The recent article in the Messenger-Inquirer about Glory Industries is a testament to the value of the Greater Owensboro Venture Club for entrepreneurs in the region. Dan and Patty Ogles owners of Glory Industries, a company that makes easy-to-replace mud flaps for semi-trucks, made a one-minute pitch at the inaugural Venture Club meeting in spring 2007.
At that meeting Ogles met Ankur Gopal, a local entrepreneur who made a pitch for his company. The connection made at the Venture Club proved to be beneficial to both. Gopal later worked with Glory Industries assisting with the development of their business plan.
"Ankur brought us his business expertise," Dan Ogles told Keith Lawrence of the Messenger-Inquirer. A class on entrepreneurship that Gopal was teaching at Kentucky Wesleyan College helped design a marketing campaign for Fast Flap.
"They didn't even know what a mud flap was on the first day," Ogles said. "But in a couple of days, they were on fire, coming up with all kinds of ideas for us."
The marketing is paying off. At the recent Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville in March, the Fast Flap caught the attention of CMT's popular "Trick My Truck" cable series. Ogles is hoping the product placement will help the young company capture the attention of the nation's trucking industry.
It all began at the first Venture Club meeting last spring. On June 11, Ogles will return to the Venture Club to be a featured presenter in hopes of raising the $200,000 that they need for the tooling and molds of the product line.
The June Venture Club meeting will also feature a presentation by a Texas-based medical devise company. Both companies that presented to the Venture Club in the spring recieved funding!
The meeting includes a new breakfast format beginning at 7:30 am at the Springs Conference Center. The cost for admission is $10. To make a reservation for the meeting, please contact Melissa Shelton at 270.926.4339 or via e-mail at mshelton@owensboro.com. Reservations can also be made online at http://www.owensboroventureclub.com/
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