Downtown Location Official For Speak Easy
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe Speak Easy in Indianapolis has made its second location official. The nonprofit, membership-based work space organization says it will open in July in the Morrison Opera Place building, a block away from Monument Circle. Nextech, which is the former ExactTarget Foundation, will relocate its headquarters to the nearly 150-year-old building.
In February, the Speak Easy said it was "looking to scale" in an additional downtown space, having outgrown its location near the Broad Ripple neighborhood. In five years since its founding, The Speak Easy says more than 170 companies have "graduated" from the original digs. It currently includes around 300 active members.
The downtown hub’s founding partners include Nextech, as well as property owner Bruce A. Bodner Co. Inc. and Butler University. Bodner has other investments in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and Anderson.
Executive Director Danielle McDowell says the most successful innovation spaces throughout the country involve partnerships "across multiple organizations with differing backgrounds. We want to accelerate the growth of these companies by convening the right players in our community — like Butler, Bodner, and Nextech — to set The Speak Easy apart as an institution for collaboration, not just business incubation." She says the investment into the property will total around $500,000.
The organization says the strategic focus of the second location will include growing and scaling businesses, not just early-stage ventures. It says the partnerships with Nextech and Butler will also allow it to reach "Indy’s next generation of innovators and business leaders."
Butler President James Danko says "Butler University is passionate about innovation and community. This new partnership with The Speak Easy Downtown will allow us to further our support of Central Indiana businesses and entrepreneurs, while also providing exceptional opportunities for our students, faculty, and alumni to connect and collaborate."
The Morrison Opera Place building served as the home of ExactTarget from 2002 to 2005, which Nextech Board Chair Scott Dorsey says makes the move "perfectly fitting." He adds "the opening of The Speak Easy Downtown is a huge win for Indy and entrepreneurs throughout our city." Nextech President Karen Jung says "in our quest to fuel the next generation of tech pioneers, Nextech seeks every opportunity to connect today’s K-12 students to Indianapolis’ thriving tech community. Place is such a critical piece of the equation. Joining forces with The Speak Easy and Butler provides the perfect environment to spark students interest in technology and provide ample opportunity for meaningful interactions and workplace experiences."
It will offer co-working options, desks to reserve and micro leasing of small offices. The downtown space will also include programming, educational and collaborative resources.
You can connect to more about The Speak Easy by clicking here. The nonprofit was founded in 2011 and its first executive director was the late Denver Hutt.