5 ms·
I decided to move my company, Banyan, to Chattanooga Tennessee. I know that may sound radical, but Chattanooga has a thriving startup scene. It reminds me alot
by twog 14y ago
I decided to move my company, Banyan, to Chattanooga Tennessee. I know that may sound radical, but Chattanooga has a thriving startup scene. It reminds me alot of Austin, before Austin blew up. I personally feel like its about to explode here, and Im lucky enough to have gotten here at the right time.
Chattanooga has a lot of really awesome things about it, here are a few:
- Booming startup scene with dozens of startups all close together & growing quickly.
- Low cost of living. I pay about 1/4th of what the average cost of an apartment in the valley is, for a beautiful loft located right in Downtown ( I ride my longboard to work everyday)
- Chattanooga was the first city in the northern hemisphere with gigabit ethernet http://www.thegigcity.com/ http://www.thegigcity.com/
- Amazing outdoor scene for rock climbing, kayaking, hiking and more
- The local government & the state of tennessee are investing heavily in the tech scene (see gigcity)
- Big & active angel investment scene. We raised money here & in the valley with no problems. The quality & integrity of investors here is also very high.
- A very high quality of designers. Chattanooga is a very hip & art inspired place
- Just an hour and a half from Georgia Tech, Atlanta, Nashville, & other larger cities
- High quality engineers at a low cost w/ great cultural fits for us ( they like whiskey & working hard)
Im working on a few initiatives to bring some more attention to whats going on in Chattanooga over the next few months. I would be happy to answer some questions & would honestly tell anyone who is serious about moving their company somewhere for growth or looking for somewhere to set up shop to really consider coming here.
- twog 14y agoAlso checkout http://www.lamppostgroup.com/ http://www.lamppostgroup.com/ to see some of the cool things that are going on around town
- orangethirty 14y agoI was just in Chattanooga last month. Ugh. Would have loved to stop by and visit.
- twog 14y agoWe (and I) need to do a better job getting the word out! Any chance you're coming back? I work out of Lamp post group & I would love to introduce you and any other hackers to the group of startups we have working here.
- orangethirty 14y agoI was there visiting some family. Which I will visit next summer. Will make sure to make the trip to Chattanooga again. Beautiful place full of very friendly folks. Best cup of hot chocolate I ever drank came from there. I'd be happy to meet the group of entrepreneurs from that area. May you send me an email? (in profile).
- twog 14y agoAh, you must be talking about the [http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/109/1625196/restaurant/Hot-Chocolatier-Chattanooga](hot http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/109/1625196/restaurant/Hot-Choco... chocolatier). That place is amazing. I will definitely drop you line!
- orangethirty 14y agoHow did you know it was that place? Wow. I still dream with drinking another cup. Wonderful stuff.
- tagabek 14y agoAfter checking out The Gig City site, I noticed that your company won last year's GigTank. It seems like a great opportunity, and I will probably apply as a student. What advice would you give me (in terms of if I were to get accepted)?
- twog 14y agoThanks for the kind words. Applying as a student is a great idea. I know the director of the student program & I would be happy to connect you. Drop me a line over email and I will help any way I can.
- btrautsc 14y agoi helped run the student program last year, so i have a unique perspective... - number one, just say yes and come - its worth it - be ready for new people/ challenges/ & tough problems - prepare to think big & beyond what is possible today - start making a list of ideas & problems you want to attack (once you're here, find other brilliant people interested) - reach out to some of the startups here and connect pre-arrival, you'll have the opportunity to meet a ton of great people in town, but having a history to put with a new face is huge
- zoltar92 14y agoI moved from Atlanta (used to visit Chattanooga once a week to visit Gf in ringgold. Moved to palo alto. Couldn't disagree more. Bay Area is incomparable.
- twog 14y agoWhen was the last time you were here? What startups did you meet with? Im not comparing Chattanooga to the valley by any means. I compared it to Austin, which is also very different then the valley. This definitely isnt a place for everyone, but if you love the outdoors, a low cost of living, super fast internet, and other startups with similar interests, Chattanooga is an ideal place.
- btrautsc 14y agoI definitely agree that Palo Alto is a completely different world than Chattanooga, but equivalently, Ringold GA is a different planet than Chattanooga. I think to get a feel for the culture, community, and people who are doing startups here and living in that scene you've got to be around downtown, southside, & northshore really embed yourself but yes, as twog said, Chatt won't be Palo Alto - but Austin, Boulder... definitely.
- btrautsc 14y agomy startup was funded in Chattanooga 18 months ago... I can confirm all of this..