5 Reasons I’m excited about Switchyards

Tavani hanging out in front of his new Switchyards building

Switchyards, Michael Tavani’s latest project, just announced its first batch of startups to join the effort. The Switchyards mantra: Where consumer and design-focused companies grow in Atlanta. Has a nice ring :)

I was given a tour of the building (pre-construction) recently and I’m really impressed with the vision that Michael has for the place. In fact, I can’t wait to plunk down my money to be a social member when that’s possible.

Here are 5 reasons I’m really excited about Switchyards:

1. Atlanta needs a focused effort to give consumer-oriented startups a chance. I lived this first-hand with Dragon Army. Unfortunately, the reputation we have for not being a great B2C startup town is deserved. And I say that not to deliver any criticism to our venture and angel community. In fact, I think we have a very strong investment community, but they don’t have roots in consumer-oriented investments (which is understandable) and therefore, its not an easy proposition for them.

2. I’m excited to see Tavani in action again. Anyone who is willing to dress up in a gorilla suit to promote his business is someone you want back in the game. After leaving Scoutmob, I’m excited to see him put his guerrilla-marketing tactics to use again (couldn’t resist).

3. Downtown Atlanta needs some startup love. Buckhead has the Atlanta Tech Village and Midtown has a bunch of things (GA Tech, Flashpoint, etc.), but downtown doesn’t get much startup love. Whether it was more affordable or the perfect place to hatch Switchyards, or somewhere in between, I’m psyched that it ended up downtown.

4. I love what Tavani brings to the startup scene in Atlanta. Even when we debate, its good fun and highly engaging. Though I don’t think I’ll be debating him on the merits of Switchyards!

5. Because at the heart of all of this, is a person with passion trying to make his dream a reality. And how can that be anything but inspiring and exciting.