Business & Entrepreneurship

Michelle Grabau (MBA’25)

Jane Majkiewicz — Tue, 12 Aug 2025 19:00:27 +0000

Michelle Grabau (MBA’25) Jane Majkiewicz Tue, 08/12/2025 - 13:00

After more than 10 years of working in early-stage companies and a brief stint in venture capital, Michelle Grabau (MBA’25) knows that, to be successful, startup founders must understand their customer base. So, when devising her business, R Place, which combines drop-in childcare with socializing and working spaces for adults, Grabau drew on her knowledge as a parent of two.

“I live this experience on a daily basis,” she said.

“I'm surrounded by people that have similar experiences, and so I very deeply understand and can empathize. I'm constantly getting bombarded with the pain points of my customers.”

Entrepreneurial aspirations

Grabau realized she wanted to start her own company early on in her career, when she was working as a general manager at a fitness franchise in the Bay Area of California. She went on to work in operations and strategy for several more fitness companies and spent a year at a venture capital firm, where she evaluated pitches for startups innovating new fitness technology. Through it all, she never lost sight of her entrepreneurial goals. Because she had spent so much of her career working for fitness companies, she imagined that her own company would also be related to home fitness. “But then I had children. And that changed my purpose or my calling.”

As a parent, Grabau was frustrated by the lack of public spaces enjoyable for both children and parents. Places aimed at adults, like breweries, don’t offer enough to entertain children, while kid-friendly spaces, like playgrounds, can be unengaging for parents. She envisioned R Place providing something for all members of the family—social and work opportunities for parents and childcare to entertain the little ones.

“We have a place for us, the adults,” she said. “We have a place for them, the children, but there's nothing that's ours. And so that's where the concept of R Place came to me. It's just as much for the children as it is for the adults, and just as much for the adults as it is for the children.”

Taking the mic

Grabau and her husband relocated from San Francisco to Denver, attracted to Colorado’s abundant outdoor activities and booming startup scene. Given Leeds’ stellar reputation in entrepreneurship and its ties to the Colorado startup community, Grabau decided to apply to the hybrid MBA program, hoping to gain key knowledge and to use the program’s capstone project to officially launch her idea.

“There were big gaps that I felt were missing in my skillset,” she remembered. “Finance, for example, was the big one. Although I knew that some people just go for it, I decided to get my MBA to fill those gaps, and to accelerate the startup.

In the fall of 2023, with a 2-year-old at home and another child on the way, Grabau entered the MBA program. While at Leeds, she participated in Assistant Teaching Professor Brad Werner’s New Venture Launch course, where she developed and refined her pitch for R Place. She then went on to pitch R Place in the New Venture Challenge (NVC).

In her time working for a venture capital firm, Grabau had heard pitches before, but the NVC was her first time on the other side of the table. Luckily, her past as a fitness instructor helped her feel at home onstage.

“I love having a microphone, so that environment was very comfortable in terms of doing it in front of an audience,” she said. “And I'm also quite a competitive person. That played into a lot of my strengths and the things that I like to do.”

Grabau’s idea was a hit. She ranked among the top five finalists in the 2025 Women Founders New Venture Challenge and as a semifinalist in the general NVC.

“R Place is ultimately about being a parent. But it's about being more than that.”

Michelle Grabau (MBA’25)

A founder and a parent

Since graduating last May, Grabau has been working on getting R Place off the ground. She is building a waitlist of interested families and finding the company’s flagship location. In late July, she hosted a happy hour focus group with complimentary childcare, which she said “sparked real conversations about what modern parents need and reinforced the value of building alongside your future members.” Through it all, she continues to be a startup founder who is also a parent, taking calls while her daughter plays in the other room.

In a recent post on LinkedIn, Grabau shared two photos—one of her cradling her baby bump on the first day of the program, and the second of her and her two children on graduation day. Working and getting her MBA while parenting a toddler and a newborn required sacrifices, but Grabau feels that it has made her a better mother to pursue her goals. In her words, motherhood is “a very important core piece of my identity, but it’s not my whole identity.”

“My MBA journey is a perfect example of that,” she said. “Yes, R Place is ultimately about being a parent. But it's about being more than that. It’s about being a parent and ... fill in the blank.”

Michelle Grabau built her career helping early-stage companies thrive. Now, she’s applying this experience and her firsthand knowledge of parenting to a new venture—a purpose-driven business designed to help families build community.

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$15M gift to transform real estate education and student wellness at ��ɫ��Ƶ

Srishti Sharma — Thu, 12 Sep 2024 21:01:43 +0000

$15M gift to transform real estate education and student wellness at ��ɫ��Ƶ Srishti Sharma Thu, 09/12/2024 - 15:01

By Katy Marquardt Hill • Published: Sept. 12, 2024

Students pursuing a career in real estate will soon see their learning opportunities sharply appreciated: On Thursday, ��ɫ��Ƶ announced a groundbreaking $15 million donation from ��ɫ��Ƶ alumnus Michael Klump to revolutionize the real estate center in the Leeds School of Business, as well as support essential student health and wellness programs in the College of Arts and Sciences.

“This transformational gift highlights the power of philanthropy,” said CU Chancellor Justin Schwartz.

“It will support students, faculty, staff and research activities across the vast and dynamic real estate field, driving innovation and enriching educational experiences on campus. Additionally, it will provide crucial support for wellness programs and student mental health.”

The investment will allocate $13 million to enhance the newly renamed Michael A. Klump Center for Real Estate—formerly known as the CU Real Estate Center. This portion of the gift, one of the largest ever given to a real estate center in the United States, will strengthen the center's academics, industry partnerships and career support in the years ahead.

The real estate center, led by Professor Christophe Spaenjers, who serves as faculty director, and Julie Gibson, who serves as the Sherman R. Miller Executive Director, is one of six centers of excellence in the Leeds School which work to help students translate, integrate and transfer classroom concepts into real-world insights.

“This gift is pivotal for CU’s real estate program, providing significant resources that will advance the center’s leadership, enhance student programming and offer student financial assistance,” said Gibson. “The endowment component of this gift ensures that CU’s dedication to real estate education will continue for many generations to come.”

An additional $2 million will support programs in the College of Arts and Sciences that promote ��ɫ��Ƶ students' mental health and well-being. Through the Hellems Fund for Collective Belonging and the Hellems Fund for Fostering Success, this gift will contribute to mental health programming, resources and student support, and welcome programs and outreach initiatives for first-year and transfer students.

Michael Klump

Promoting academic excellence and industry connections

Klump’s investment in the Leeds School will expand leading-edge programs with top real estate faculty and industry partnerships that prepare students to be experts in the dynamic real estate field. The donation represents a major advancement for the center, which was founded in 1997 by passionate alumni and industry leaders as a way to bolster future real estate professionals and promote important research within their field. Thirty years ago, the center supported 10–20 students per year; today it provides opportunities for nearly 450 students annually.

The $13 million donation to the center will endow three faculty positions in real estate finance at the chair and professorship levels. It will also create four funds to advance innovative academics, establish an endowed scholarship, enhance students’ career growth, and strengthen the center’s reputation within the business and alumni communities.

Klump’s significant contribution underscores the profound impact of community support on ��ɫ��Ƶ’s mission and the Leeds School of Business. “The gift will provide rich opportunities to ��ɫ��Ƶ students and contribute to Leeds’ legacy of excellence. Strong support from the real estate community has been a hallmark of our connection with industry,” said Vijay Khatri, the Tandean Rustandy Endowed Dean at the Leeds School of Business.

A gift that fuels the future

With a successful real estate career spanning over 30 years, Klump is the founder and chairman of RCG Ventures, a leading commercial real estate investment firm. Additionally, he co-founded Equity Investment Group, a private real estate investment trust focused on neighborhood shopping centers and established Argonne Capital Group, a private investment firm specializing in companies within the restaurant, retail and service industries. While a sophomore at ��ɫ��Ƶ, Klump got his real estate license and began selling houses on The Hill. He interned at a commercial shopping center development firm between his junior and senior years and found his niche. “I owe a lot of my success to attending the University of Colorado, where I had the privilege of meeting inspiring individuals and forming lifelong connections across the country,” said Klump. “These experiences have deeply motivated me to give back and set an example. I hope my contribution to ��ɫ��Ƶ will inspire others to join in the spirit of generosity and make a meaningful impact.”

In addition to being a real estate entrepreneur, Klump is a steadfast philanthropist, generously supporting a diverse range of organizations over the years through the Klump Family Foundation. He said his commitment to giving back reflects a deep belief in the power of philanthropy to drive positive change.

Professor Christophe Spaenjers, faculty director of the newly renamed Klump Center for Real Estate, speaks with graduate students in the Koelbel building after their Real Estate Finance and Investment class.

“My hope is that this gift will provide students with broad exposure to the diverse opportunities within real estate, whether they choose to embark on a career immediately, pursue further education, or explore various facets of the industry,” Klump said. “The real estate world is vast and dynamic, with potential for local, regional, national and even international impact, and I am excited to support a program that will open doors and inspire future leaders in this field.”

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