Innovation becomes key in the Appalachian Highlands with FoundersForge

FoundersForge started with a vision to make Johnson City a unique innovation hub in the Appalachian Highlands region.The entrepreneur support organization began in 2016 when a group of entrepreneurs came together to collaborate on how to make Johnson City grow as an entrepreneurial community. In January 2020, Executive Director David Nelson assembled a board of directors and announced FoundersForge as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the entrepreneurs of the Appalachian Highlands.Ariana Dew, the program director of FoundersForge, said that the organization exists to support entrepreneurs and their contributions to the Appalachian economy."FoundersForge began as a collaboration between entrepreneurs, and being 'founders first' has remained our guiding principle," Dew said. "We exist for entrepreneurs, first and foremost. We envision an economically empowered Appalachia driven by innovation and entrepreneurship."FoundersForge supports entrepreneurs throughout the Appalachian Highlands community through an array of possibilities, such as regular events like lunch-and-learns, mentorship for entrepreneurs in the community and hosting AppalachianStartupAlliance.com, an online community for entrepreneurs. FoundersForge also hosts what Dew said is called "startup bootcamps.""FoundersForge is focused on building a vibrant startup community through events, training programs, connections and one-on-one mentorship," Dew said. "We host startup bootcamps for entrepreneurs who are committed to diving deep into the business for a 10-week intensive, and will soon be releasing our new six-week bootcamp and ecosystem building platform for licensing."Those who have worked with FoundersForge have a foundation to grow their businesses or startups, according to Executive Director David Nelson. Nelson explained that through the programs and guidance offered by FoundersForge, participants begin their next steps in the entrepreneurial community with support and a new perspective in their business's or startup's journey."We pride ourselves on being frank and supportive with everyone who walks through our doors," Nelson said. "For some entrepreneurs, that may mean walking away with new resources to explore, a connection that will help them solve their current challenge, or even rethinking their business strategy."FoundersForge has also made an impact on Johnson City's community with a high startup activity rate and dedicating support to small businesses. Nelson said that in 2016, the region had only 12 high-growth startups, whereas today the region has over 90, and that FoundersForge has supported over 200 small businesses within the last two years."Our impact on the Appalachian Highlands has led to other regions asking how we achieved this growth," Nelson said.Dew also explained FoundersForge's impact to the community comes from not only the high-growth startup activity, but also the Startup Mountain Summit conference."We power 88% of the region's high-growth startup activity, and 57% of all startup activity if you include small businesses," Dew said. "We host the region's largest Pitch competition, as well as the largest conference for early-stage entrepreneurs in Appalachia, the Startup Mountain Summit, which brought founders from 16 states to the ETSU Martin Center in 2024."Nelson said that at its heart, FoundersForge hopes to drive the community to be a startup hub through innovation, with the goal to continue to grow the entrepreneurial community through providing the resources necessary to build a successful business."Entrepreneurship is the future of economic development, and by focusing our efforts on supporting local entrepreneurs, we are ensuring our region's future is resilient no matter where our economy takes us," Nelson said. "We also see an opportunity for our region to be the model for others to follow when focusing on building vibrant startup communities. Together, we can all build an economically empowered Appalachia that is driven by innovation and entrepreneurship."