Two startups have earned Winston Starts' highest designation.
Village Juice & Kitchen and Wellnecity have earned Summit level status at the Winston-Salem based accelerator. Winston Starts has three stages of development for startup companies: Basecamp, Ascent and Summit.
The Summit designation is for "rapidly growing, sophisticated companies with fully-realized business models and financials" with reliable revenue streams and a fully scalable business model.
“Both Village Juice & Kitchen and Wellnecity have leaned into the Winston-Salem startup ecosystem resources and are now generating consistent revenue growth and creating jobs in the local community,” said Stan Parker, president of Winston Starts. “We are very proud of both companies and their significant accomplishments.”
Wellnecity helps self-insured employers manage the cost and burden of health care through its technology platform, ProActive Health Plan Management. Wellnecity also leverages data analytics to provide insights to help employees receive high-quality care.
Earlier this year, Wellnecity won TBJ's Inno Madness challenge. In January, TBJ reported the Winston-Salem startup had raised $3,156,900 in series A funding with the help of Sopris Capital, a Denver-based investment firm that specializes in healthcare
“Winston-Starts has provided immense energy for our startup effort. Access to community leaders for testing ideas, experienced vendors who provide essential services, flexible space and peers wrestling with similar problems has dramatically improved our success and probability of long-term viability,” said John Quinn, founder and CEO of Wellnecity.
Winston-Salem
Smoothies, raw juices, salads, grain bowls
Village Juice & Kitchen is a plant-forward restaurant committed to serving healthy food. The company began selling cold-pressed juices out of a tent at a farmers’ market in 2014 and has grown to eight full-service restaurant locations featuring scratch-made foods consisting of salads, grain bowls, plant-based smoothies, toasts and raw desserts.
“Being part of Winston Starts has allowed us to learn from mentors who have achieved some of the same goals we’ve identified for our business,” said Village Juice and Kitchen’s founder Nate Atkinson.
