Embarc Collective Expands Reach Across Nation

First came a building, then came companies, and now Embarc Collective is revealing its long list of partners across the country.

Embarc Collective, the innovation hub backed by Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik, has been under construction for several months, but despite not having a home, it is still making waves in the entrepreneurial and startup world. The hub that looks to work with tech-based startups announced Monday morning a long list of 50 heavy-hitting partners that go well beyond the Bay area.

“This is something from the start we knew was really important," Lakshmi Shenoy, CEO of Embarc Collective, said. "We had a mindset toward national connectivity right from the get go and that will be really beneficial by increasing access to resources and people for the startups that are building here."

Shenoy, who previously worked at 1871 in Chicago, wanted to provide a multitude of homes for the startups that are doing business across the country while also providing opportunities to foster new relationships.

"You have a place to land but it also gives us a team to collaborate with," she said. "We can share opportunities, pass them back and forth, get warm intros to the startups we're supporting. It's having the idea that the sum is greater than the parts and we can work to better the outcomes supporting our respective regions."

Some of the many partners include:

Locally, the usual suspects have signed on board including Synapse, the Florida-Israel Business Accelerator, Tampa Bay Wave, University of Tampa, Tampa Bay Spark, Blockspaces and Tampa Bay Tech.

"This is not just national partners, this is local connectivity and that was crucial from the start," Shenoy said. "If we didn’t build with mindset of collaboration, we would do a disservice to the region."

"We are excited by momentum and increased support for startups across the Tampa Bay region," Linda Olson, CEO of the Tampa Bay Wave, said in a statement. "Embarc Collective’s collaboration with established programs like ours will help unify the ecosystem, propel our startups forward, and ultimately raise the profile of the entire Tampa Bay region.”

Shenoy added Embarc Collective is "always open" to adding new partners.

"What's really fascinating to me is for people thinking of moving to some part of the Tampa Bay region, having connections with other hubs in the country makes it a lot easier for them," she said. "They could already say 'I work with Hero City, I'm going to be in Hero City and need to check out Tampa Bay." So it will open up the showcase of what's happening in the region to more entrepreneurs."