We are delighted to have Jovani Prince, Gluten Free Kingdom and The Cracker King brand at The Factor Building. Jovani Prince launched The Cracker King in 2017, after loosing his job while he and his wife were expecting twins, he knew he needed to find a stable career to support his family. He decided to start a business. Without a business idea yet, the family went to visit Jovani’s mother Juanita, who gave them delicious hand-made crackers for the long drive home. While snacking on the crackers, Jovani’s wife suggested that that he create a business selling these crackers. Juanita is the inspiration for the creation of the company and she helped develop the first gluten free cracker recipe.

Since its inception, this black-owned business has grown from selling at farmers markets in Portland, Oregon to selling their award-winning gluten free crackers nation-wide.

There are 3 flavors: Cheddar 'n Pepper, Rosemary and Sea Salt. You can find them in the gluten free cracker section at all of the Basic's Markets, Green Zebra Markets, New Seasons, Market of Choice & Whole Foods stores around the Portland metro area and nation-wide in Sprouts and we can ship orders via the website.

Meet Chef Berkeley Braden. This guy is a culinary weapon. We are delighted to have him as part of our Factor Building community. Berkeley is a chef and caterer who has been calling Portland home since 2001. Chef Berk provides an array of services including corporate catering, restaurant consultation, and culinary services for private events, large and small. Inspired by the amazing bounty of the Pacific Northwest, his philosophy is one of simplicity and purity. Having developed great relationships with local growers and purveyors, Chef Berk regularly utilizes local products of the highest quality. His main tenet being, “food that is less processed and closer to its sources is not only healthier, it tastes better too!”

Meet Robert Toppel and Electron Robotics. With 35+ years in aerospace electronics manufacturing (C-Suite) and a seasoned serial entrepreneur, you will see Robert’s “robot children” out in the halls of the Factor Building, refining their capabilities. We cannot help but feel like we are behind the scenes of the Terminator. Robert has loads of experience and is such a wonderful addition to our community. Electron’s keystone product, pr0t0n, is a full-stack robotic software and hardware automation platform. Electron’s technology provides customers with easy to deploy AI-supervised automation manufacturing applications. Recently, Electron Robotics completed the Verizon 5G Cohort at NewLab in Brooklyn and are now working with Verizon on their proof-of-concept to test their pr0t0n robot, use cases, and business model. You can find the article with the videos from their pilots here.

Meet Rohit Prasad, Owner of Compass Color which he established in 2012. Compass Color is a graphics production facility specializing in high-quality large-format, commercial and digital printing. Rohit is easily one of the hardest working people in the business. He is our “go-to” for just about anything we need to print. Whether it is for wrapping an old photo of our building on a wall, print materials for events, trade shows, point of purchase, and retail graphics, Rohit at Compass Color continues to impress us with his capabilities and execution. Rohit sticks to a simple mantra, “quality and perfection drive everything we do.” With the latest state-of-the-art equipment and a team with years of industry knowledge, Rohit and his team have not forgotten about the importance of consistently acting in their customer’s best interest.

Meet Jaylon Butte, one of the members of People On Mars, a collective of inspired individuals with a shared vision of creation, collaboration, and community. Through art, fashion, sport, and more, Jaylon and People on Mars aim to inspire a better tomorrow. Whether it is apparel production, photo studio rentals, or hairstyling, Jaylon and the team at People On Mars continue to be key contributors to what will be cool at the Factor Building.