Entering the 10th run of its program, Techstars Austin has revealed its new class members, and it includes a startup from North Texas.
Joining nine other startups in the Techstars Austin 2021 accelerator cohort is Dallas wedding and event planning platform Fêtefully.
“As with most things in 2020, Techstars’ selection process wasn't exactly the same as in years past or as expected. That being said, the virtual nature of, well, everything, wasn't new to us,” said Amos Schwartzfarb, Techstars Austin managing director, in a statement. “If there was an exception to this year, it was the sheer quantity of applications we received from very high-quality founders and businesses, which made it harder than previous years to select our final nine.”
With this class being held entirely virtual, cohort members were selected from across the U.S., including one based in Colombia. Other Texas startups joining the new cohort include Austin-based social media company SocialMama, and Houston-based community-building platform Talk Howdy.
While moving to digital will remove some of the networking and collaboration components that come with in-person officing, Techstars Austin said this year’s three-month program would focus heavily on “business fundamentals.” That focus includes finding the right customer base, developing a revenue formula, evaluating KPIs, and forming financial models and business plans.
Another change to this year’s program is former Capital Factory Mentor Manager Caroline Tosbath, who joins Techstars Austin as a program manager.
“Working on the mentor program at Capital Factory taught me the importance of building meaningful relationships and the impact those relationships can have on founders’ lives and business,” Tosbath said in a statement.
Like many accelerator programs, the Techstars Austin 2021 program will end with a virtual demo day and investor week planned for March 24.
Techstars launched in Austin in 2013. The last North Texas startup to go through the Austin accelerator was Dallas-based first responder VR training platform SURVIVR, which went through the 2020 cohort.
Here’s a look at the startups in the accelerator, with descriptions provided by Techstars:
BallBox, Inc. (Chicago) - BallBox is the network of kiosks enabling sport, tech and leisure equipment rental at parks, beaches, hotels and apartments.
Enlightapp (Fargo, Nd.) - Enlight helps teachers become experts on their students by allowing students to share their uniqueness through self-created student profiles.
Fêtefully (Dallas) - Fêtefully is a wedding and event planning platform that leverages personality algorithms and automated workflows to streamline the event planning process to make a luxury service accessible to an underserved market while also giving professional planners a way to earn money in their spare time.
hampr (Lafayette, La). - hampr is an on-demand laundry service that will pick up your laundry and return it fresh and folded, right to your front door, within 24 hours.
Kousso (Charlotte) - Kousso’s platform delivers data-rich home profiles to simplify homeownership.
Livo (Coral Gables, Fla.) - Livo works with residential rental property managers to enhance the "first-come-first-served" process by increasing flexibility for both the renter and property manager.
Mowies (Medellin, Colombia) - Mowies is a content market network, an ecosystem. Create, share, sell.
SocialMama (Houston) - SocialMama connects women to the mom friends they need and experts they trust.
Talk Howdy (Austin) - Talk Howdy is a platform used to organize online communities and virtual events for people with shared interests.
