Charity D'Amato is founder of Chartreuse, a boutique design studio that specializes in making a visual splash for its clients.
Chris Seper is founder of MedCity Media, a successful, new media company that covers life science and health care innovation.
Claude Kennard is founder of Metaloy, which is inventing processes that allow the refining industry to re-use some of its chemical by-products, saving both money and the environment.
Connie Abirached is founder of Inky Dink T's, a niche market garment-printing business.
Lisa Gear is founder of Lunatic Fringe Salon, an innovative salon that gives back to the community.
Mark Gilicinski is founder of MobileXpeditions, a startup company that has developed tours, presentations and games that can be used on smart phones.
Noel Gauthier is founder of Losantiville, a design collective where a diverse group of people share space, tools and a storefront showroom.
Stacey Shiring is founder of Bridal Divas Ink, a stationery company that blends community with commerce.
241 companies and growing.
North Carolina may call itself the birthplace of aviation, but Dayton -- as the birthplace of Orville and Wilbur Wright -- is the real McCoy. Now home to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base -- with some 26,000 employees, it's the state's largest single-site employer -- Dayton continues to be first in flight while also emerging as a leader in Ohio's new economy. A rising tide of high-tech firms in sensors, human sciences, information technology and healthcare -- and world-class partnerships between business, government and academia (University of Dayton, Wright State University, Sinclair Community College and others) -- have the Dayton region well positioned.Tired of working? Choose from a culturally rich smogasbord of museums and arts options such as the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery, United States Air Force Museum,The Dayton Art Institute and the new Schuster Performing Arts Center. And Dayton's system of metro parks offers everything from backpacking to a public market right downtown.