Optimist Ventures Creates A New Kind of Capital for Asheville's Recovery

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Devin: What is your superpower?

Jeffrey: But I do want to say the superpower is Being really good with names, and it’s taken a lot of practice and many, many years of work, but being able to meet somebody, remember their name, make a connection, and see them anytime later and be able to call them out, remember their name instead of just being like, hey, buddy. Being able to call someone’s name lets them know you see them, you hear them, you care about them, and they’re important to you.

Post-Hurricane Helene recovery in Western North Carolina needs capital that treats local entrepreneurs as builders, not charity cases. Jeffrey Kaplan, CEO of Optimist Ventures and Director of Venture Asheville, is helping make that possible with a new fund designed for Asheville’s real economy.

During this episode, Jeffrey explained how Venture Asheville grew out of the region’s economic development work. The team had already planned to launch an accelerator and fund before Hurricane Helene. Then the storm hit. Assumptions changed. Fundraising changed. The community changed.

Rather than step back, Jeffrey and his team pivoted. Optimist Ventures raised its first fund, invested in seven companies last year and is preparing to invest in 13 more.

That matters because, as Jeffrey said, “net new job growth creation is coming out of small businesses.” He sees local entrepreneurship not as a side project but as core economic development. In a place better known for hospitality, food and beverage, health and wellness than high-growth startups, that shift is powerful.

The fund pairs philanthropy with investment capital. Each participating company receives $50,000. Half is a grant. Half is structured through a Shared Profit Agreement note, or SPA Note, a new instrument Optimist Ventures created to avoid the limits of traditional grants, debt and equity.

Jeffrey described the thesis this way: “Could we create a localized fund that wasn’t a debt fund, that wasn’t onerous equity, that would also have a built-in liquidity system to get returns to investors without strangling our founders, without forcing exits or acquisitions or IPOs?”

The answer became a purpose-fit profit-sharing model. Companies repay from net profit over six years. The structure encourages founders to reinvest, take care of employees and grow sustainably instead of chasing a quick exit.

Jeffrey made the impact plain: “Every dollar stays here in Asheville. Every dollar helps recovery. Every dollar is creating a job.”

I love this model because it brings dignity and accountability together. Founders get capital and support. Philanthropists get meaningful local impact. Investors get a potential return tied to rebuilding a resilient economy.

Optimist Ventures is also welcoming community investors through a regulated investment crowdfunding campaign at ventureasheville.com. That makes this work even more exciting to me. It gives people who care about Asheville a chance to participate in the recovery not just as donors but as investors in the future of the community.

tl;dr:

Today’s episode shows how Optimist Ventures blends grants and investment for Hurricane Helene recovery.

Jeffrey explains the SPA Note, a profit-share model designed for resilient Main Street businesses.

Today’s episode highlights Asheville’s choice to rebuild toward what can be, not just what was.

Local investors can support recovery through regulated investment crowdfunding and learn more at ventureasheville.com.

Jeffrey’s superpower, remembering names, reminds us that dignity begins with seeing people.

How to Develop Remembering Names As a Superpower

Jeffrey’s superpower is remembering names. He told me names matter because they “make such an impression when you’re trying to build a network and build community.” For Jeffrey, this is not a party trick. It is a practice of respect. He said, “Being able to call someone’s name lets them know you see them, you hear them, you care about them, and they’re important to you.” In his work, where social capital helps move philanthropy, investment and entrepreneurship together, remembering names becomes a tool for trust.

Jeffrey especially practices this superpower with children. When he meets a friend’s child or sees a kid at an event he is emceeing, he learns the child’s name immediately, calls them out and invites them to help. He does this because kids need special attention and affirmation. He believes being seen by an adult can shape a child’s self-esteem and sense of possibility. That simple act of remembering a name becomes a way to say, you matter here.

Say the person’s name back immediately after you hear it.

Ask how to spell the name so you spend a few extra seconds with it.

Visualize the letters of the person’s name over their head.

Repeat the name early in the conversation to build memory.

Connect on LinkedIn or another appropriate platform soon after meeting.

Make the name conversation playful by asking about nicknames, spelling or origins.

Practice with everyone, including parents at school, kids at events and casual acquaintances.

By following Jeffrey’s example and advice, you can make remembering names a skill. With practice and effort, you could make it a superpower that enables you to do more good in the world.

Remember, however, that research into success suggests that building on your own superpowers is more important than creating new ones or overcoming weaknesses. You do you!

Guest Profile

Jeffrey Kaplan (he/him):

CEO, Optimist Ventures

About Optimist Ventures: Optimist Ventures is a post-Hurricane Helene economic recovery fund based in Western North Carolina. It pairs $50,000 in capital with a 14-week accelerator for capital-efficient, community-rooted growth, targeting companies with $150,000 to $2 million in revenue. The fund blends grant and investment capital through a new instrument it created called the SPA Note, a hybrid grant-plus-investment structure designed to fund founders in disaster-affected communities without the usual friction between philanthropic and investment capital.

Website: optimistventures.co

Company Facebook Page: facebook.com/VentureAVL

Other URL: ventureasheville.com

Biographical Information: Jeffrey Kaplan is CEO of Optimist Ventures and Director of Venture Asheville. He is an award-winning entrepreneurial scholar and published author in entrepreneurship education from the University of Florida, and a frequent speaker on entrepreneurship, including a 2022 TEDx Talk, “How to Build a Better Entrepreneur.” Over his prior decade at Venture Asheville, his work helped produce more than 405 local jobs, $65 million raised, and over $150 million in portfolio revenue.

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jeffdude

Instagram: @ventureavl

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