Homayoon Ershadi is the founder of Jabin, a Raleigh-based beverage startup offering a family twist on an ancient Persian beverage. Ershadi was born and raised in Tehran but moved to the Triangle in 2009. An avid runner and cyclist, he found something unique to aid in post-workout recovery: his mom’s take on a traditional Persian beverage.

Oftentimes tech startup founders are creating the solution they needed in the past but could never find themselves. That is the case for the founders of Chapel Hill-based NxtNow, a platform that Co-Founder Kevin Thomas said intends to disrupt the entire music industry. The startup, which completed the Launch Chapel Hill accelerator program last fall, was born out of necessity.