The Lineup

IDEApitch

The Coulter Challenge

The Coulter Challenge is the mammoth, action-packed culmination to New Orleans Entrepreneur Week. Held at the National World War II Museum, the event will bring together all the participants in New Orleans Entrepreneur Week, city leaders, and innovation enthusiasts from around the city. After an Idea Pitch Entrepreneurial Panel, we'll have presentations from both entrepreneurs and students on what they learned, who they met, and what inspired them over the course of the week. Sponsored by Jim Coulter, the event will conclude with a celebration at the home of James Carville and Mary Matalin.

IDEApitch Entrepreneurs

Audiosocket

Audiosocket

Audiosocket licenses pre-cleared, independent music for placement in all types of media – representing over 1500 artists and a 20,000 song catalog. Some of Audiosocket's recent placements include: Nickelodeon, McDonald's, Warner Brothers, Universal, The Gap, ABC's Lincoln Heights, Lost, Grey's Anatomy, NBC's Conan O'Brien, Lifetime, Urban Outfitters, Lucky Magazine, Solomon, Converse and Plum TV. They recently became a preferred music provider for MTV Networks, ABC and The Travel Channel, and are launching an iPhone app. www.audiosocketmusic.com

Bayou Brew

Bayou Brew

Renee Brown – Owner&CEO

Bayou Brew Wellness Tea is an innovative new beverage company focused on bringing all natural, unique and delicious blends of Southern-style, ready-to-drink tea to the US market. www.drinkbayoubrew.com

Renee Brown whose background is holistic medicine and herbal therapy brings knowledge of unique herbal blends and tea combinations. Also, as the creator of Bayou Brew, she has a personal passion for Southern tea. Adam Picou (President) brings over 9 years of management/operations experience with a New Orleans food and beverage company. Power Brands (Beverage developer) contributes over two decades of beverage experience and development with brands such as Celestial Seasonings, Nestle and Pepsi Cola.

Big Easy Blends

Big Easy Blends

Big Easy Blends produces pre-mixed alcoholic beverages packaged in a stand-up flexible pouch that allows the consumer to enjoy frozen cocktails without the hassles of mixing or blending. This unique packaging provides the “go green” solution over the traditional aluminum can or glass bottle that are currently the norm in the alcohol beverage category. www.margoritas.com

Sal LaMartina - Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Born and raised in New Orleans, Sal comes from a prominent family of business owners and real estate developers. Sal is accomplished, highly-focused, and self-motivated as evidenced by his six years of business to business sales experience in the ever-changing mortgage industry. He has been consistently ranked the top unit producing Account Executive in the central United States, while boasting the title of Business Development Manager over Louisiana and Mississippi.

Craig J. Cordes - Co-founder and Chief Financial Officer

Cordes has a wide range of experience within the Financial Services arena for a variety of industries including: Rail Leasing, Vendor Financial Services, Equipment Leasing, Insurance services, Sub-prime mortgage lending, and private equity. Cordes has knowledge of Global Markets such as Asia, Europe, and Canada where he advised Senior Management of business risks and operational opportunities.

Prior to co-founding Big Easy Blends, Cordes was a senior consultant at BKP LLP, where he was responsible for working with private equity clients, real estate investment trusts, and oil and gas companies in their internal audit function. He assisted his clients in Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance as well as process re-engineering in the purchasing, accounts payable, and accounts receivable processes. In the interim he also worked in the Loan Review group at BKD where he was responsible for evaluating commercial loan portfolios at numerous local and national banks.

Antonio LaMartina - Co-Founder & Vice President of Sales and Marketing

LaMartina has been a leader throughout his professional career as well as his social life. From being President of Phi Kappa Theta Fraternity, to managing a sales team throughout Mississippi and Louisiana, he has been a valuable asset to his team as well as his community. Antonio previously worked as a technical sales consultant at AT&T managing and supporting a team of business account executives in high end technical sales.

Free Flow Power

Free Flow Power

Free Flow Power Corporation (FFP) is a hydropower developer and technology company focused on using the force of rivers, streams, ocean currents, and tides to generate electricity without building new dams or diversions. FFP operates through two subsidiaries: Free Flow Power Technology LLC is manufacturing the SmarTurbine system to capture energy from free-flowing water, and Free Flow Power Development LLC is developing hydropower and hydrokinetic generation projects in the US, primarily in the Mississippi River Basin. www.free-flow-power.com

NuMe Health

NuMe Health

Dale Pfost, PhD - Co-Founder & CEO

NuMe Health is a biotechnology company focused on medical foods for the special dietary requirements associated with major chronic diseases including: cancer, obesity and diabetes. The first lead product will address the special nutritional requirements for breast cancer patients, particularly the growing population of breast cancer survivors. www.numehealth.com

Pfost has been the president and CEO of five biotechnology companies. Most recently, he was the CEO of Receptor BioLogix in Palo Alto, California, which was sold to Symphogen in 2008. From 2003 until 2007 he was the founding CEO and chairman of the board of Acuity Pharmaceuticals which became Opko Health (AMEX: OPK) in a three way merger in 2007. From 1996 until 2002 he was the founding CEO and chairman of Orchid BioSciences, a leading DNA testing company which he took public in 2000 (NASDAQ: ORCH). From 1988 to 1996, Dr. Pfost was the president and CEO of Oxford GlycoSciences, a leader in proteomics and glycobiology. Two of these companies achieved peak market capitalizations of approximately $2 billion and a third over $700 million. From 1982 to 1984, Dr. Pfost was the president and a founder of Infinitek, Inc., the company that developed the Biomek 1000. Dr. Pfost also serves on the board of directors of Biopticon, a small lab-animal physiological imaging company.

IDEApitch Investor Panel

Jim Coulter

Jim Coulter

Founding Partner, TPG

Jim Coulter is a Founding Partner of TPG Capital, Inc. TPG, Capital, Inc. (also known as the Texas Pacific Group) is a leading global private equity firm with 15 offices around the world and assets under management in excess of $50 billion. TPG is a lead investor in a portfolio over 70 diverse companies including Neiman Marcus, Burger King, Petco, Avaya, Harrahs, Mey Icki (the largest spirits company in Turkey) and China Grand Auto (the largest auto dealership network in China). Jim has served on numerous corporate and charitable Boards including the Stanford Board of Trustees, Lenovo Group International, Continental Airlines, Northwest Airlines, IMS Health, J Crew Group, Inc., Neiman Marcus Group and Common Sense Media. Jim is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

David Barksdale

David Barksdale

Principal, Barksdale Management Corporation

David Barksdale is a principal of the Barksdale Management Corporation, the investment office of James L. Barksdale. David leads BMC's venture capital effort and directs the operations of BMC's telecommunications subsidiaries. Prior to his current position, Mr. Barksdale worked as an associate in the New York offices of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton LLP. At Cleary Gottlieb, Mr. Barksdale specialized in private equity, mergers & acquisitions and non-profit law. He received a J.D. degree from New York University School of Law in 2005, where he was a Robert McKay Scholar. He also holds a B.A., magna cum laude, from Tulane University. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Barksdale served on the legislative staff of former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, M.D. Mr. Barksdale is admitted to the New York Bar and is a member of the New York Bar Association. He is also a trustee of Tulane University.

John Bertuzzi

John Bertuzzi

Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities

John works in Energy Trading. He joined Goldman Sachs as a vice president in Energy Trading in 1997 and became a managing director in 2000.

Prior to joining the firm, John worked as a senior vice president of Energy Derivatives Trading at Lehman Brothers, an executive vice president of Oil Trading at a subsidiary of Mitsui & Co (USA) Inc. and as a senior vice president of Oil Trading at Metallgesellschaft Corp. John earned a BS in Mathematics from the University at Albany, New York, in 1976 and an MBA from the University of Michigan in 1978. He and his wife, Gail, have two children and live in Old Greenwich, Connecticut.

Miles Clements

Miles Clements

Accel Partners

Miles joined Accel in 2009 and focuses on growth investments in software, internet and digital media companies.

Prior to joining Accel, Miles was an Associate with Summit Partners, where he worked with growth-stage companies primarily in the SaaS, e-commerce and e-learning sectors. At Summit, Miles assisted with the firm's investment in Tiny Prints, an online retailer of premium, customized social stationery products. He was responsible for sourcing, evaluating and executing private equity investments ranging in size from $5 million to $500 million. Miles previously spent time in the White House Office of Cabinet Affairs and the United States Senate.

Miles graduated from the University of Virginia, where he was a member of the nationally-ranked Cavaliers football team. He currently resides in San Francisco.

Suzanne T. Mestayer

Suzanne T. Mestayer

Founder Advisean Partners, LLC

Suzanne Mestayer is founder of Advisean Partners, LLC, a private investment and consulting company. She also serves on the board of McMoRan Exploration Co., an independent public company engaged in the exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas.

She has been particularly active in local, national and international non-profit organizations. She currently serves as chair of the board of Loyola University New Orleans, member of the board of Ochsner Health System, Secretary of the Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region, and past chair of both Greater New Orleans Inc. and United Way of Greater New Orleans. Her previous involvement also includes board membership in the International Women's Forum and its Leadership Foundation, as well as numerous other civic organizations.

Her career in banking included serving as President of the New Orleans market for Regions Bank. She is also a CPA-Inactive, and was a partner in Arthur Andersen & Co. where she practiced for many years.

She has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Louisiana CPA's Distinguished Public Service Award and the Outstanding CPA in Business and Industry. She was also honored as a Young Leadership Role Model and as one of Family Service's Ten Outstanding Persons. She was twice named as a CityBusiness Women of the Year member.

Special Guests

James Carville, Jim Coulter, Bob Brown, General Wesley Clark, Amy Cosper, Dr. Scott Cowen, Mark Cuban, Michael Hecht, Walter Isaacson, Julie Silard Kantor, Robin Keegan, The Honorable Mitch Landrieu, Mary Matalin, Irvin Mayfield, Stephen Perry, Peter Reiling, Hugh Weber & Kurt Weigle

  • "Inspired by Design"

    Entrepreneur.com - 5/3/10

    Just recently, Hardy was chosen as one of seven entrepreneurs to partner with an MBA team in New Orleans Entrepreneur Week 2010, when over 150 top MBA students, corporate volunteers, and our nation's most accomplished entrepreneurial talent congregated and collaborated in New Orleans to provide 9,121 hours of direct service to 329 early-stage New Orleans entrepreneurs....

  • "Reaping the Reward"

    myNewOrleans.com - 4/8/10

    What a year it has been so far! And now we are smack in the middle of festival season: Pinch me, I must be dreaming in the land of dreamy scenes. As good as it has been (Thank you, Saints. Thank you, Mitch. Thank you, Rex, etc.), plenty has been going on in parallel to all the Big Things that should not go unnoticed.

  • "How Businesses Are Launched, Big Easy Style"

    GOOD - 4/8/10

    Right after Hurricane Katrina hit, the academic world responded to the disaster. Schools sent students to do relief work, symposiums were planned.... Over spring break, while many of their peers lapped up tropical-flavored drinks, business students from around the country flew to New Orleans, where they were matched with local entrepreneurs as part of Idea Village's Entrepreneur Week.

  • "C.U. Team Takes First Place in Entrepreneur Challenge"

    The Cornell Daily Sun - 4/2/10

    The first time's a charm. The Johnson School of Management team travelled to New Orleans from Mar. 20 to Mar. 27 to compete for the first time in the Entrepreneur Challenge and won first place - beating out rival business schools Stanford, Northwestern, University of California-Berkeley and University of Chicago.

  • "Big Easy Blends wins Entrepreneur Week competition"

    New Orleans CityBusiness - 3/30/10

    Big Easy Blends, makers of the portable potable Mar-GO-rita, were chosen winners of New Orleans Entrepreneur Week’s competition among up and coming businesses. One of CityBusiness’ Innovator of the Year honoree in 2009, Big Easy Blends was founded in 2007 by Craig Cordes....

  • "Jazz Festival for Entrepreneurship"

    TravelTalk Media - 3/28/10

    Mixing work with fun is a longtime New Orleans specialty and nobody does it better. Mix they did again this week in the Big Easy for the annual New Orleans Entrepreneur Week where some of the nation’s most creative minds congregated to celebrate, support and promote entrepreneurship and innovation.

  • "Johnson School team wins New Orleans IdeaCorps Challenge!"

    Cornell University The Johnson School - 3/27/10

    A team from the Johnson School, participating in their first IdeaCorps Challenge in New Orleans, took first place among other visiting business-school teams from Kellogg, Booth, Haas and Stanford.

  • "Students team up for New Orleans Entrepreneur Week"

    Tulane University Freeman School of Business - 3/27/10

    Jack and Jake's Local and Organic Market is a new business that plans to bring locally grown food to customers in underserved neighborhoods within three days of harvest, but to achieve that goal, the company first needs a top-notch distribution system. That’s where a team of MBA students from Tulane, Loyola and UNO comes in.

  • "New Orleans entrepreneurs merge commercial and social-welfare interests"

    The Times-Picayune - 3/23/10

    Hurricane Katrina disrupted the sense of detachment and malaise that can often envelope communities, and in doing so it laid the groundwork for a burgeoning innovative entrepreneurial community in New Orleans, the president and chief executive officer of the Aspen Institute said Monday.

  • "Entrepreneur Week Kicks Off In New Orleans"

    Good NOLA - 3/22/10

    Entrepreneur Week Kicks Off In New Orleans. Entrepreneur Week in New Orleans is a meeting of the minds for upstart businesses and up-and-coming talent. The week is about matching top business talent from across the country with ...

  • "Village Capital and The Idea Village: Starting Social Enterprises"

    TechDrawl - 3/21/10

    The Idea Village in New Orleans is an excellent model for how a small group of dedicated entrepreneurs have created a remarkable ecosystem. A group of young entrepreneurs in New Orleans went to Atlanta, New York, Boston, and Chicago, did well in start-ups and finance, and then moved back to the city....

  • "Entrepreneur Week billed as Jazz Fest for business"

    The Times-Picayune - 3/21/10

    Despite their splashy appearance, the three-foot-long, black and yellow flags emblazoned with a light bulb and the phrase "It's On In NOLA" that were sent to businesses around the metro area this month may prove to be an understated way ...

  • "Bloomberg Television to focus on New Orleans entrepreneurs"

    The Times-Picayune - 3/19/10

    The digital-cable business network Bloomberg Television will present a live New Orleans edition of "On the Road with Betty Liu" on Tuesday (March 23) from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.

  • "Idea Village sets economic development pace"

    New Orleans CityBusiness - 3/19/10

    Let's spend a few minutes celebrating a victory and remembering what could have been. First of all, congratulations to The Idea Village for making its 10th year and helping countless New Orleans area entrepreneurs make something of themselves and their good ideas.

  • "Big Help in the Big Easy"

    Inc.com - 3/17/10

    Organizers of New Orleans Entrepreneurship Week estimate the event will provide some $900,000 worth of consulting to local businesses. New Orleans already is the fastest-growing city in the U.S. - and a local nonprofit wants its businesses (and hopefully, a reputation for fostering innovation) to keep pace.

  • "Johnson School team to be part of Entrepreneur Week's IDEACorps"

    Cornell - 3/16/10

    A team of Johnson School students has, for the first time, been invited to compete with the best in the Idea Village Entrepreneur Challenge in New Orleans, LA from March 20-28. The challenge, which is part of Entrepreneur Week, charges teams from the nation's leading MBA schools to use their professional skills in short-term, high impact service roles in the revitalization of New Orleans.

  • "New Orleans Entrepreneurship Week: Meet With Google, Deloitte, Salesforce.com"

    BayouBuzz.com - 3/3/10

    Google, Deloitte and Salesforce.com…Jazz Fest of Entrepreneurship…What a week…Attend Friday's Introduction, Cocktail Party and Mingler. Idea Village, a leading organization in Southeast Louisiana is announcing Entrepreneur Week which will be a week-long event involving many New Orleans sites, business and major national industry leaders.

  • "Blue Ocean: Can the popular business strategy help Louisiana find its next big catch?"

    1012 Corridor - 2/9/10

    When state economic development officials talk about the kinds of companies they want to attract to Louisiana, they point to TurboSquid.

  • "Receivables Exchange capitalizes on the down economy"

    The Times-Picayune

    Nic Perkin and The Receivables Exchange, an online auctionhouse for accounts receivable are trailblazing for a new generation of entrepreneurs by capitalizing on a huge theoretical market. New Orleans is welcoming driven entrepreneurs with open arms, says Tim Williamson, co-founder of The Idea Village. "The biggest ideas are the ones that have skepticism in the beginning."

  • "Back in Business After Katrina"

    CNN - 10/22/09

    Sean Callebs reports on how Rock 'n Bowl bounced back after Hurricane Katrina. Rock 'n Bowl discusses with CNN the generous grant he received from The Idea Village which made it possible for them to quickly open their doors to the public news-Katrina.

  • "The New NOLA Tech Zone"

    Where Y'At Magazine - 10/15/09

    According to Tim Williamson, President and Co-founder of the Idea Village, New Orleans possesses, among other things, a university system and a creative culture. New Orleans is also a "worldwide brand." "The good news is that the foundation is there," Williamson says.

  • "After the Storm: New Orleans' economic rebirth"

    CNN - 8/27/09

    "If you look at the people that have come since Katrina, there has been this influx of talent who has come to New Orleans, initially to help, but now they are here to stay and live and to grow new companies. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to reinvent an American city," Tim Williamson said.

  • "Entrepreneurs Take to 'Big Easy'"

    Wall Street Journal - 8/24/09

    Small-business owners who left are now coming back, driven by a sense of mission to help the struggling city and to take advantage of generous tax breaks. Young professionals have moved to the Big Easy to help with its recovery, enjoy its cultural offerings and start businesses.

  • "The changing face-and faces-of New Orleans"

    The Times Picayune - 8/23/09

    "Now you have some people who are here not just for the recovery, but who have drunk the Kool-Aid and want to be part of the long-term economic and social change of New Orleans," Tim Williamson said.

  • "A Place of Their Own"

    1012 Corridor - 8/1/2009

    "If you’re a young, bright entrepreneur, New Orleans looks pretty interesting right now," [Idea Village CEO Tim] Williamson says. "There aren’t hundreds of thousands of layoffs; there’s actually a growing, entrepreneurial community. We’ve got our coolness, but there’s also a sense of opportunity here, because we’re going through a transformation."

  • "Entrepreneurs Leverage New Orleans's Charm to Lure Small Businesses"

    The New York Times - 7/30/09

    "Competitive gets you nowhere. It's about being collaborative. And this city is so like that, from the people helping each other rebuild their homes to building businesses," said Seema Sudan, the owner and director of the knitwear company LiaMolly.

  • "Introducing the Entre-pioneers of the 'New' New Orleans"

    Social Earth - 7/30/09

    Clusters are a validation that entrepreneurs can create economic and social change.

  • "Persevering in New Orleans"

    The Washington Times - 7/29/09

    Driven by the mantra "Trust your crazy ideas," The Idea Village is a nonprofit dedicated to accelerating the city's for-profit entrepreneurial culture. Through a combination of talent attraction, technical support and connection to financing, the organization has supported more than 255 entrepreneurial ventures representing 946 jobs and more than $69 million in revenue.

  • "Think Tank"

    WWL - 7/24/09

    Think Tank hosts Tim Williamson, Miji Park, Jo Ann Minor and Amy Cosper, Editor in Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine, on July 24th to discuss entrepreneurship in New Orleans and the grand opening of The Entergy Innovation Center.

  • "Entrepreneur Magazine Highlights the New Orleans Entrepreneurial Ecosystem"

    Entrepreneur Magazine - 7/23/09

    "When The Idea Village was founded in 2000, we were building the framework for vibrant entrepreneurial community. 9 years later, this nascent spirit is alive and growing" says Tim Williamson.

  • "Laid-off Wall Streeters Find Entrepreneurial Spirit"

    Christian Science Monitor - 7/23/09

    "Clustering entrepreneurs is quite useful," says Tim Williamson, President of The Idea Village, a New Orleans business incubator. "It allows people to interact closely, bump into each other at the water cooler, [and it] forces conversation," he says.

  • "Entrepreneurial Hubs Are Springing Up Across the City And Spurring Economic Development"

    The Times Picayune - 7/19/09

    "The hubs operate under edgy names - Entrepreneur's Row, The Icehouse, The IP and the Entergy Innovation Center. The hubs encourage networking and collaboration among innovative companies while seeking to recreate a freewheeling culture reminiscent of Silicon Valley."

  • "Despite the National Recession, New Orleans is Attracting a Wave of Workers Pursuing Entrepreneurial Jobs"

    The Times Picayune - 6/26/09

    "New Orleans is attractive because there are lots of opportunities here and less layoffs than in other places like Boston or San Francisco," Tim Williamson said.

  • "Trumpet named one of top 10 marketing agencies in the country by Fast Company magazine"

    The Times-Picayune

    Regional New Orleans ad agency continues to craftily reinvent itself news-Katrina by becoming a startup incubator.

  • "3-D role in building up America"

    Anderson Cooper 360

    Turbosquid, a New Orleans-based 3-D imaging company becomes a worldwide leader in its industry despite difficult odds.

  • "James Carville: New Orleans is Storming Back"

    CNN

    James Carville pens a tribute to New Orleans’s historic rebirth.