Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

“Innov865 Week” continued on Wednesday with several different events including the PYA-sponsored “Raising Capital in Knoxville: A Look Behind the Curtain” (see separate story here).

121 Tech Hub Grand Opening

The roughly one-month-old 121 Tech Hub, located in Knoxville’s Old City, held a grand opening Wednesday night. The group now has 18 members, according to Co-Founder Brandon Bruce, and the list of the first 16 was posted for the open house where Randy Boyd, University of Tennessee System President, and Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon spoke. Boyd owns the building which is located across from Barley’s Tap Room and not too far from the new baseball stadium under construction.

A large crowd turned out for the event, and Bruce told attendees that he and John Bruck, the other Co-Founder, will likely be expanding into the basement soon.

Morning Momentum

The Knoxville Chamber hosted its second Morning Momentum event where one or two entrepreneurs describe some of the challenges they face and get input from attendees on ideas to advance their companies. Specifically, it is designed to help small businesses and entrepreneurs overcome growth-related challenges by presenting their issues to seasoned business leaders for immediate feedback.

Josh High, Co-Founder of 3D Property Services, was first up, describing the business as a company launched in 2011 that he and his Co-Founder bought in May 2024. The company provides janitorial cleaning services to 47 clients, an increase of 13 since they acquired it. He and his partner have also grown staffing from six employees to 14.

High secured a good deal of input on various ways to continue growing the business.

Amanda O’Dell, the Chamber’s Director of Investor Experience, followed High and asked for input on how the Chamber could get more people interested in participating in Morning Momentum, a monthly offering.

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