A Chattanooga native, James Chapman wasn't certain what to do after college basketball in Virginia.  He took a leap of faith, and followed a vision to launch a tech company based on creating authentic connections, Plain Sight.  But it wasn't easy to see the potential for success.  James launched Plain Plain Sight during the pandemic--a time when government restrictions discouraged human connections.  Despite these conditions, Plain Sight took off and has been a staple for curating safe and authentic spaces. 

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Plain Sight is an online platform where individuals can curate and sponsor events. For James, it was important to support authentic and safe spaces.  Ultimately James soon learned that his vision in business was as good as it was on the court.

James's passion for community building and providing access to capital makes him a true Unicorn in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.  

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James's business has been so successful that he's secured investments from billionaire Dan Gilbert.  However, it's not about the money for him.  James, who has supported other entrepreneurs in raising money and resources through founding the Rocket Mortgage Detroit Demo Day and a co-work space in Chattanooga, is now looking to give back.  He is building a new platform to help event planners raise money, an issue he's identified predominately plagues minority businesses.

Consistent with our Unicorn Features, we sat down with James to cover purpose, overcoming obstacles, and projects he's working on.

How do you describe your purpose in life as a Unicorn?

“I believe my overall purpose in life is to make the lives of others better through community building as well as by creating access to capital and networks.”

How did you identify your purpose? Were there any major obstacles along the way?

“By just being bold enough to try things out that interest me. Along the way, I started to discover what I was good at outside of sports. More obstacles and challenges than I can even recall have presented themselves along the way. Transitioning from sports to business was a big obstacle, and then transitioning from general business into tech specifically has also been extremely challenging. The lessons learned along the way have made it all worth it.”

 

What tips would you provide others to identify their purpose?

“Trust your instincts and ask lots of questions to people doing things that you find interesting. Through that discovery process, you’ll begin to understand what’s your calling and what’s just a passion. Big difference between passion and purpose.”

What are projects that you are working on that everyone should know about?

“We recently announced that we’ll be providing capital advances to event creators that need it most to cover their upfront planning costs. It’s a big problem, and we’ve got half a million dollars on hand to start solving it.”

How can people find you?

Follow James Chapman on all platforms: @plainsightceo