Grant of more than $475,000 funds a one-year pilot of immersion weeks, launch camps, and workshops with Northwest Arkansas’ retail and supply chain partners
BENTONVILLE, Ark. – October 27, 2026 – SEED SPOT, a nationally recognized nonprofit focused on supporting entrepreneurs and building stronger entrepreneurial ecosystems, and Arkade, a retail and supply chain technology greenhouse based in Bentonville, today announced a grant of more than $475,000 from the Walton Family Foundation for a one-year pilot.
The funding will be used to support program management, communications, and additional events that create new opportunities for industry partners and founders to connect. It will also introduce Land+Launch NWA, a collaborative initiative between SEED SPOT and Arkade that connects Northwest Arkansas’ business community with a broader, more diverse pipeline of entrepreneurs, from local founders to international companies choosing the region as their next home. The program is built on the belief that Northwest Arkansas should be a place where great companies take root, whether their founders grew up here or are discovering the region for the first time, with a clear path to the customers, partners, and investors who can help them build lasting companies.
Administered by SEED SPOT and delivered in partnership with Arkade, Land+Launch NWA includes:
- Ecosystem Immersion Weeks: week-long experiences that introduce founders to the region’s anchor industry partners and the networks behind Northwest Arkansas’ business community
- Launch Camps: intensive workshops that help Northwest Arkansas founders and aspiring founders move their ideas toward launch
- Industry and Connection Workshops: recurring sessions that bring industry partners and investors into direct engagement with the region’s founders
Programming begins in November. Founders can learn more at seedspot.org.
SEED SPOT brings a tested model, with in-person programming in 4 states and Washington, D.C., and alumni building in all 50 states.
“Northwest Arkansas has something few regions can offer: global industry leaders who are ready to work with founders. Land+Launch NWA pairs that access with the model we’ve built across the country, so founders discovering the region have a reason to build here and local founders have support to grow alongside them,” said Shannon McGhee, CEO, SEED SPOT.
Since opening in September 2025, Arkade has become a Bentonville home base for 14 retail and supply chain technology member companies, which have raised $28.8 million and secured eight pilots and contracts with some of the nation’s leading retailers and suppliers.
“Founders who come to Bentonville see what’s possible here. This grant helps us give more of them a reason to build a lasting presence, and it gives our local founders access to the same relationships,” said Kathryn Carlisle, Director of Portfolio Operations at Arkade.
About SEED SPOT
Founded in 2012, SEED SPOT empowers entrepreneurs to launch and scale ventures that positively impact lives through new services, products, and technologies. Through tactical education, expert networks, culturally responsive mentorship, and capital connections, SEED SPOT has served more than 4,600 entrepreneurs, who have collectively generated $447 million in revenue, raised $229 million in capital, and created approximately 11,000 jobs. SEED SPOT runs local programming in Phoenix, Washington, D.C., Chicago, New York, and Bentonville. Learn more at seedspot.org.
About Arkade
Arkade is a collaborative technology greenhouse bringing global innovation to the heart of American retail. Located in Bentonville, Arkansas, Arkade’s commercial growth platform supports enterprise-ready innovators from all over the world by providing a homebase and connecting them with Northwest Arkansas’ unmatched retail and supply chain ecosystem. Learn more at arkaderetail.com.
Media Contact
Jerra Toms, Blue Iris Consulting
