Enabling eCommerce for Makers, Bakers and Shakers with Edwin Ortiz of Rejoicy
01/17/23 • 50 min
Summary
On this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell is joined by Edwin Ortiz, Co-Founder and CEO of Rejoicy, a platform designed to help local shoppers support small businesses through digital storefronts. Rejoicy makes local goods available everywhere and to everyone by facilitating sellers and shoppers through an easy-to-use online marketplace. With over fourteen years of experience, Edwin is also the founder of Luncher, a company dedicated to delivering food from your favorite restaurants to your workplace. Throughout the episode, James and Edwin discuss Bentonville's entrepreneurial resources for founders and how Rejoicy helps businesses go from brick and mortar to click and order.
Thanks for tuning in!
Show Notes:
(0:53) Introduction to Edwin
(1:33) About Edwin
(4:00) About Luncher
(10:38) Pivots in the Startup World
(12:19) About Rejoicy
(16:39) Rejoicy’s Recent Work
(20:00) Edwin’s Experience with Techstars
(23:01) Advantages of Being Located in Bentonville
(26:53) Local Resources for Entrepreneurs
(31:44) Why Founders Should Have a Presence in Bentonville
(37:06) Bentonville Favorites
(42:07) Bentonville’s Contributions
(44:53) Closing Questions
Links
Bentonville Economic Development
Quotes
“When you look at what we’re doing with Rejoicy, it’s ‘What would people do if we make it easy to pursue their passion?’ The reality is that’s its core. The goal is to help people do what they love.” - Edwin Ortiz, (8:53)
“We make it super easy for them to get started. They can start their store in one minute, and they can be selling in less than ten minutes. That is the core of what we want to do.” - Edwin Ortiz, (13:34)
“There’s this feeling, this energy happening in Northwest Arkansas. It almost feels like the Renaissance. You have big companies, but you also have this growing number of startups.” - Edwin Ortiz, (23:51)
“I think for people who are interested in ecommerce, retail, products, the future of work, medtech (and more). Northwest Arkansas is the right place. Northwest Arkansas is the place that will attract all those things because it has the right ingredients to help those businesses succeed.” - Edwin Ortiz, (32:01)
Summary
On this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell is joined by Edwin Ortiz, Co-Founder and CEO of Rejoicy, a platform designed to help local shoppers support small businesses through digital storefronts. Rejoicy makes local goods available everywhere and to everyone by facilitating sellers and shoppers through an easy-to-use online marketplace. With over fourteen years of experience, Edwin is also the founder of Luncher, a company dedicated to delivering food from your favorite restaurants to your workplace. Throughout the episode, James and Edwin discuss Bentonville's entrepreneurial resources for founders and how Rejoicy helps businesses go from brick and mortar to click and order.
Thanks for tuning in!
Show Notes:
(0:53) Introduction to Edwin
(1:33) About Edwin
(4:00) About Luncher
(10:38) Pivots in the Startup World
(12:19) About Rejoicy
(16:39) Rejoicy’s Recent Work
(20:00) Edwin’s Experience with Techstars
(23:01) Advantages of Being Located in Bentonville
(26:53) Local Resources for Entrepreneurs
(31:44) Why Founders Should Have a Presence in Bentonville
(37:06) Bentonville Favorites
(42:07) Bentonville’s Contributions
(44:53) Closing Questions
Links
Bentonville Economic Development
Quotes
“When you look at what we’re doing with Rejoicy, it’s ‘What would people do if we make it easy to pursue their passion?’ The reality is that’s its core. The goal is to help people do what they love.” - Edwin Ortiz, (8:53)
“We make it super easy for them to get started. They can start their store in one minute, and they can be selling in less than ten minutes. That is the core of what we want to do.” - Edwin Ortiz, (13:34)
“There’s this feeling, this energy happening in Northwest Arkansas. It almost feels like the Renaissance. You have big companies, but you also have this growing number of startups.” - Edwin Ortiz, (23:51)
“I think for people who are interested in ecommerce, retail, products, the future of work, medtech (and more). Northwest Arkansas is the right place. Northwest Arkansas is the place that will attract all those things because it has the right ingredients to help those businesses succeed.” - Edwin Ortiz, (32:01)
Previous Episode
Using Tech to Revolutionize Jewelry Stores with Andy Martin of Wishfluence
Summary
On this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell is joined by Andy Martin, Owner and CEO of Moonlight Games, a video game company dedicated to developing mobile apps. Moonlight Games’ extensive list of applications includes Wishfluence, the first branded wishlist app to provide luxury jewelry stores with the means to connect every customer with their dream product. Andy founded Wishfluence with his wife to streamline how jewelry stores manage their customer’s favorite pieces. Throughout the episode, James and Andy discuss Andy’s entrepreneurial journey, the pros of being located in Bentonville and what it’s like to build a company with your spouse.
Thanks for tuning in!
Show Notes:
(0:52) Introduction to Andy
(26:07) Gauging Competition
(30:33) Andy’s Experience with Innovate Arkansas
(39:04) Benefits of Establishing in Bentonville
(49:21) How Families Thrive in Bentonville
(58:00) Advice to Couples Starting a Business
(1:01:12) Future Plans for Wishfluence
Links
Bentonville Economic Development
Northwest Arkansas Technology Summit
Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC)
Sarah Goforth
University of Arkansas Office of Entrepreneurship & Innovation
University of Arkansas Tesseract Center for Immersive Environments and Game Design
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
USC Cycling: Bentonville Becomes Home for U.S. National Mountain Bike Team
Slaughter Pen - Oz Trails Northwest Arkansas
28th Street Park - Cricket Pitch
Helen R. Walton Children’s Enrichment Center
Book: Sam Walton, Made In America
Quotes
“I said, ‘I’m going to do this wishlist thing, and I’m going to do it right.’ Because I’m passionate about startups and I really like how this is solving a problem.” - Andy Martin, (21:30)
“I realized I was in the same position I’d been in building the technology based on what I think the people need without a real avenue to get it to them. And the thought that it will just be good enough and they’ll sign up is not how it works.” - Andy Martin, (30:42)
“..another thing about LA is how cutthroat it is. Why would someone tell me about an opportunity that could hel...
Next Episode
Helping Online Communities Connect and Engage with Derrick Reives & Venki Mandapati of UpSquad
Summary
On this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell is joined by Derrick Reives and Venki Mandapati, Co-Founders of UpSquad, an on-demand engagement platform that helps organizations connect, communicate and collaborate. With over twenty-four years of experience working for Fortune 100 companies, Derrick serves as the CEO of UpSquad, and Venki is UpSquad’s CTO with over a decade of experience as a technology and data science leader. UpSquad’s custom, peer-to-peer platform assists nonprofits, schools and businesses in efficiently managing skill building, work-readiness, mentoring and more with shared equity that encourages support. Throughout the episode, James, Derrick and Venki discuss how UpSquad is advantageous to organizations, the startup path that led to UpSquad and how Bentonville is a positive place to work and live.
Thanks for tuning in!
Show Notes:
(0:54) Introduction to Derrick and Venki
(1:25) About Derrick
(2:53) About Venki
(4:21) The Ideation of UpSquad
(6:42) What UpSquad Provides and Who They Serve
(12:33) UpSquad’s Success
(16:38) From Corporate to Startup
(23:52) UpSquad’s Experience with Delta I-Fund
(33:22) UpSquad’s Participation in 1 Million Cups
(39:02) How Living in Bentonville Has Changed
(46:19) #Bentonville Story
(50:15) Closing Questions
Links
Bentonville Economic Development
Quotes
“What we do is take programs from nonprofits, schools, government agencies and businesses, and we put them in a virtual space. Virtual is the need of the hour, specifically hybrid where they can have both in-person and virtual activities going at the same time. We make it very easy for their members to collaborate in this innovative space.” - Derrick Reives, (6:55)
“That’s another milestone. As entrepreneurs we’ve had to learn to communicate what we’re doing and how it’s helping people. That’s priceless.” - Derrick Reives, (15:26)
“One of the main reasons we decided to open offices here in Northwest Arkansas and Bentonville is because we saw the entrepreneurial support for organizations like us. Not only that, but there’s this ecosystem across the entire state trying to pull in those that are out-of-state.” - Derrick Reives, (29:52)
“Entrepreneurship is difficult, and sometimes we need that environment to really succeed because it’s not going to be a day, it’s not going to be a month, it’s going to be years. We need to work together in order to really create something out of nothing.” - Venki Mandapati, (49:17)
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