Each month, AEDC’s Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development Division shines a light on an Arkansas entrepreneur as part of its “Arkansas Entrepreneur Spotlight.”
See below for a full list of past entrepreneur spotlights.
Bryan Fittin, CEO and Founder of Go Rogue Studio
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Bryan Fittin is a seasoned video content producer and storyteller passionate about helping brands amplify their voice through authentic conversations. As the Founder and CEO of Go Rogue Studio, Bryan specializes in creating engaging content strategies for businesses and thought leaders, empowering them to build meaningful connections with their audiences. With a focus on video marketing, podcasting, and personal branding, Bryan’s work has helped countless clients establish themselves as industry leaders.
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CC Young, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Lineup
As Managing Partner and co-founder of Lineup, CC brings a background in live music booking, event management, and music entrepreneurship. A working musician, CC combines hands-on industry experience with a passion for building tools that support artists and live events.
Craig Featherstone, Creative Partner and Co-Founder of Lineup
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Craig is the Creative Partner and co-founder of Lineup, with a background in marketing, e-commerce branding, and design systems. As a musician and designer, Craig blends creativity with strategy to shape Lineup’s brand and user experience. He and CC launched Lineup after developing the concept while playing together in a psychedelic rock band.
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Ali Jabry, CEO & Co-Founder of Kwema
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Ali Jabry is an experienced entrepreneur and the CEO & Co-Founder of Kwema, a safety technology company addressing workplace violence across healthcare and frontline industries. Prior to Kwema, he co-founded an EdTech startup that expanded across five countries in three years, generating nearly $2M in revenue.
With over a decade of experience in building teams and scaling operations, Ali specializes in business development, partnerships, and deploying technology in complex environments. He speaks six languages and currently serves as Chair of the International Committee for the International Association for Healthcare Security & Safety (IAHSS), where he works alongside global leaders to advance workplace safety standards.
Ali is also deeply passionate about wildlife conservation, reflecting his Kenyan heritage and broader commitment to protecting both people and communities worldwide.
Kwema’s Smart Badge Reel™ enables employees to discreetly call for help and share precise location in seconds, improving response times and staff safety across healthcare systems, home care, and enterprise environments.
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Chase Lawson, Founder and CEO of Appellate Technologies, Inc.
Chase Lawson, Founder and CEO of Appellate Technologies, Inc., a public safety technology company building ASTRO (Automated System for Towing & Recovery Operations) — the emerging national system of record for vehicle custody and police-initiated towing operations.
A former State Trooper, Chase founded Appellate after experiencing firsthand the operational inefficiencies, liability exposure, intelligence gaps, and community challenges surrounding vehicle towing, impound management, and chain-of-custody workflows in policing.
Appellate has developed a platform that transforms towing and impound events into structured, searchable intelligence — including VIN data, photographs, GPS information, and release records — helping agencies improve efficiency, accountability, public transparency, and real-time investigative and public safety operations. The platform is also designed to strengthen consumer protection and accountability in the towing process, as an estimated 1,500–2,000 Americans lose access to their vehicles each day due to an inability to afford towing and storage costs.
Today, the company is actively partnering with agencies across multiple states, including live deployments with major police departments, and is continuing to expand nationally from its growing operational presence in Arkansas. Appellate represents a new category of infrastructure-grade public safety technology focused on modernizing how vehicle custody information is captured, managed, and leveraged across law enforcement.
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