BACKGROUND

THE BEE CORP IS AN INDIANA AGTECH STARTUP
DEVELOPING SOLUTIONS FOR COMMERCIAL POLLINATION

WHAT WE SEEK TO SOLVE

Pollination prices are up 300% since the turn of the century. In fact, pollination has become one of the 3 most expensive inputs to produce almonds. The necessity of a strong colony to get the most out of production requires a significant investment of time and money, along with a bit of good luck from the weather. Open communication between growers and bee keepers can only go so far in verifying colony value.

OUR SOLUTION

Verifli is a mobile app powered by infrared (IR) image analysis that allows growers
and beekeepers to measure colony strength without opening the hive. By capturing an IR image of the hive and incorporating physical and biological properties of the bee cluster paired with real-time weather data, Verifli quickly assesses pollination value without disrupting the bees, calculating hive strength.

Verifli users can measure pollination value in seconds, creating more time for growers to tend their trees and beekeepers to build their hives.

WHO WE ARE

TBC was founded by Indiana University students Ellie Symes and Wyatt Wells following their 2014 creation of the Beekeeping Club at IU. After entering a student business competition with a plan to introduce hive monitoring technology to commercial beekeeping, they walked away with a healthy investment and an experienced advisory group. The rest, as they say, is history.

ELLIE SYMES

Chief Executive Officer, 8th year beekeeper

Ellie earned her M.P.A. in Information Systems in 2018 and a B.S. in Environmental Management in 2016 from the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs.

WYATT WELLS

Chief Marketing Officer, 7th year beekeeper

Wyatt graduated from Indiana University in 2016 with a B.S. in Kinesiology from the School of Public Health, with minors in Business, Marketing, and Law and Public Policy from the Kelley School of Business and the School of Public and Environmental Affairs.

JORDAN GAETA

Software Developer

Jordan graduated from Indiana University in 2016 with a
B.S. in Computer Science and Math. A native Hoosier, raised in Lafayette, IN, Jordan comes to us from Amazon, where he worked on expanding their Last Mile delivery platform.

GRETCHEN RIGGS

Data Scientist

After a 17-year career as a geophysicist, Gretchen saw an opportunity to shift gears and apply her skills to data science. Gretchen teaches part-time at Galvanize Data Science Institute in Denver.

WE'LL BEE AROUND...

BOOK ELLIE FOR YOUR NEXT EVENT

Invite CEO Ellie Symes to speak at your upcoming event

SUPPORTING BEEKEEPERS

SAFEGUARDING FOOD SECURITY

We develop technology to help beekeepers maximize pollination revenue per hive. By helping beekeepers measure and communicate the value of their bees, we aim to create a transparent marketplace that rewards excellent bees.

We protect food security by helping growers understand how to manage a critical input: pollination. By educating growers about pollination value, we aim to reduce the strain on bees and beekeepers during major pollination events.

OUR BENEFIT

As a benefit corporation, our company is guided by the pursuit of meaningful goals.
Our team identified two core objectives that we use to focus our long-term strategy.
These goals serve as a reminder that our work is important and impactful.

DIPAK RIMAL

Research Scientist

Born and raised in Nepal, Dipak came to the states in
2007 to earn his Ph.D. in Physics from Florida International University.

JOSH KENNICOTT

Operations Manager
Josh earned a B.S. in Business Administration and Finance from the University of Dubuque in 2001. He brings nearly 20 years of operations experience from previous work at FedEx and Medline.

CAREERS

Our team thrives through trust, communication and mutual respect. We're looking for candidates who share our passion not only for bees, but for developing a genuine and collaborative workplace culture as well.

We want leaders who have the confidence to own their achievements and the humility to take responsibility for their failures.