Looking Back at the 2021 Render Competition

We were very excited to announce the 2021 winners of the Render Competition a couple of weeks ago. These companies rose to the top from over 300 applicants from all over the globe, based on analysis from our pool of experienced judges. These 100-plus individuals, all from diverse backgrounds, analyzed the applications and advanced the final eight companies from an initial Stage 1 submission, to a more detailed Stage 2 submission, to the final live pitch. The winning teams were selected to each receive $100,000 investments to help them take their companies to the next level.

The winning companies were introduced to the Greater Louisville startup community at our first-ever in-person Pitch Event, held at Lynn Family Stadium. Attendees came together to celebrate the winners, make meaningful connections, and hear from keynote speaker Brian Brackeen.

Building a Resilient Ecosystem

This event concluded the second annual cycle of the Render Competition. Year over year, Render Capital believes that by increasing access to risk capital, we will see an increase in vibrancy and momentum in the Greater Louisville startup ecosystem. With each cycle, the competition invests a collective $800,000 into 8 startups that commit to building their companies here. This year, we were pleased to fund 5 promising startups already locally based, and excited to attract and fund 3 startups from outside the region. Our theory is that a dense pool of properly funded startups will lay the foundation for a strong and resilient startup ecosystem. Over a five-year period, Render Capital will have funded at least 40 startups through the competition.

Why Build in the Midwest

Access to early-stage capital is not the only appealing aspect of our region. Beyond the low costs of living and doing business, there are strategic elements to choosing to build in Louisville. Brian Brackeen, General Partner at Lightship Capital, shared some telling statistics in his keynote: the median multiple on invested capital for venture-backed startup exits is 5.17x in the Midwest, compared to 4.29x in the West, 4.35x in the South, and 3.89x in the Northeast. This means both founders and investors have historically achieved greater economic gain when partaking in the ownership of Midwest-based companies.

Beyond the potential for greater returns, startups can find it strategic to grow in our region if they are aligned with a specific industry of focus. The Louisville region tends to excel in healthcare, particularly aging care, advanced manufacturing, food and beverage, logistics and e-commerce, and business services. Because of these strengths, the Render Competition consistently receives applications from companies innovating in these clusters. Companies want to be in a region with a heavy presence of accessible industry leaders, research, and potential customers. As Alex Plonsker, CEO and founder of 2020 Render Competition winner SplitPass, put it: “It’s much easier to get people’s attention and launch something in a smaller city than in New York or LA.”

It Takes a Village

Now that we have another cohort of funded startups, we hope the broader community wraps its collective arms around each of the winning companies. We have an outstanding group of organizations offering their resources, and because the winning companies are diverse across industry, business model, and founder experience, we have forged partnerships with in-kind service providers, coworking spaces, and sponsors to offer each company a broad support package, valued at over $1 million, tailored to its unique needs.

We encourage the greater community to continue to foster the supportive environment that so many founders have experienced. From individuals acting as mentors, to service providers consulting pro bono, to civic organizations connecting founders to resources, to investors evaluating for potential deals, it truly takes a village.

Render Capital launched the Render Competition initiative in 2020 as a response to a lack of risk capital in Greater Louisville. We intentionally built the program to prioritize the attraction and retention of high-potential companies, alignment with strategic industries, and collaboration with key partners. Through consistent investment, the Render Competition aims to ensure that, over time, the Greater Louisville entrepreneurial ecosystem is solidified as vibrant, dense, and accessible, with plentiful capital and support for early-stage startups.