buffalo
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Jason Langheier and the question behind the grocery bill
He grew up outside Buffalo, worked his first job at a supermarket and founded the company that became Foodsmart. Fifteen years later, Jason Langheier changed his title while keeping his place in the work.
Kevin Siskar knows what a warm introduction is worth
A friend of a friend helped Kevin Siskar stay in New York. Years later, the Finta cofounder is building software around a familiar problem: getting the right people into the conversation.
Marnie LaVigne and the case for staying home
After the startup years and two IPOs, Marnie LaVigne returned to Upstate New York with a practical question: how could more people build companies here? At Launch NY, her answer pairs experienced mentors with early capital.
43North offered $1 million. Buffalo was the deal.
For twelve competition years, 43North used startup capital to make founders reconsider Buffalo. As its final Finals arrives, the more interesting question is what stays after the applause.
Ognomy Sleep wants your diagnosis off the waiting list
A Buffalo sleep doctor built a virtual care network around a simple frustration: exhausted people should not have to spend months arranging a diagnosis. Ognomy brings the specialist, the test and the next steps closer to the bedroom.
Synacor makes a business of letting you in
The company behind Zimbra and Cloud ID sells control over two ordinary acts: opening your inbox and watching what you paid for. Its own history shows how expensive dependence on somebody else’s platform can become.
The Martin Group Built a Big Agency by Keeping the Small Ones
A one-person Buffalo shop became a 108-person, 200-account communications firm by buying expertise without sanding off its edges. The interesting part is not that it grew - it is what The Martin Group chose to keep small.
The Buffalo Agency That Bought Nothing - and Built Its Future Inside It
A bad assignment nearly cost Crowley Webb its future CEO. Then the agency bought a client with no clients of its own - and discovered that the smartest way to grow was to build new muscles around a very specific problem.
Patrick Reynolds Built a Career by Watching What Customers Actually Do
From a blunt campaign for DISH to the quiet mechanics of customer data, Patrick Reynolds has spent his career helping challengers earn more attention than their size suggests. His method begins in an unfashionable place: watching people closely.
Sami Rahman
Sami Rahman is the CEO of CleanFiber, the Buffalo-based maker of high-performance cellulose insulation spun from recycled corrugated cardboard. A chemical and environmental engineer turned building-materials operator with 20+ years across James Hardie and ICP Group, he joined CleanFiber in January 2025 as President and General Manager and was elevated to CEO after sharpening its sales and operations. He is steering a company that ranked #1 in manufacturing on the 2024 Inc. 5000 list through a Series C raise and the ramp of a plant built to ship over three million bags a year.
John T. Ehrbar
John T. Ehrbar is a career YMCA leader who, starting January 26, 2026, takes the helm as President and CEO of the YMCA of Silicon Valley after six years running YMCA Buffalo Niagara. He has spent over two decades inside the Y movement, climbing from a high school Leaders Club kid in northeast Ohio to running an 80-million-dollar nonprofit serving 2,300 staff across the Bay Area.