FOX61 – Entrepreneurs, innovators gather for Shaping CT’s Future conference

BJ Kito, president and CSO of Rebellion Group in Cheshire, previews what attendees can expect at the event.

Shaping CT’s Future: Entrepreneurship & Leadership spotlighted a central challenge facing Connecticut: the state has brilliant business minds, visionary innovators, and bold ideas, but founders need stronger support networks and clearer pathways to scale.

Hosted by CT’s leading brand marketing agency, Rebellion Group, the summit brought together leaders across business, technology, policy, and venture capital to examine how entrepreneurs can move faster from idea to execution, navigate uncertainty, and build sustainable enterprises.

The conversation made clear that Connecticut’s future economic growth depends on how effectively local founders embrace calculated risks, learn from failure, and access the capital, mentorship, and resources required to scale.

Prior to taking the stage, BJ Kito (President & Chief Strategy Officer at Rebellion Group) sat down with FOX61 to discuss the mindset and mechanics driving Connecticut's startup ecosystem. The discussion explored how business leaders and early-stage innovators must shift their perspective on failure, view setbacks as essential learning opportunities, and build strong strategic narratives to capture investor interest. His appearance helped frame the summit’s central vision: connecting great minds through collaborative collisions to accelerate business growth across the state.

“Many people are paralyzed by failure. The key for entrepreneurs is taking that failure as a learning experience, seeing what worked and what didn't, and adjusting your perspective for the next time around,” said Kito.

“We wanted to create a platform that brought those conversations together, created wonderful collisions of great minds, and hopefully enabled a greater impact across Connecticut,” added Kito.

If you want to learn more about events and initiatives like this, head to shapingctsfuture.com.