Skip to content
i2E
  • Programs
    • For Startups
      • E3
      • Bridge2
      • OCN
    • For Students
      • Entrepreneur’s Cup
    • For Corporations
    • For Investors
  • Client Portfolio
  • About
    • Our Values
    • Meet Our Team
    • Board of Directors
    • Corporate Partners
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Media
  • Programs
    • For Startups
      • E3
      • Bridge2
      • OCN
    • For Students
      • Entrepreneur’s Cup
    • For Corporations
    • For Investors
  • Client Portfolio
  • About
    • Our Values
    • Meet Our Team
    • Board of Directors
    • Corporate Partners
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Media
Search

VentureSpur splits into two groups

Get in Touch

By Brian Brus

Courtesy of The Journal Record

OKLAHOMA CITY – The VentureSpur business accelerator has split into two distinct organizations to better serve the entrepreneurial markets in Oklahoma City and Dallas, Managing Director Kraettli Epperson said Thursday.

The VentureSpur brand will carry forward as VentureSpur Texas, while operations in Oklahoma will be known as LaunchOklahoma, he said. Epperson will remain attached to LaunchOklahoma as a member of the board of directors, as will prior VentureSpur board members Gabe Bass and Mike Whitaker.

The original VentureSpur has launched 11 high-tech startups since it was founded two year ago. The four most active have raised more than $1.7 million on multimillion-dollar valuations, Epperson said. The separation reflects the success of the VentureSpur concept and improves the position of the organization in raising capital, he said.

“We wanted the appeal of a distinctly Oklahoma brand,” Epperson said. “We found that sponsors and investors like to invest close to home, so having two organizations allows them to do that more clearly. Oklahoma investors will know that they’re involved with Oklahoma high-tech startups.”

Accelerators are an evolution of the business incubator concept. When incubator programs were first introduced in the early 1980s, they numbered only a dozen nationwide. Now they can be counted in the thousands, according to the National Business Incubation Association.

Incubators tend to provide resources for their clients such as office space and professional advisers to help refine business models over many months, while accelerators focus more on speed – often just a few weeks – and attract venture capital from multiple sources interested in tech-based business concepts that are already operating to some degree.

In exchange for providing seed capital and other resources, the VentureSpur plan takes a 10-percent equity stake in its startups.

Epperson said VentureSpur Texas will be operated by VC fund Trailblazer Capital, with a focus on mobility and technology for restaurants, retail and hospitality. LaunchOklahoma will be focused on recruiting tech startups in the state.

“Niche accelerators tend to do very well in attracting investors from across the country who are interested in that particular market,” he said.

Epperson said the venture pool in Oklahoma is small, so LaunchOklahoma will expand its efforts to tap into national capital networks and develop so-called crowdfunding strategies that attract many small investors online for early-stage seed funding. To that end, LaunchOklahoma will also test new technologies such as a mobile app for managing networking, scheduling and accountability.

Epperson said LaunchOklahoma is reviewing several startup applications – none of which are related to VentureSpur Texas – and three or four admissions for 2014 acceleration program will be announced soon. This year’s program will include a pitch day in October.

The accelerator also plans a future presence in other cities in the state. Epperson said it was too early to say whether a third VentureSpur will be launched.

Click here to read the article at the Journal Record website.

More News

Loading...
Blog, Featured, News
12.16.24

MidAmerica and i2E Announce Award Winners

Read more
Blog, Featured, News
11.21.24

i2E & Plains Ventures Surpasses $100M Milestone in Total Investments

Read more
Blog
09.30.24

i2E Receives 2024 Excellence in Economic Development Award from IEDC

Read more
Blog
06.18.24

Bridge2 Demo Day Returns, Highlighting Promising Oklahoma Startups

Read more
Blog, Entrepreneur's Cup Featured, Entrepreneur's Cup News
05.13.24

Student Entrepreneurs Triumph at 20th Anniversary Entrepreneur’s Cup, Winning $158,000 in Prizes

Read more
Default Featured Image
Blog, Entrepreneur's Cup News
04.24.24

Beyond the Cup: Tracking Success Stories from the Entrepreneur’s Cup Series – Jessica Kinsey

Read more
Default Featured Image
Blog, Entrepreneur's Cup News
04.23.24

Beyond the Cup: Tracking Success Stories from the Entrepreneur’s Cup Series – Nathan Fountain

Read more
Default Featured Image
Blog, Entrepreneur's Cup Featured, Entrepreneur's Cup News
04.23.24

Beyond the Cup: Tracking Success Stories from the Entrepreneur’s Cup Series – Srijita Ghosh

Read more
Default Featured Image
Blog, Entrepreneur's Cup Featured, Entrepreneur's Cup News
04.18.24

Beyond the Cup: Tracking Success Stories from the Entrepreneur’s Cup Series – MaxQ

Read more
Blog, i2E
01.30.24

i2E Celebrates Success of Inaugural Bridge2 Demo Day

Read more
Blog, i2E, News
12.18.23

i2E and MidAmerica Industrial Park announce award winners for high school entrepreneurship program

Read more
Blog, i2E
12.13.23

Entrepreneur’s Cup Marks 20 Years: Reimagined Competition and Brand – Same Entrepreneurial Spirit

Read more
i2E

Oklahoma City Office

201 Robert S Kerr Ave, Suite 600
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
+1 (405) 235.2305

Tulsa Office

12 N. Cheyenne Ave, Suite 112
Tulsa, OK 74103
+1 (918) 582.5592

  • Client Portfolio
  • About Us
  • Media
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Resources
  • Funding
  • Venture Advisory

© 2025 i2E Privacy Policy

Follow us:

Linkedin Twitter Facebook Instagram Youtube

Programs

  • For Startups
    • E3
    • Bridge2
    • OCN
  • For Students
    • Entrepreneur’s Cup
  • For Corporations
  • For Investors
  • For Startups
    • E3
    • Bridge2
    • OCN
  • For Students
    • Entrepreneur’s Cup
  • For Corporations
  • For Investors
  • Client Portfolio

Services

  • Access to Funding
  • Venture Advisory Services
  • Events
  • Contact
  • About
  • Our Values
  • Our Team
  • Board of Directors
  • Corporate Partners
  • Media
i2E