Rooted and Reaching
door Startup South Bend - Elkhart
From a Hospital Bed to 9 Million Followers: Brandon Reed on Building…
Over deze podcast
There’s a job to do, and in the South Bend - Elkhart region, a midwestern work ethic is changing the narrative from rusty to ready. Our cities are opening up and working together as a region—universities are engaging beyond their campuses, sharing their brainpower and realizing that they’re bigger and better with the community behind them. Organizations are reaching out to newcomers and helping them build local networks, leveling the playing field. Infrastructure is being creatively adapted to be gathering places where new deals are made, new collisions happen, and new entrepreneurs take root. Join the Rooted & Reaching podcast, where we discuss the startup life with entrepreneurs with connections to the South Bend - Elkhart region.
In doing this, we will inform the general public and ourselves about what resources are available and the major pain points of entrepreneurs in our region. This podcast is also intended to tell the amazing stories of our local entrepreneurs in the hope that it will inspire another person in the region considering an entrepreneurial pursuit to take that leap of faith and see the supportive atmosphere in the area.
Afleveringen
De nieuwste 20 van 58 afleveringen
- From a Hospital Bed to 9 Million Followers: Brandon Reed on Building Cartoon Connect in South Bend · 36 min · Seizoen 4 Aflevering 3South Bend animator and YouTuber Brandon Reed may be the region's most-followed media creator that you have never heard of. Brandon is the creator of Cartoon Connect, the…
- Cooking From the Soul: LaQuisha Jackson on Building Soulful Kitchen, Fighting Food Insecurity, and Training the Next Generation of Chefs in South Bend · 33 min · Seizoen 4 Aflevering 2How does a South Bend cook with no business background become an award-winning caterer, nonprofit founder, and culinary educator? In this episode of Rooted & Reaching, LaQuisha…
- From Chicago to South Bend: Elio Galo on Opening a Record Store Inside a Barbershop · 29 min · Seizoen 4 Aflevering 1What does it take to start a small business in a city you'd never heard of a few years ago? In the Season Four premiere of Rooted & Reaching, Elio Galo shares how he moved from…
- From Zimbabwe to South Bend: Valerie Jairosi on Design, Community, and Winning Idea Week · 8 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 22Graphic designer Valerie Jairosi never set out to call herself an entrepreneur. Raised in Zimbabwe in a family of business builders, a mother who ran a successful wedding…
- Building a Board Game to Teach Fundraising: Margaret Nanyombi on Money Movers and Learning by Doing · 10 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 21Recorded live during Idea Week, this quick-hit conversation on Rooted & Reaching features Margaret Nanyombi, Founder of Money Movers, a board game built to teach entrepreneurs…
- Building the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs: Logan Herzog on Why Michiana Is a Model for Startup Support · 9 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 20Recorded live during IDEA Week, this episode of Rooted & Reaching brings host Marty Mechtenberg together with Logan Herzog, Executive Director of RISE, for a fast, candid…
- Wheat Farm to Vertical Farm: Joseph McKeirnan on Reinventing Indoor Agriculture with Tingaponics · 12 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 19Recorded live during Idea Week, this episode of Rooted & Reaching brings host Marty Mechtenberg together with Joseph McKeirnan, Founder of Tingaponics, for a fast, candid…
- From Olympic High Jump to Entrepreneur: Priscilla Loomis on Grit, Resilience & the Athlete Mindset · 41 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 18Recorded at Idea Week 2026 in South Bend, this episode of Rooted & Reaching brings host Kris Priemer together with Priscilla Loomis, a former Olympian and entrepreneur whose…
- From Classroom to Millions: Rebecca Rogers on Leaving Teaching to Become a Content Creator · 53 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 17When Rebecca Rogers started making videos during pandemic lockdowns, she had one goal: getting her students to turn their cameras on during online learning. She had no idea you…
- Grow Where You're Planted: Nate Spangle on Building a Modern Media Company for Indiana · 34 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 16Recorded during IDEA Week, this special episode of Rooted & Reaching brings host Kris Priemer together with Nate Spangle, an Indianapolis-based entrepreneur and content creator…
- From Factory Floor to 120 Murals: Alex Ann Allen on Building a Creative Career in South Bend · 38 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 15Muralist and curator Alex Ann Allen shares the story of quitting his factory job to pursue art full-time, growing from zero murals to over 120 across Indiana. In this…
- From Baby Food to Bold Flavors: Aiye Akhigbe’s Sticky Spoons Journey · 41 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 14In this episode of Rooted & Reaching, Marty speaks with Aiye Akhigbe, founder and owner of Sticky Spoons LLC. What began as a personal mission to create healthier, homemade food…
- Jumping Out of Your Comfort Zone with NutriPop Founder Ujaswin Jain · 52 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 13In this episode of Rooted & Reaching, Marty speaks with Ujaswin Jain, founder of NutriPop, to discuss Jain’s entrepreneurial journey of bringing a beloved Indian snack, popped…
- Building Momentum: Kris Priemer on Community, Creativity, and Entrepreneurship · 57 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 12In this episode of Rooted & Reaching, Marty speaks with Kris Priemer, a visionary entrepreneur whose passion for building community has helped shape South Bend’s entrepreneurial…
- Pressing Forward: Ryan Blake on Building Purely Press Organic · 55 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 11In this episode of Rooted & Reaching, Marty speaks with Ryan Blake, co-founder of Purely Press Organic, a local juicery that has grown dramatically since its early days. Marty…
- Building with Intention: Craft, Code, and Community with John Nunemaker · 1 u 1 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 10In this episode of Rooted & Reaching, Marty speaks with serial entrepreneur John Nunemaker, Partner at Fireside.fm, to explore the winding path of building meaningful work. John…
- Building Workforce Pathways Through Lifelong Learning and Collaboration with Allie Shook · 55 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 9In this episode of Rooted & Reaching, Marty sits down with Allie Shook, Executive Director of the Marshall County Lifelong Learning Network, for a thoughtful conversation about…
- Rooted in Community, Reaching with Innovation: Sunjay Agtey on Family, Fintech & Nimbello · 48 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 8This week, we sit down with Sunjay Agtey, Vice President of Revenue and Alliances at Nimbello, to explore the evolving landscape of modern business. We dive into the story behind…
- From Concept to Creation: Finding a Better Way Forward with David Sims · 60 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 7In this episode of Rooted and Reaching, we sit down with David Sims, the creative mind behind Smart Drain Pro, a breakthrough device that automates the draining of hot water…
- Bootstrapped to Breakthrough: Dr. Tod Stillson's Mission to Put a Doctor in Everyone's Pocket · 60 min · Seizoen 3 Aflevering 6This week, we explore the groundbreaking work of Dr. Tod Stillson, founder of ChatRx, an AI-powered telemedicine platform designed to transform how patients receive care. ChatRx…







