Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Erika Binger, Founder of V3 Sports, located in Minneapolis, MN, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

We started our quest/mission to develop the V3 Center after spending several years working with youth in North Minneapolis and recognizing the need for a year-round place for them to meet, train and grow together. Our initial program coached youth in the sport of triathlon (swim, bike, run). We utilized the parks in our community for running and biking but struggled to find adequate training in our neighborhood for the aquatic component. We were fortunate to partner with the University of Minnesota for training, but it was challenging due to travel time, parking, and events, so we pivoted and utilized a local outdoor pool and the lakes - both were dependent upon ideal weather conditions. Over several years (running the program from April-September), we realized our program's positive impact on our youth and parents and wanted to offer it to more individuals year-round in our community.

We purchased property at the corner of Plymouth and Lyndale Avenues (the gateway to North Minneapolis) and have been working on fundraising to develop a Center that prioritizes equity – in employment, opportunity, and health and wellness. The impetus for the development of the V3 Center was due to a need and has grown to help solve disparities on many levels. We recognized that while our athletes excelled on the local and national levels, their greatest accomplishments were completing high school on time and pursuing post-secondary education. We wanted to create a pathway for others to do as well. We evolved from a youth program utilizing the discipline and motivation of triathlon to include programs and mentorship in education, nutrition, goal setting, leadership, and healthy lifestyles. We became much more than just the three disciplines of triathlon to include 1) community, 2) character, 3) commitment and 1) life, 2) learning, and 3) leadership. I'm proud to say many of our former athletes are currently giving back and serving communities as educators and community leaders throughout the world. In fact, two of our former V3 triathletes are members of our current V3 Board. They are helping us connect with the younger members of our community for the V3 Center.

Our Center will be in North Minneapolis - an often under-resourced, neglected part of our city, with some of the most concentrated numbers of youth (34%), the lowest rate of home-ownership, highest levels of poverty, and disproportionate investment - to shift the paradigm with our hard-working partners by providing health, wellness, equity, and opportunity through fitness, water safety, education, and economic impact. The first phase of our Center will include an instructional pool to provide swimming instruction to members of our community (saving lives)
integrated STEAM programming to expose and engage youth in the production of events, marketing, water filtration/mechanics, media production, employment opportunities, dedicated fitness spaces, and a yoga studio for members to use and be trained as instructors. A cafeteria and retail space for entrepreneurs' drop-in childcare and meeting spaces. Phase two will include the installation of the Olympic Trials pool, four multi-purpose courts (both of which can be used to host events) - running/biking tracks, an event/donor lounge, multi-purpose space, and additional locker rooms.

Tell us about yourself

The youth and family in our community should have the same access, and opportunities to resources as more affluent communities do, yet they don't. This motivates and drives us every day to seek funding to develop the V3 Center ASAP and work with partners who are doing great work so collectively. We can reach larger numbers of individuals.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

There are several accomplishments thus far with this business venture:

  1. All our youth participants graduated high school on time and enrolled in post-secondary education - they placed second in nationals.
  2. We purchased land to build our Center and the Olympic Trials Pool.

Those are big ones that are easy to point to; what is less obvious are the leadership development and teams we are building in collaboration. These relationships are long-standing, and some are newer. Yet, we all want to ensure our community is better positioned for the future and believe strongly in its assets and strengths.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Staying positive and motivating the rest of our team when challenges arise.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

It helps if you love what you do! Treat others with kindness and respect. Fight for justice and equity.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Any vision takes a while to gain traction, which is no different. We lost momentum (similar to others) when Covid hit and worked diligently to get back in sync. While many people/organizations/potential donors/partners express interest and endorsement of the vision, it has been challenging to raise funds, but the murder of George Floyd highlighted many of the systemic challenges we are addressing. We have been truly humbled by the support and momentum we've gained recently, with a couple of major donations and generous, grassroots fundraising we've accomplished, many of which are matched by some of our larger donors. V3 Sports, Inc. teaches youth and adults to conquer their fear of water, mentoring teens as they develop life skills through athletic training and bringing communities together through health and wellness. We will fill a void in our community by integrating a comprehensive health and wellness center that includes water safety, academic instruction, financial literacy, mentoring, and job training. It will be a community hub offering a vast array of programs, services, and meeting spaces for the residents of North Minneapolis and its surrounding neighborhoods that currently do not exist. All ages and abilities are welcome, but we will ensure North Minneapolis residents have priority access to the V3 Center and offer programs offered on a sliding scale to residents of North Minneapolis. We will develop a  scholarship fund to ensure access to those who otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity to participate. V3 is building partnerships with North, Henry, and Edison High Schools to be the primary training pool for their swim teams. The V3 Center site, on the corner of Plymouth and Lyndale, is highly visible from Interstate 94 and Downtown Minneapolis and is already home to a bus stop serviced by several popular Metro Transit bus lines. It is also .5 miles away from the Mississippi River, one mile from Theodore Wirth Park, and just 25 minutes from Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport.

The V3 Center will not only provide the community with invaluable gathering spaces and a world-class pool for swimming lessons and competition, but it'll also bring jobs to the community. It will be a North Minneapolis asset and a regional destination, accelerating development in the inner-core and creating economic impact. The other unique aspect of our project is that it will be designed and built by folks from North Minneapolis. Our architect, Keon Blasingame, grew up in North Minneapolis and works for the largest black-owned firm in the Midwest. Keon and our team worked with members of our community, young and old, to bring a vision to life to ensure that it fits in the fabric of Northside and serves as many people as possible. We welcome the opportunity for anyone to visit our site and learn more about our work and how they can contribute (financially, corporately, partnering, etc.). We also can't thank the community that has rallied behind us enough! We've hosted lawmakers and neighbors and continue to be humbled by the outpouring of support as we seek to engage even more input and support for the V3 Center.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.v3sports.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/V3Sports3
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/v3_sports/?hl=en
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/v3sports

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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