Veteran entrepreneurs turn military skills into business ownership
Warrior Rising, with funding from the Wells Fargo Foundation, offers veterans mentoring, education, networking, and more as they pursue a path to business ownership.
“I found great purpose in serving my country and serving other people,” Jason Van Camp said about his nearly 20 years in the U.S. Army Special Forces. When he retired from the military in 2015, he asked himself “what all veterans ask themselves, ‘what am I going to do with myself now?’”
After launching his own leadership consulting business, Van Camp continued to talk with men and women veterans, some of whom were struggling. The sentiment was clear: The veterans wanted to start their own businesses.
These conversations inspired Van Camp to launch his next project, Warrior Rising, a nonprofit which provides veterans the education, coaching, mentorship, equipment, tools, network, and funding they need to run a business. Its video curriculum translates the military decision-making process — the operations order — into a business model, said Van Camp.
Veterans can find success on the path to entrepreneurship
Some come to Warrior Rising with an idea sketched on the back of a napkin, others want to buy a franchise or an existing business, and still others are looking to accelerate their current business. Participants attend weekly coaching calls to ask questions, try out pitches, and receive mentoring.
“We’re going to educate you, train you, mentor you,” said Van Camp. “We’re going to give you grants. If you’ve earned it, we’re going to give you opportunities to get investments. We’re going to open our network to you for potential clients.”
“We recognize that many veterans would benefit from greater access to mentorships as well as capital. Warrior Rising is poised to create meaningful impacts for veteran entrepreneurs across industries.” — Kimelyn Harris, head of Small Business Philanthropy at Wells Fargo
More than 36,000 veterans have participated in Warrior Rising programming since its inception, receiving $12 million in funding — $4 million in 2024 alone.
The signature event, the Business Shower, gives veterans key services they need to succeed in business, including a custom-tailored suit, a laptop, a professionally designed website, and headshots. The highlight is presenting their brands in a Shark Tank-style pitch competition to compete for business grants.
For Hyacinth Tucker, presenting her business “was the opportunity of a lifetime.” After serving in the U.S. Army for eight years as an operating room specialist at Walter Reed and Fort Meade, she earned an MBA and launched The Laundry Basket LLC, an on-demand mobile laundry and dry-cleaning business that serves Maryland; Washington, D.C.; Virginia; Ohio; and Toronto, Canada.
“Warrior Rising provided me the support, the education, and opportunities like this so we can grow our business,” said Tucker.
Wells Fargo supports veteran business owners through Warrior Rising
To help the organization grow, Van Camp has forged relationships with organizations like Wells Fargo, which has donated more than $250,000 to Warrior Rising.
“We recognize that many veterans would benefit from greater access to mentorships as well as capital,” said Kimelyn Harris, head of Small Business Philanthropy at Wells Fargo. “Warrior Rising is poised to create meaningful impacts for veteran entrepreneurs across industries.”
Wells Fargo continues its long history of hiring veterans, supporting veteran-owned businesses, and helping military families succeed financially. “Veterans are highly engaged employees. They’re highly engaged citizens. And they’re highly engaged business owners,” said Sean Passmore, a retired service member and head of Military Talent Strategic Sourcing and Enterprise Military and Veteran Initiatives at Wells Fargo.
“By supporting Warrior Rising and other important programs, we’re focused on empowering service members, veterans, and military spouses to successfully navigate life’s transitions, whatever those might be,” he said.
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