When people think of entrepreneurs, they tend to think of people like Henry Ford or Steve Jobs, visionaries whose drive and innovation built massive, multinational corporations from the ground up. But the fact is that the majority of businesses in America are “microbusinesses,” many of them employing fewer than 5 people. While small, these microbusinesses are often extremely successful, and contribute almost $1 trillion to the economy each year. Expand the scope just slightly to include all small businesses, and you can account for more than 99% of all employer firms in the United States, creating 64% of net new private sector jobs.
So the small business entrepreneur is alive and well in America!
But who helps them when they are micro and want to be big?
That’s where accelerator and incubator programs come in. Just as their name implies, business accelerator programs help speed up the process of growing a business. They are similar to research and technology parks, but with a focus on startup and early-stage companies. If you’re an entrepreneur with a visionary idea or product, and you’re looking for help to make sure it has the legs it needs to succeed, then a business accelerator may be for you.
Accelerators offer resources like access to technology and work space, networking and marketing opportunities, access to mentors and other experts in the field, education opportunities, links to strategic partners, angel investors, or venture capital, and all the other things that small businesses need to grow and thrive. The Sprint Mobile Health Accelerator, who recently hosted a demo day for the 10 companies participating in their program, is just one of many accelerators and incubators working in the Kansas City metro area. Many of the CEOs of the ten companies said that they had accomplished in just the 3 months at the accelerator what would have taken them 2 or 3 years on their own. The Sprint Mobile Health Accelerator focuses on apps and mobile devices geared toward healthcare, ranging from cellphone cases that serve as blood glucose meters to an app that gives individuals access to their own medical records.
The Sprint Mobile Health Accelerator is just one of many in the KC area. Think Big Partners provides partners, mentors, and facilitators to startup businesses all over the metro, helping local entrepreneurs to expand their reach. One of the key traits of modern entrepreneurship is that it’s often a local phenomenon, with a truly global vision. 74% of microbusiness do business in their local community and help to grow the local economy while at the same time, reaching customers all over the world.
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Sources:
Kansas City Star
Think Big Partners
CFED Fact File
SBA