Jeffrey Kaplan

Building Better Entrepreneurship

Jeffrey Kaplan is an award-winning entrepreneur, published author, and professional speaker on the topics of entrepreneurial development and startup ecosystems. Serving as the Director of Venture Asheville, Jeffrey’s portfolio of startups created over 350 jobs, raised over $50M investment dollars, and earned over $105M in revenue. Taking an unconventional approach to founder and startup ecosystem development, informed by his time at UF in the MSE program and as staff in the UF Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center, earned Jeffrey an International Economic Development Council Gold Ranking for Innovation and Impact, an appointment by Governor Roy Cooper to the NC Board of Science, Technology, and Innovation, and listed as one of 2022’s Business NC “Trailblazers”. The underlying philosophy and methodology can be seen in his 2022 TEDxAsheville talk, “How to Build a Better Entrepreneur.” 

 Using entrepreneurship as a model for upward mobility Jeffrey fundraised over $3M for a loan fund serving BIPOC founders with criminal records or no collateral. He also created a Micro Grant Fund of over $50,000 for entrepreneurs with no personal savings to start a business.  

 Prior to leading Venture Asheville, Jeffrey worked for a number of startups in product development spanning ed-tech, healthcare, pet-tech, a dating site, and one internet-connected kegerator.  He credits his entrepreneurial leaning to his father and grandfather, tenacious Cuban immigrants who relentlessly pursue opportunity.  

 When not working with founders or talking about entrepreneurship, Jeffrey can be found with his wife Danielle and their two children on an Asheville trail, paddling in the French Broad River, or at a brewery. 

https://ventureasheville.com/