Sept. 3, 2025

This piece is sponsored by Startup Sioux Falls.

In entrepreneurship, there’s always a moment before the breakthrough. It might be a founder sketching ideas on a notepad or the first time a product finds its way into the hands of a customer.

In Sioux Falls, those moments often have unfolded quietly with little recognition beyond the walls of a workshop, a coffee shop table or a late-night office light.

This year, that changes.

Startup Sioux Falls, together with the South Dakota Enterprise Institute, is bringing those early chapters and stages of entrepreneurship to the forefront with the first Innovation Expo + Pitch Night collaboration Sept. 18 at The District.

Instead of focusing on pitch competitions, winners and prizes, the event will spotlight the people and ideas shaping what’s next for our community, offering a glimpse of innovation before it becomes the headline.

From trucks to tech: Grabbrr

In his early 20s, AJ VanderWaal was on the road, running a trucking company that grew to 13 trucks at its peak. He also owned a 24-hour gym in a small town, giving him a close view of how rural businesses operated. The challenges he saw weren’t just about moving freight — they were about time.

That perspective led to Grabbrr, an on-demand delivery service built for rural communities. Instead of focusing on cities, VanderWaal is building a model that consolidates deliveries for local businesses: parts stores, repair shops and grocers. With a driver app already live and a customer dashboard on the way, Grabbrr is starting in Rock Valley, Iowa, with ambitions to expand across rural America.

Every instrument tells a story: StringTree

Peter Burghardt, a lifelong musician with an MFA in creative writing and experience leading a Silicon Valley accelerator, founded StringTree in 2024. Now based in Sioux Falls, he’s building a marketplace where instruments are valued not just as gear but as cultural assets.

StringTree lets collectors, musicians and stores showcase vintage and high-end instruments with context and care. The platform blends smart AI tools with human storytelling to help sellers list faster, buyers discover more easily and everyone connect through the history and soul of the music they love.

Instead of disappearing into generic resale sites, instruments on StringTree live in a trusted ecosystem, part auction house, part living museum, where every piece can be remembered, played and passed to its next admiring owner.

Reimagining travel: Desty and Genie Travel

The final presenters are appearing together, reflecting a partnership that blends two approaches to modern travel.

Alisha Vincent, founder of Desty, has spent two decades helping small businesses and nonprofits grow and 15 years in higher education. With Desty, she’s building tools that allow travel professionals to focus less on logistics and more on creating exceptional journeys.

Her collaborator, Eric Martinson, brings a different angle. A former Disney cast member and founder of the WDW Tips and Tricks community of more than 2 million fans, Martinson leads Genie Travel, a division of Riverdale Travel. Genie supports independent Disney-focused advisers with training, marketing and technology, while also helping families plan seamless Disney vacations.

Together, Vincent and Martinson are showing how travel can remain both personal and efficient in a tech-driven era.

Want the full story?

These four founders represent just a sample of the creativity taking root in our region. Each one is still early in their story, but they’re already showing what’s possible when ideas meet determination.

And this is only a teaser. The full picture — the stories, the energy, the chance to meet the people behind the ideas — will come alive on stage.

Innovation Expo + Pitch Night is Sept. 18 at The District. Don’t just hear about the breakthrough later. Come catch the first glimpse as it happens. Tickets are available now. Sign up here. Plus, use code SFBIZ for 50 percent off!