A University of Missouri-St. Louis program will fund firms involved in skincare, children's meals, web design and more.
UMSL Accelerate, the entrepreneurship program of the university, on Wednesday said it is funding five local companies through the second cohort of its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Accelerator.
The selected companies will receive $50,000 in non-dilutive funding and participate in a business development program, which will begin in January and lasts eight weeks. The selected founders will also have access to nearly $200,000 of in-kind resources, the accelerator program said.
UMSL Accelerate’s DEI Accelerator, which staged its first cohort earlier this year, is designed to back St. Louis-based companies founded and led by individuals from underrepresented communities. It aims to address the racial inequity that exists both locally and nationwide in startup development and funding.
“St. Louis is home to an abundance of entrepreneurial talent with good ideas, but not everyone has the same access to opportunity,” said Dan Lauer, executive director of UMSL Accelerate. “We are doing our part in moving the needle through significant capital injection. By leveraging university strengths, we will offer these outstanding entrepreneurs talented paid student interns, engaged alumni leaders and brilliant faculty committed to amplifying with possible grants and further research.”
The founders and companies selected for the program’s second cohort include:
- La’Crassia Wilderness, Butter Love: The company sells natural skincare products
- Will Bubenik, Nebula Media Group: The company provides web and digital services for small and medium-sized businesses.
- Paris Rollins, Picky Eaterz: The company provides meals for children and babies that it says helps increase the nutritiousness of their diets.
- Tony Davis, Pop Pop Hurray! Gourmet Popcorn: The company sells an array of popcorn products and has a retail location at 256 S. Florissant Road in Ferguson.
- Valeria Rodriguez, VR Creative: Rodriguez's firm provides branding and web design services.
The five companies were among 189 applicants vying for spots in the DEI Accelerator's second cohort. Of the initial applicants, UMSL Accelerate last month said it had chosen 15 finalists who were considered for the $50,000 grants.
Financial backers of UMSL DEI Accelerator include St. Louis-based Ameren and Edward Jones, which UMSL said have provided funding to operate the program through 2025.
“Positive change happens with investment and we are grateful for Ameren and Edward Jones leading the way along with our anonymous corporate and private contributors,” Lauer said. “We are so pleased with the traction our inaugural cohort has seen since completing the program and can’t wait to see what this year’s founders will accomplish.”
Following their completion of the UMSL Accelerator, the five companies selected for the newest cohort of the program will be showcased in May at a demo day event.
