “Michael recently took over as the director of the Bunker in Raleigh Durham, NC.” His work helping veterans plan and launch businesses grew into the 5 Paragraph Business Plan.
This post is part of the From the Archive series, which collects Michael’s past media appearances in one place. See the full media archive.
Work with Michael
Marine veteran, TEDx speaker and author of the 5 Paragraph Business Plan. Bring him to your stage, wear the gear, or catch him live.