Founder-first
Every room, intro, report, and partner path should help builders get closer to the specific people who can help them.
About Roots
A network for founders building outside the major startup hubs.
Roots is built by Redbud VC to connect what Missouri already has: established companies, founders, technical talent, experienced operators, and local capital.
The belief is simple: access changes outcomes.
Columbia has already shown what happens when talent stays, operators reinvest, and companies grow from first principles. EquipmentShare, Zapier, CARFAX, Veterans United, Paytient, and other Missouri-built companies prove the market is not empty.
But one city is not enough. Roots exists to connect Kansas City, St. Louis, Columbia, Springfield, Rolla, and the broader Midwest into one network.
Operator-led
Roots is shaped by people who have built and scaled companies in Missouri.
Missouri first
The first market is focused because density matters. The network can grow Midwest and national after the core is strong.
This is your
network.
Roots is built by Redbud VC — the early-stage fund founded in Columbia, Missouri, by the team behind EquipmentShare.
Roots is built by Redbud VC — the early-stage fund founded in Columbia, Missouri, by the team behind EquipmentShare (top-25 YC and Nasdaq-listed $EQPT).
Roots is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
By Redbud VC 