Founded: August 2011
Organizer: Jacqui Dietrich
Email: denver@houseofgenius.org

Times: Sessions occur from about 6:30 – 9:30PM. It’s helpful to arrive about 15 minutes early.

Denver is probably where the first expansion of House of Genius should have taken place. Weirdly, it started in August 2011, shortly after Austin’s inaugural session. If you’re living in the Denver, Broomfield, and surrounding areas – we highly recommend you get involved!

We host Denver sessions the last Thursday of every month at Fluid Meeting Spaces. Don’t forget, anyone can apply but you must be invited!

Team

Jacqui Dietrich, Organizer
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Jacqui hosts Denver House of Genius in her quest to support emerging entrepreneurs facing whatever the odds. She also serves as CEO of Ercus where she doggedly pursues the question: can we make the world better by making better products? From its 100-year legacy in making well-loved confections the company today is leading collaborative initiatives to transform its supply chain to promote sustainable agriculture in Mexico, starting with cocoa and avocado.

Prior to Ercus, Jacqui developed programs for CU-Boulder’s Deming Center for Entrepreneurship. During her tenure she helped to expand initiatives to promote entrepreneurship in the natural products sector. Jacqui began her career as general manager of  Wild Idea Buffalo where she pursued the company’s vision of environmental, animal and human health. Jacqui currently serves as a member of the board of  Naturally Boulder and hosts House of Genius, both organizations striving to reinforce inspired communities of entrepreneurs. She holds a master of business administration degree from the University of Colorado Boulder, and regularly receives inspiration from her two teenage sons.

Kevin Crocombe, Co-Organizer
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Kevin is from the generation of kids who were super psyched to get an Atari 2600 for Christmas in the early 80s, and has been that kind of “nerd” ever since. As further evidence of his child-of-the-80s status, he raced BMX bicycles and learned to snowboard when lessons were free and rental equipment included Sorel boots retro-fitted with ski-boot liners. He was born in Oklahoma, but got to Colorado as quickly as possible, now claiming to be “almost native” after living in Colorado over half his life.

The degree on his wall says “engineer,” but his real interests are rooted in design. A somewhat byzantine career path has lead him from (various incarnations of) telecom engineer to business analyst, to his current position (which he totally loves and feels is a perfect fit) of Director of Product Development for TravelShark. In that role, he’s working on app and site development and loving every minute of it! After years of watching the tech startup/entrepreneur community from the periphery, he’s happy to finally be playing in the same sandbox.

Matt Bernier, Co-Organizer
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Matt Bernier is a father, husband, entrepreneur, and idea guy. Professionally, Matt is a web developer turned recruiter based out of Denver, CO. He has high hopes for helping the world become a better place. Matt currently works with Technical Integrity.

Dan Richardson, Moderator
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Dan has always been drawn toward the discovery of new perspectives as well as the aesthetics and practicalities of design. At an early age he became fascinated by the intersections and contrasts that occur between the natural world and the built environment. Studying environmental design and architecture gave structure and formal process to Dan’s creative thinking. This structure enabled Dan to apply his creativity to generate complex and strategic solutions for business.

Dan became a professional creative in the advertising industry where he worked on launching and maintaining global brands. His art direction and design work won international awards and recognition. Dan’s focus has since been drawn to other mediums. He has worked and consulted for the publishing, packaged goods, mobile, medical, and action-sports industries. In addition, Dan has founded, helped launch, and managed start-up businesses. Still appreciating the nuances of applied aesthetics and social artifacts, Dan is focused on user experience and digital communication. Currently, Dan is collaborating on his third software business. He is always thinking about the next new idea.

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