Becoming a Christian during law school, Tom Eggleston developed a life mission that continues to guide him today: "100x," based on Jesus' words in Luke 8, "and some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold." This mission began to shape him as a young attorney at Ball & Eggleston in Lafayette, an adjunct professor of law at Purdue, and a host to frequent Fellowship of Christian Athletes huddles during those years.
It is possible that the seed which fell into his life has already yielded a hundredfold, but that hasn't stopped Eggleston. He continues to press into planting, now from his position as Chairman of RENU Management, founded with Traves Bonwell in 2009. He also is managing director, with sons Jack and Thomas as advisors, at Charmides Capitol, a venture capital firm Jack started while playing pro basketball in 2015. Charmides invests in what Tom calls "disruptive technology."
Between the two companies, he is building a legacy with and for his family – 34 investments currently – and any number of other entrepreneurs who may come with innovative and disruptive ideas to receive not only funding, but also the strategic insight and leadership offered by the Charmides team.
EARLY YEARS AND CAREER
His deepest roots, outside of faith, are in West Lafayette, where he grew up and graduated high school. After earning a BS in Economics at Dartmouth and a JD at University of Virginia, he practiced for nine years at Ball & Eggleston and married his sweetheart, Kathy, a pediatrician at the time, who has been his heroine and partner, for 37 years. Another heroine is daughter, Annie, who worked as a micro-loan officer for Hope International after college, and also stretched her entrepreneurial roots by starting a small business in Lincoln Park, Illinois.
A man who welcomes "disruption," his own career switched from law into management in 1986, when he was tapped to move to Indianapolis and join the executive team of the 10th PanAm Games. Ultimately involving more than 7,900 athletes and officials from 39 countries and 297 events across 30 sports, the net result was a huge success for Indy and the Olympic sports, but it wasn't without disruption. Eggleston and Mark Miles, currently the President and Chief Executive Officer of Penske Entertainment Corporation (also credited for introducing him to Kathy on a blind date) took some big risks, serving as the host broadcaster for 26 hours of CBS and international coverage, helping deliver a successful invitation to Fidel Castro and all Cuban athletes to participate, and, in between, mediating a battle between Disney and CBS over the opening ceremony.
Continuing in his management career, Eggleston became the General Manager for Global Automotive at ITW. Next, he led Amway in a global expansion in the 1990s where revenues increased by 300 percent. For his following venture, he became more entrepreneurial, co-founding DriversMart Worldwide, which later sold to AutoNation, becoming the first retailer to achieve $1B in online sales in 1999.
When they returned to Indianapolis, Eggleston served as CEO of CP Morgan and helped it become the largest private home builder in the US and winner of the APEX Award from Big Builder magazine.
And then came RENU and Charmides, and a legacy 100x and beyond.
THE VENTURE CLOSEST TO TOM'S HEART
The startup still closest to his heart, Interactive Metronome (IM), was inspired by a music producer to train musicians for perfect timing. Kathy signed up their oldest son, Jimmy, at a developmental learning center to learn the piano prior to entering 2nd grade. Born with a rare disorder, diaphragmatic hernia, that affected his mobility, coordination, breathing, and digestion, Jim’s outcomes from IM were nothing short of profound. Because the Egglestons explored its more novel possibilities with the help of a developmental learning specialist, IM has now benefitted over a million people as a non-medical intervention for creating new connections in the brain, helping patients recover speech processing, auditory, and attention function after stroke, brain injury, and other language processing disorders. Eggleston co-founded IM with Matt Wukasch, who still leads the enterprise.
EGGLESTON'S IDEAS FOR A BETTER INDY
THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX. Eggleston loves the word "disruptive." It is a focus that began early in his career as he sought to look for innovative ways to approach existing problems. He believes there is more innovation in education, housing, and food distribution for Indy just waiting to be born.
GO AHEAD, LEAN ON OTHERS. Eggleston can see how his life has been enriched, even astronomically, by meaningful peer relationships and dependence on others.
KEEP COMING TO C7. For him, it has been an introduction to social services in a very personal way. "It's one thing to be a donor," he says, "but to meet staff and residents has elevated our involvement and prayer support. C7 is a brilliant idea with real impact. It's getting your hands and feet dirty in a beautiful way."
TOM EGGLESTON TRIVIA
Favorite hobby besides work? Cycling (Peloton and road) and golf
Go to snack and beverage? Raisin Bran Crunch with fruit and "Athletic"
Favorite restaurant, locally? The Kroger Salad Bar, disruptive to the norm, where he often meets others for a healthy lunch.
Favorite place for a vacation? Camp Brosius, a family camp run by IU where the Eggleston's started to vacation 30 years ago.