Economic Trends & Inflection Points

Where is the economy headed? What does today's capital environment mean for founders and business owners? And how should you be thinking about the eventual sale, transition, or next chapter of the company you're building?

The2026 Venture Asheville Innovation Summitbrings founders, executives, investors, advisors, and business leaders together for an afternoon focused on the economic forces and inflection points shaping business right now.

We're going beyond surface-level predictions. Expect candid conversations around the economy, M&A, private credit and capital markets, building toward an exit, innovative capital strategies, and what happens when a founder has to become an operator.

THE FULL AGENDA

11:00am — Registration, Coffee + Networking
Grab a coffee, meet some new people, and settle in.

11:30am — Lunch Served
Buffet-style lunch with facilitated table topics designed to get the room talking before the program begins.

12:00noon — Welcome
Opening remarks from Venture Asheville.

12:10pm — ECONOMIC STATE OF THE UNION
An interactive conversation examining macroeconomic trends, M&A, private credit, capital markets, and the forces influencing businesses and investors right now.  

1:15pm — REVERSE ENGINEER YOUR SALE
Don't wait until you're ready to sell your company to start thinking about what makes it valuable.

This session looks at building backward from a successful transaction: what buyers care about, what creates enterprise value, and decisions founders can make today that may dramatically change their options tomorrow.

Moderator:Jeff McKeehan, Viking Mergers & Acquisitions

Panelist:Linda Grant-Smith, Baird Private Wealth + Mark Majewski, Kaplan CFO + April Gremillion, Van Winkle Law + Patrick O'Cain, Certified ESO Consultant

2:30pm — INNOVATIVE CAPITAL STRATEGIES
Equity and traditional bank debt aren't the only tools in the toolbox. We'll explore the evolving capital landscape and ways companies can think creatively about financing growth, ownership, liquidity, and opportunity.

Moderator:Rachael Chestnut, The Play Nice Agency

Panelist:Andy McKay, Baird Private Wealth + Jessie Dean, Asheville Tea Company + Jeffrey Kaplan, Optimist Ventures

3:45pm — FROM FOUNDER TO OPERATOR
Starting a company and operating a growing organization require very different muscles.

We'll talk about that transition — building systems, developing leaders, delegating, making better decisions, and evolving your own role as the company grows.

Moderator:Ric Pratte, Thrive Remotely

Panelist:Jaleigh Wight, Baird Private Wealth + Tracy Eames, TEAMES & CO + Ed Connealy, VISTAGE

4:45pm — Closing Remarks
Venture Asheville + Viking Mergers + Acquisitions

5:00–6:00pm — RECEPTION ON THE SCHOLARSHIP DECK-Sponsored by Viking Mergers & Acquisitions
Stick around. We'll close the Summit with beer, wine, non-alcoholic drinks, light bites, conversation, and a raffle with prizes.

Tickets - $45 per person