About this Event
Walk through the farmers market. Browse Mother Road. Drive through Kendall Whittier or the Global District. Visit a fabrication shop or a food production facility. Tulsa's product businesses — from artisan makers to advanced manufacturers — are already building something real.
And they're doing it without the ecosystem support that other business sectors take for granted.
Tulsa has invested seriously in entrepreneurship. Most of it built with tech in mind. But the entrepreneur making and selling a physical product doesn't fit that model. The capital isn't structured right. The space isn't built for production. Nobody's organizing this sector — across the full spectrum from craft to advanced manufacturing — so it can advocate for what it actually needs.
Tulsa is at a key moment. The product businesses are here. The question is whether the ecosystem — the funders, developers, program directors, and policymakers in this room — is going to build the infrastructure they deserve before the window closes.
If you make a physical product: This session is for you. Come hear what communities that got this right actually did — and what's possible here.
If you fund, develop, or support entrepreneurs: The product businesses in Tulsa are not struggling because the entrepreneurs aren't talented enough. They're hitting a ceiling because the ecosystem wasn't built for them. This is your chance to understand what needs to change.
You'll leave this session with a clear picture of what Tulsa's product business ecosystem needs, what's already working, and what you can do about it now — not in a year.
Learn about programs around town.
Stay afterwards and connect with others over lunch.
Format: Talk by Ilana Preuss, Q&A, and a facilitated panel with Tulsa product business owners, real estate leaders, and entrepreneur support organizations.
In collaboration with Mother Road Market | Lobeck Tayor Family Foundation, Fab Lab|University of Tulsa, Tulsa County Library, Recast City, Mass Collaboration
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Mother Road Market, 1124 South Lewis Avenue, Tulsa, United States
USD 0.00
