The Town of Chapel Hill Economic Development department has sponsored a radio series with WCHL’s 97.9 The Hill entitled “The Innovators”. 

The Chapel Hill community is home to many incredible entrepreneurs and business owners from diverse industries, each with a unique business story. Each installment shines a spotlight on these founders and operators, giving listeners a sneak peek into how these businesses started and why Chapel Hill was the place to do so.  Each episode consists of a five-to-seven-minute interview facilitated by Aaron Keck, host of 97.9 The Hill’s morning show. Interested listeners can tune in live at 7:30 AM or from Chapelboro.com each month. This series is the perfect way to learn about some incredible products and services with local ties and the visionaries behind them.

Four episodes have aired and are currently available to listen from the series archive page. These episodes feature discussions with a range of entrepreneurs from the food industry to healthcare. The most recent episode included Jacklyn Boheler a co-founder of the nonprofit B3 Coffee. This organization provides community-integrated social and vocational opportunities for people of all abilities. Using the way coffee brings people together, B3 Coffee aims to dismantle stigma and influence change toward a more inclusive and equitable world. Mary Laci Motley the Founder and CEO of EATS2SEATS chatted about her unique market. EATS2SEATS provides fundraising opportunities for nonprofits by partnering with stadium concessions to meet staffing needs during sports and entertainment events and celebrates and supports the human component of the industry. Neal K. Shah the CEO of CareYaya highlighted his motivation for creating the now fast-growing health-tech startup. CareYaya provides home care for those with elderly loved ones and medically vulnerable children by pairing pre-health college students with families for on-demand care. The last published episode features David Spratte the co-founder of Carpe, a new local business created to tackle a tough problem – body sweat. They have developed a range of products from traditional antiperspirants to a clinical grade regiment. 

The next episode of “The Innovators” is airing on January 19th and are published on The Innovators Archives – Chapelboro.com immediately afterward. Starting in January, segments will air on the 3rd Thursday of every month until June 2023.