On Tuesday evening, Joe Colopy (aka the GrepBeat Godfather) hosted friends, family, coworkers, and others from around the community to celebrate the launch of his new book, “Bootstrapping Bronto: The Art of Scaling Your Startup Without Venture Capital.” The event took place at GrepBeat HQ in Durham, where a cheerful crowd showed up to mingle, offer congratulations, and pick up signed copies of the book.
Once the guests had gathered, received their copies, and put a dent in a table full of delicious crostinis (as well as enjoyed live music courtesy of Joe’s son, Xalvador) everyone gathered to hear from the author himself. Yours truly helped to get some discussion going before opening up a Q&A during which those gathered tossed out a number of thoughtful questions.
Joe spoke about the process of writing the book; he previewed insights about bootstrapping a tech startup and discussed the importance of taking chances outside of one’s comfort zone; he even delved into some of what he sees for the future, both for himself and for how tech companies are built.
Notably, it doesn’t sound as if Joe is jumping immediately into a sequel—at least not before he figures out who’s playing him in the film. Which brings me to the call to action: Please weigh in on this poll with votes and/or comment suggestions, and we’ll reveal the community’s casting decision in a forthcoming newsletter!
This was a very warm event and a chance for appreciation to flow in both directions, from Joe to the community that has surrounded him on his journey, and from attendees to a man they’ve worked with, learned from, and admired.
If you haven’t yet gotten your copy of the book, you can do so here. And if you missed last night’s event, please enjoy some photos below.
