Media Contacts:
Corinn Perry, for SEED SPOT: Corinn@seedspot.org, (808)295-7320
Miguel Ayala, for SBA: Miguel.ayala@sba.gov, (202)205-6420
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
SEED SPOT Awarded Grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration Growth Accelerator Fund Competition
WASHINGTON – August 4 – The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) today announced the 80 winners of the second annual Growth Accelerator Fund Competition. The recipients represent 39 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. SEED SPOT, the #1 Incubator in Arizona, was awarded one of the prizes.
Accelerators serve entrepreneurs in a broad set of industries and sectors – from manufacturing and tech start-ups, to farming and biotech – with many focusing creating a diverse and inclusive small business community in our nation.
“We are incredibly thankful for the community that has rallied around SEED SPOT to help us put Phoenix social entrepreneurs on the national map,” said SEED SPOT Co-Founder and CEO Courtney Klein. “This funding will give us the ability to expand our programs to serve younger entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs from underrepresented populations – we are confident their dreams will create more positive impact on the world.”
Applications were judged by more than 40 experts with entrepreneurial, investment, startup, economic development, capital formation and academic backgrounds from both the public and private sector. The first panel of judges reviewed over 400 applications and presentations and established a pool of 180 highly qualified finalists. The second panel evaluated the finalists’ presentations and pitch videos they prepared and selected the 80 winners.
Each organization will receive a cash prize of $50,000 from the SBA. In accepting these funds, the accelerators will also be committing to quarterly reporting for one year. They will be required to report metrics such as jobs created, funds raised, startups launched and corporate sponsors obtained. This will allow the SBA to continue building upon its database of accelerators and their impact, and to develop long-term relationships with the startups and constituents in these innovative and entrepreneurial communities.
The purpose of the competition was to draw attention and funding to parts of the country where there are gaps in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. While there are entrepreneurial activities occurring nationwide, some are better supported by private sector ecosystems than others.
To learn more about how SEED SPOT is helping to increase the impact of social entrepreneurs, sign up to attend their Kickoff event on September 9th at the MonOrchid in downtown Phoenix. Tickets are available at bit.ly/seedspotkickoff.
The SBA will be announcing the winners at the White House Demo Day today. Tune in live at www.whitehouse.gov/live and check outwww.sba.gov/accelerators for more details. SEED SPOT is also hosting a viewing party at their office in Central Phoenix.
About SEED SPOT
SEED SPOT is a nationally leading 501(c)3 organization based in Phoenix with a mission to educate, accelerate, and invest in the dreams of social entrepreneurs. SEED SPOT exclusively supports entrepreneurs building products, services, and technologies that improve lives or communities. For more information visit: www.seedspot.org.
