New Orleans is becoming a magnet for social entrepreneurs around the world. PSFK/Marktd interviews Robbie Vitrano of Trumpet about the startup culture in New Orleans. This has been a trend documented on Startup New Orleans and will be showcased through our NOLA100 Action Project. In this interview, Robbie shares some great insights about the innovative culture brewing in New Orleans:

70% of our business was outside of NOLA (including clients like Fresh Direct who we launched in NY) pre-Katrina. After the storm, we made the decision to focus on home and work at the center of the recovery. After 3 years, it’s time to widen our focus. In that time, we’ve become experts at startups, launches and turnarounds, working deeply within very complex situations to design a strategic way forward, with both economic and social impacts fully considered. New Orleans is a startup laboratory.

Even more interesting is the way that Trumpet has re-invented and positioned themselves post-Katrina:

Lean, hungry Startup expertise with a willingness to put skin in the game. Especially social entrepreneurs as that has been so much of our world in NOLA over the last three months. We’ve got a great team of strategists, planners, biz dev analytics, IP expertise, technologists and ready access to investors. For good or bad, we’re used to working very lean, zeroing in on the business opportunity FAST and tend to be pretty intellectually athletic out of necessity. We crack tough nuts, typically with tiny budgets but for brand-centric business ideas and people who want to scale. Post-K New Orleans has honed the model. We’ll bring our ability to vet and attach investment or we’ll partner with VCs who bake us into their deals. The ultimate thing we’re betting on is that this transcends startups to product launches within existing brands. In effect the same dynamic with the corporate brand as “VC.” So not unique in that a few folks who we deeply respect (like Droga and anomaly) are doing this.

New Orleans is a startup laboratory. Much like Silicon Valley is known for technology entrepreneurs, we believe that New Orleans will be known for social entrepreneurs. New Orleans has the opportunity to launch B Corporations (for good, for profit companies) and become the social innovation capital of the world. If you know of any other projects like Trumpet, please add it to the NOLA100 list!