New Brand, New Jobs, New Era For Octiv

The Indiana technology sector is getting yet another shot in the arm. Indianapolis-based TinderBox says it is entering a new era with a major expansion and new brand. The sales technology company has changed its name to Octiv and will invest more than $3 million to expand its headquarters on Monument Circle in downtown Indy. The expansion is expected to create up to 224 jobs by the end of 2021. The Indiana Economic Development Corp. says the account management, development and sales positions are expected to offer salaries nearly double the Marion County average.

Chief Executive Officer Dustin Sapp is a Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology graduate who left Indiana for Silicon Valley and was advised against returning to the state to start a tech company. He said today’s announcement provides a bit of validation.

The company was launched as TinderBox in 2010 at DeveloperTown in Indianapolis’ Broad Ripple neighborhood by tech industry veterans Kristian Andersen, Dustin Sapp and Mike Fitzgerald. The company has grown to employ nearly 70 associates and serve hundreds of customers, including Indianapolis-based Angie’s List Inc. (Nasdaq: ANGI), Lesson.ly, Siemens and Relevant Solutions. As part of an earlier expansion announced in 2013, the company plans to grow to 108 full-time workers. The new jobs are in addition to the previous expansion.

Octiv’s platform is designed to help companies create, deliver and track sales assets online. The company won the 2015 Emerging Tech Company of the Year Award at TechPoint’s 2015 Mira Awards. In October, the company announced it had attracted $7 million in venture capital investment led by Greycroft Partners and Allos Ventures.

The IEDC is offering Octiv more than $5 million in conditional tax credits and training grants based on the company’s plans to add 224 jobs by 2021.

News of the expansion comes less than a week after Governor Mike Pence detailed plans for a $1 billion investment into accelerating entrepreneurship throughout the state. That effort includes funding help for co-working spaces, incubators and innovation centers and more support for industry initiatives such as AgriNovus Indiana (agriculture innovation), BioCrossroads (life sciences) and Conexus (advanced manufacturing and logistics). The state will also collaborate with secondary schools and colleges and universities to spark interest in entrepreneurship.