Column: Bloomington provided everything we needed for a successful startup

Mit einem weinenden Auge.

This German expression, “with one crying eye,” captures how I feel about leaving Bloomington.

In January 2020, we sold our family home of 24 years in Great Falls, Virginia, and arrived in Bloomington (where I had studied law in the ‘80s), excited to take full advantage of all its culture, sports, and warm midwestern spirit while launching SummaForte (“top strength” in Latin), our new company. We will never forget the move-in day with so many smiling neighbors welcoming us as the truck was emptied of boxes and furniture. A few months later, our co-founder and son, Murtagh (2017 Kelley School grad), left his job and security behind in Chicago to move to Bloomington so we could all take the plunge into the startup world together.

We chose Bloomington for a few reasons. As a native Hoosier, I received my J.D. from the Maurer School of Law in 1984. While my career took me away from Indiana on an international trek for almost four decades, I stayed connected to Bloomington and IU through occasional short-term teaching stints at the law school and guest lectures at the Kelley School. This continued engagement allowed me to discover an ecosystem in Bloomington that would eventually lure us here to launch our startup venture.

We took office space in The Mill, a former furniture factory with an incredibly cool vibe, conveniently located next to the Upland Brewery, its quasi-cafeteria. The Mill’s open atmosphere and blend of original and new architecture breeds energy and spontaneous interactions that are essential for startups. Home also to IU Ventures, the IU Angel Network, the Flywheel Fund, and a bevy of experienced business coaches, The Mill serves as a bridge between funders, founders and mentors where ideas and helpful recommendations flow freely in all directions. SummaForte has been a direct beneficiary of this ecosystem as several “IU Angels” helped fuel our early-stage journey with funds, ideas, contacts and encouragement. I truly can’t imagine a better place than The Mill for founders to turn their dreams into reality.

In addition to The Mill, the university also provided us with incredible value in the form of professor coaches, student interns, and contacts to university alumni across the country. For example, our market research partner and the bank we use for the company evolved out of Indiana University connections. It’s amazing how willing — and even excited — IU alumni are to connect with and support other Hoosiers.

During the past year, our four adult “children,” who were scattered from the Washington, D.C. area to Colorado, all decided to relocate to the East Coast. To be closer to them, Fionnuala and I decided to move back to Great Falls, Virginia, this summer. Whether we sell our home here is a question for later (teaching at IU in the future remains high on my wish list). Come what may, we know for sure that a big piece of our hearts will remain here in Bloomington. We will miss our neighbors, the farmers’ markets, the festivals, the rich variety of ethnic restaurants, the sports, the culture and the good, neighborly warmth and care.

This is truly a special community. Thank you for three years of valuable professional and personal experiences and a trunk full of tremendous memories to take with us.

Jeff Thinnes is co-founder and CEO of SummaForte, Inc.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Column: Bloomington, IN, has everything a startup needs for success