Chicago startup hub and incubator 1871 is launching new offerings aimed at providing resources for small-business owners throughout Chicago.
1871 is now providing free resources to local small-business owners throughout the city in two pilot programs, DGTL (pronounced "digital") and Small Business Initiative. 1871 CEO Betsy Ziegler said the organization is offering these programs as a way to support small businesses through an economic recovery stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic and expand on its digital offerings in general.
The DGTL pilot, which 1871 has partnered with Exelon to operate, offers small-business owners 1871’s core curriculum and workshops on leadership, communication, problem solving and more. 1871 is working with 15 of its community partners, including the Chicago Urban League, the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Far South Community Development Corporation, to find up to 150 founders that should have access to the program.
All small businesses, regardless of founder background, business model or industry, qualify for the program. It is divided into three sections, including product market and strategy, startup business fundamentals, and leadership and development.
“I don’t think there’s ever been a more important time to support entrepreneurs,” Ziegler said. “Never more than now do we need more jobs created, and the way to do that is through startups. And who is good at launching startups? 1871.”
The first phase of the pilot will give business owners access to 1871’s offerings from now to January 2021, and the program is expected to expand after that, Ziegler said. Come next year, standard 1871 members will also have access to DGTL programming as well.
1871’s other program, the Small Business Initiative, aims to help small businesses in Chicago and across the Midwest create an online or e-marketplace presence. Participating small-business owners will have access to mentor matching, 1871 events and workshops, all free of charge.
The Small Business Initiative, which is designed for local corner shops, landscaping services and restaurants, was born out of Covid. But the DGTL program has been in the works for more than two years, Ziegler said, adding that even before the pandemic, 1871 was working to bring the organization’s resources to more people in a digital fashion.
“There was a whole bunch of people that would benefit from this, but we had to figure out a scaled way to take 1871 out of the Mart,” Ziegler said. “There’s a whole bunch of people that for whatever reason, will never go into the Mart and will never go into 1871.”
Eventually, the programming will include content from other local startup incubators mHUB and MATTER. And Ziegler said 1871 aims to keep the two programs free for businesses through corporate partnerships and grants.
Though 1871 is investing in its digital offerings, Ziegler said the organization will maintain a strong community presence at its home in the Merchandise Mart when the pandemic is over. Currently, 1871’s team goes into the space in shifts, and a few members come in to get work done. It’s a different vibe for 1871, which is usually bustling with startup founders, investors and visitors, but Ziegler expects to revive that culture when Covid-19 is no longer a threat.
“The community and that in-person [experience] is fundamental to who we are,” Ziegler said.
1871 will take what it has learned about virtual offerings during this time and continue to offer digital events and programming post-pandemic. Last month, 1871 hosted a dynamic and engaging virtual version of its annual Momentum Awards.
“We will never go back to in-person only on anything,” Ziegler said.
1871, founded in 2012, has more than 1,400 individual members across about 420 startups. At the beginning of 2020, the organization acquired the ITA, which was a 15-year-old organization that focused on growing the local tech community.
And just this week, Jellyvision CEO Amanda Lannert, Rheaply founder and CEO Garry Cooper, PartySlate founder and CEO Julie Novak, and Judith Toland, the head of Facebook’s Chicago office, joined 1871’s board.
