Northern Kentucky University’s INKUBATOR program presents its first Entrepreneurial Showcase Thursday.
NKU’s INKUBATOR, part of the Haile/US Bank College of Business’ Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, announced its 2017 class in May. As part of the program, INKUBATOR staff and mentors provided guidance, access to capital, connections, resources and a flexible office space to support start-ups. The Entrepreneurial Showcase will feature this year’s recent graduates and will also include a panel of INKUBATOR alumni sharing their stories.
“We wanted to tap into the experience of our INKUBATOR alumni who will share their journey since being in our program and how they made their place within the local entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Rodney D’Souza, the Executive Director and Founder of the INKUBATOR. “It’s important for the recent graduates to hear from other entrepreneurs who were in their shoes, and that’s why we switched things up this year.”
Created in 2012, the INKUBATOR program takes on a class of 5 to 6 start-ups each summer. Once applicants are accepted, The INKUBATOR staff and mentors provide guidance, team building, access to capital, connections, resources, and a flexible office space to support the start-ups in the program.
The INKUBATOR is a cross-campus initiative that enables students from different backgrounds to connect and start a business together. Typically, students come to the INKUBATOR with an idea and leave the program with a validated business model, Minimum Viable Product (MVP), and a plan to continue growing. To date, INKUBATOR graduates have raised over $4.4 million dollars in outside funding and created 62 jobs.
The Entrepreneurial Showcase event takes the place of the INKUBATOR’s traditional demo day. David Willbrand, chair of Thompson Hine’s Early Stage & Emerging Company practice, will moderate the panel of INKUBATOR alumni.
The Entrepreneurial Showcase begins at 5:30 p.m. in the Digitorium at Griffin Hall on the NKU campus.
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