Welcome to the Appalachian Venture Foundry! 

What is The Appalachian Venture Foundry?
The Appalachian Venture Foundry (The Foundry or AVF) is an initiative of The Appalachian Investors Alliance (AIA) that has been designed to provide direct services to the most promising ventures across the six-state territory of Kentucky, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Businesses we encounter often possess a great deal of as-yet-unrealized potential, though many have been deemed uninvestable by investors. Meanwhile, other businesses have received investment and have stalled on their path to reaching long-term sustainability or exit potential. Our solution is a far more intentional approach than the one we have taken in the past.We propose working alongside the founding teams to solve identified critical deficits before an entrepreneur engages investors for capital. We do not intend to replicate existing resources such as incubators, accelerators, and University- or community-based entrepreneur programs. Instead, we will augment those resources with an investor-informed approach and build upon their work by helping the most deserving business ideas and entrepreneurs become investment-ready.
Why does The Foundry exist?
Across the Appalachian Region, communities have sought to reinvent themselves following the decline or loss of economy-sustaining industries such as coal, chemicals, steel, and textiles. However, the lack of access to capital remains a barrier to growth and sustainability for creating new businesses and driving economic diversity. In response to the shifting economy in the region, the determined, creative residents of Appalachia have had to leverage their entrepreneurial mindset to solve problems and start new businesses in technology, tourism, agriculture, manufacturing, renewable energy sources, and the arts.

Access to capital remains a barrier to growth and sustainability for far too many early-stage businesses seeking to reach their next evolutionary milestone. Many early-stage businesses have used up all their available public and private funding and are still not investible from a traditional banking or venture capital perspective. They have self-funded, tapped friends and family, won pitch competitions and smaller awards, and graduated from incubators and accelerators. However, far too many have unsuccessfully tried to leverage these milestones to achieve the next level in the continuum of capital: venture capital, bank loans, or other professional investment. Meanwhile, successful mid-life citizens seeking to create a legacy and pay it forward have little recourse beyond philanthropic gift-giving, investing as a lone angel, and the later-stage and less regional option to join urban venture firms. The Foundry exists to make capital more accessible by helping companies become more attractive and investment-ready from the investor’s point of view.

How does The Foundry help?
Services within The Foundry are laid out across three tiers of increasing value and commitment built upon each other within a formal, structured program called the Appalachian Venture Foundry. The Foundry will involve AIA staff and a talent bench of vetted professionals with deep knowledge of specific disciplines such as strategy, finance, marketing, operations, and data. AIA funds and partners will recommend companies and expert professionals to the Foundry. Partners will also comprise the selection committee recommending companies for admission into the Foundry and determining the level of support they will receive.

Services include pro forma stress testing, competitive analysis, deal structuring, target market and customer analysis, marketing program design, IP assessments, governance structure, and exit plan (where appropriate). The Foundry will actively support moving the business toward realizing its true potential where it is viable, sustainable, and more attractive to investors. The AIA team, our seasoned investor network, and strong community partners have the knowledge, experience, networks, and social capital to realize this vision. Only businesses headquartered within the ARC region will be eligible to apply for Foundry services. Entrepreneurs will enter the Foundry on a rolling basis, recognizing that their needs are generally urgent, and a cohort model will not accommodate this urgency.

The Foundry’s 3-Tiered Service Structure

Tier One – Gap Analysis
AIA conducts a preliminary light due diligence exercise to identify obvious gaps in the business and provide strategic, actionable direction to the entrepreneur so they can remediate the noted issues. The outcome is better preparation for an eventual due diligence process, especially where the entrepreneur is seeking capital. Entrepreneurs must understand that an introduction may get you a pitch, and a pitch may get you into due diligence, but due diligence gets you a check from investors. Essential due diligence readiness is the critical gap we intend to address in Tier One.
Tier Two – Filling the Gaps
Tier Two builds upon the work in Tier One and expands the scope of work and engagement with the entrepreneur. In this Tier, the Foundry comes alongside the entrepreneur to work actively in the business to help bridge previously identified gaps. Services include pro forma stress testing, competitive analysis, deal structuring, target market and customer analysis, marketing program design, IP assessments, governance structure, and exit plan design (where appropriate). The outcome is clearly defined roles, responsibilities, milestones, and timelines to address deficiencies and refine the go-to-market strategy to create efficiency and maximize the potential to drive growth.
Tier Three – Pathway to Exit
In this tier, professionals from AIA and/ or its established talent bench will build on all prior entrepreneur engagement and agree to accept longer-term fractional roles in the business, thereby filling the critical leadership gaps. The outcome is to move the business toward realizing its true potential where it is viable, sustainable, more attractive to investors, and built to succeed.

Ready to apply to The Foundry?

Please review the descriptions below to determine which application best suits your needs.

Idea Stage/Pre-Revenue

For those ventures that are ideas still under development and/or that have not yet begun generating revenue,
we offer a simplified application process.
Click below to access the Pre-Rev Application.

APPLY HERE

Generating Revenue

For all other ventures that are in-market and generating revenue, please click the link below to complete the application.

APPLY HERE

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Who is eligible to apply to The Foundry?
To be eligible for services from The Foundry, the company must be located within one of 216 counties across six states (Kentucky, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia). These counties fall within the Appalachian Region as defined by The Appalachian Regional Commission.
Where does The Foundry operate?

Overwhelmingly, services rendered via The Foundry’s three-tiered services will be delivered remotely. However, in some cases, professionals must visit the entrepreneurs in person at the company’s location. Companies must reside within the defined territory noted in the “Who is eligible…?” question above.

How are participants selected?

Once an entrepreneur submits an application, the submission will undergo an intense internal screening process to determine if the company is a great fit for The Foundry. Accepted applicants will be notified, and applicants who are not chosen will be given direct feedback whenever possible.

How much do services from The Foundry cost?

Entrepreneurs receiving services in Tier One will pay nothing, as AIA’s recent award from the Appalachian Regional Commission via its ARISE Program will fully subsidize these Tier One services. For Tier Two and Tier Three, AIA’s ARISE award will provide a partial subsidy that will cover most of the cost, leaving the entrepreneur to cover the remainder of the services. Every company is different, so each engagement will be customized to the needs of the entrepreneur, and all costs will be discussed and agreed upon upfront before any work begins.

What is expected of participants in The Foundry?

Participants in The Foundry are expected to actively engage in the process and embrace the opportunity to improve their business and get the most out of their time in The Foundry. Participants will need to complete a pre- and post-Foundry assessment to establish baseline understandings and measure growth as a result of working with The Foundry.

Do participants receive funding once they complete their time in The Foundry?

Though one of the goals of The Foundry is to help make participant businesses more investable, there is no guarantee that the business will receive funding from any investor following the completion of their work with The Foundry. 

What is the process for applying to The Foundry?

A completed application submitted via the link above begins the process. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, meaning The Foundry does not operate based on a cohort model. Instead, The Foundry realizes the needs of businesses may not align exactly with a preset calendar and will seek to provide targeted assistance to selected companies as soon as possible. 

What are the benefits of going through The Foundry?

The Foundry provides access to expert guidance to help move the company forward, no matter the type or stage of the company. In addition, The Foundry provides entrepreneurs with an opportunity to expand their network and, potentially, gain an audience with local or regional investors within the AIA Network. 

Still have questions?

Contact The Foundry: avf@appalachianinvestors.org

***The Appalachian Venture Foundry is made possible thanks to funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission’s Appalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger Economies (ARISE) program.