The 2017 UTC Entrepreneurship Breakfast took place on Thursday, October 19th on UTC’s Campus in conjunction with StartUp Week Chattanooga.
StartUp Week gives Chattanooga the opportunity to celebrate and showcase its entrepreneurial community. Not only is the city home to some amazing new businesses, but it also offers a network of resources that make it a great place for launching and growing a business.
The College of Business at UTC is part of that network. One of the ways the College of Business reaches its goal of creating “business world-ready” students is by giving them the chance to interact with successful entrepreneurs and business leaders from the Chattanooga area. Chattanooga’s thriving economy is made possible by individuals like Mitch Patel, the featured speaker of the breakfast. Mr. Patel founded Vision Hospitality Group, Inc. in 1997 with the goal of creating a company dedicated to excellence with a focus on community and family. With Mr. Patel’s entrepreneurial spirit and drive, Vision has grown from a single hotel to a national presence. Today, Vision holds a portfolio of 33 hotels and a pipeline of 18 properties affiliated with premier brands such as Marriott International, Hilton Worldwide and InterContinental Hotels Group. Vision’s properties extend from the Chicago metro area to Atlanta and as far west as Denver, Colorado with more than 1,000 associates on the team. Mr. Patel is also one of the most recent inductees in the College of Business Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame.
UTC faculty, staff, students, and community members attended the breakfast and were able to gain insight on starting and growing a venture, as well as a close look at Mr. Patel’s journey to success as an entrepreneur.
