In a release dropped on its website yesterday Innovation Studio (a.k.a. Venture Cafe Foundation) announced the transfer of operations for the Venture Cafe Cambridge program to the Venture Cafe Global Institute “in order to focus more on it’s inclusionary innovation programs throughout greater Boston.”
The press release has two release dates on it, one for yesterday and the other for Aug. 27th. A search of the Innovation Studio site turned up a nearly identical announcement from August 27th with the identical transfer of operations with regard to Providence. The 4thEst8 contacted St. Louis Venture Cafe Board Chair Whitney Kenter and Chief Executive Tyler Matthews in an attempt to find out if this is happening in St. Louis, and what it means to the troubled event-driven St. Louis ecosystem staple. Kenter had phone connectivity problems with the call, and didn’t respond to a text. Matthews declined a text invitation.
RECAP
Venture Cafe St. Louis operated at a loss in 2019 after a significant drop in revenues. According to tax documents obtained by the 4thEst8, with the help of Propublica, VenCafSTL entered the lockdown with roughly $900,000 in it’s ‘war chest’. At the outset of the lockdown it pivoted from in-person meetings every Thursday to online meetings. In the spring of 2020 local leaders put out a call for help, stating financial trouble. But they kept up their local website, promoting meetings throughout the lockdown, and even managed to tentatively re-enter in-person with a Founder Tour. Then Thursday Sept. 9th the St. Louis site was replaced with a page that consisted of nothing but a logo and a general email address.
A board member later confirmed that they had ended operations, but vaguely hinted at some kind of (unstated) re-emergence. On Monday the 13th a new website was in place, but as the 4thEst8 reported in detail there were significant holes in its content, as well as irregularities. No one with Venture Cafe St. Louis responded to requests for comment.
UPDATE/NOTE:
A couple hours after this story was published Innovation Studio President Daniel Enriquéz Vidaña responded to an emailed interview request with the following:
“I can only speak to Innovation Studio and our transition from Cambridge and Providence and our continued plans within the ecosystem within Greater Boston and Providence. With respect to overall Venture Cafe Global Institute and it’s on going plans for Cambridge and Providence and to any respect with St. Louis you would have to connect with their leadership.”
On the 4thEst8:
Venture Cafe St. Louis goes quiet
VenCafSTL board responds; new site goes up
Caught Schmoozing at the VenCaf Founder Tour
Links:
Innovation Studio Press Release
