Fashion entrepreneur Christopher Mack of MackBrand launched his second annual fashion show on Saturday, March 30 at Front Street in Dayton. At the standing-room-only show, Mack shared his new designs for 2024, featuring his street luxury brand and a preview of what’s coming this summer.
Chris Mack achieved his initial success by creating limited edition clothing offerings, and then selling out all of his stock at various pop-up shops or festivals in the region and in targeted cities across the country. While this worked for getting his brand established and earning lots of customers and followers on social media, his growth was limited, as he needed earnings from one pop-up to plan the limited edition for the next one.
This challenge led founder Chris Mack to the Entrepreneurs’ Center (EC) for an investment from the EC’s Rotunda Fund, a revenue-based investment that targets entrepreneurs who want to double their sales in two years. Instead of investors taking equity in a company, a revenue-based investment lets founders keep 100 percent ownership, while they pay back the investment as a percentage of their monthly revenue.
With the Rotunda Fund investment, founder Chris Mack was able to plan and produce clothing in advance, while still keeping some stock online between his pop-up sales. “The investment capital has allowed me to be more strategic about inventory, marketing, and my timeline for targeted marketing and sales.”
Several EC staffers were in attendance for the fashion show, including Emerald Sparks, who serves as the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) business advisor for Mack Brand.
“Chris is an amazing creator and visionary,” said Sparks. “The fashion show was a beautiful display of his hard work and creativity coming to life! I will forever be proud of Chris and his brand!”
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A Letter from our President & Board Chair
At the Entrepreneurs’ Center, everything we do is driven by one goal: delivering real impact to the clients and communities we serve. Over the years, we’ve celebrated major milestones—but none more meaningful than the one we’re proud to share today.
Between 2017 and 2024, EC-supported businesses surpassed $1 billion in cumulative economic impact, measured through revenue generated, investment capital attracted, and grant funding secured.
That kind of impact doesn’t happen by accident. It’s the result of relentless work to make the Dayton Region one of the very best places to build a business—through bold programming, expanded access to capital, and a community that’s more connected than ever.
For high-growth, high-tech startups, we continue to lead the region’s Ohio Third Frontier Entrepreneurial Services Provider program. Today, we support more than 100 tech companies whose innovations are fueling job creation, attracting capital, and reshaping Dayton’s economic future. In 2025, our successes were recognized with a program extension through mid-2027.
At the same time, we remain equally committed to the small businesses that sustain and energize our communities. Through the Miami Valley Small Business Development Center, we served more than 500 Main Street entrepreneurs in 2024, offering education, one-on-one advising, and support to access the funding they need to grow. We also deepened our role as a convener, hosting Dayton Startup Week and welcoming over 400 attendees and 80 speakers to share, learn, and connect.
2024 was also a breakout year for the Arcade Innovation Hub, our flagship innovation space. Now home to more than 160 member companies, The Hub Powered by PNC Bank has become the region’s most dynamic gathering place for entrepreneurs, educators, and creatives. This partnership between the University of Dayton’s Crotty Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership and the Entrepreneurs’ Center is a powerful example of what’s possible when institutions work together to spark innovation.
From our earliest days as a startup incubator to today’s billion-dollar milestone, we’ve remained grounded in one mission: to build progress and prosperity through entrepreneurship. The future we envisioned is now happening—and we’re just getting started.
We’re deeply grateful to our public and private partners, our community collaborators, and especially the hundreds of small business owners and startup founders who trust us to walk alongside them. This impact is yours, too.
We believe the next billion is already on its way.
Scott Koorndyk, President
Dr. David Kirschman, Board Chair
Water technology innovators often face additional challenges, including high initial capital costs, long adoption timelines, complex regulatory environments, and limited access to commercialization support tailored to the sector.
The SBIR/STTR Accelerator addresses these barriers and aims to support startup fundraising efforts by helping participants:
- Understand and navigate the federal funding landscape
- Develop compelling value propositions and commercialization strategies
- Identify market opportunities and competitive advantages
- Strengthen business planning and investor readiness
- Build actionable plans for pursuing SBIR/STTR funding
A Letter from our President & Board Chair
As we reflect on another year of bold ideas, resilient founders, and transformative growth, it’s our pleasure to present the 2025 Annual Impact Report for Entrepreneurs’ Center—the Region’s venture development leader.
In 2025, our team remained focused on our mission: to accelerate the growth of entrepreneurial businesses across the Dayton region at every stage—from a good idea to a scaling business to a business attracting capital. Through targeted programming, expert mentorship, access to capital, and deep partnerships across the ecosystem, we continued to build a thriving environment where entrepreneurs can turn visionary ideas into economic engines for our community.
In 2024, we reported that our impact exceeded $1B since 2017. That momentum is not just continuing—it’s accelerating. In 2025 alone, EC-supported businesses generated more than $266M in economic impact, signaling a pace of growth that is compounding year-over-year.
These outcomes are more than numbers—they represent real stories of innovation, perseverance, and community reinvestment right here in Dayton. From high-growth technology startups to main-street businesses and neighborhood innovators, the entrepreneurs we serve are strengthening our regional economy and positioning Dayton as a hub for opportunity and progress.
None of this would be possible without the unwavering support of our Board of Directors, our funders, investors, corporate partners, academic collaborators, and dedicated team. Your belief in the power of entrepreneurship fuels our impact across the Miami Valley and beyond.
We invite you to explore the full 2025 Annual Impact Report to see the depth of our programs, the success stories of the founders we are privileged to work with, and the forward momentum we’re building together.
Thank you for your continued partnership as we continue to power progress and prosperity in the Dayton Region.
Scott Koorndyk, President
Dr. David Kirschman, Board Chair
937-203-0771 
