Northern Kentucky University's business accelerator program, dubbed The INKUBATOR, has announced eight participants in its 2019 class.
The 12-week program, born in 2012 and open to NKU alumni and current students, runs annually throughout the summer.
"The INKUBATOR staff and mentors provide guidance, team building, access to capital, connections, resources and a flexible office space to support the startups in the program," a press release on the move states.
This year's run boasts some interesting stats. Of the participating startups, Of the startups in this year's cohort, 63% are led by women founders.
Then, there's the addition of the The INKUBATOR’s Entrepreneur-in-Residence program. Emily Geiger, Mavis Linnemann-Clark and Gary Darna are the first.
"This ... gives our business creation teams a powerful, proven resource to guide them through the startup process," said Johnna Reeder Kleymeyer, interim dean of the Haile/US Bank College of Business.
Here are the 2019 participants, with descriptions provided by the release:
- PBJ | A service that shows parents how to bring out the kid in them and to enjoy playing with their children in practical ways.
- Safe Wave | A company that created a wearable device targeted at individuals suffering from hearing impairment.
- Smoove Customs | A restoration and customization-based service for shoes of all caliber.
- Thread Finds | An app that helps women who struggle to find clothes and knowing what to buy and where to buy it.
- Twinning | A clothing subscription box that provides matching or coordinating outfits for twins.
- Voyager EDU | Seeking to increase access to and the quality of education for all Kentuckians by providing intentional and inclusive programming, resources to improve success and retention and community-funded scholarships.
- Wandering Caffeine | A subscription box would contain three to four samples of a week’s worth of coffee, each from a different roaster from the city that is being featured.
- Yellowshot | A company dedicated to providing a high-quality collagen supplement in the form of an organic fruit and vegetable juice.
“Creating opportunities for diverse entrepreneurs is critical to the economic growth of our region," said Dr. Kathleen Roberts, senior advisor to the president for Inclusive Excellence on the cohort. "NKU’s Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship is a model for what can be accomplished when we intentionally engage in strategies for inclusion."
