Four Minnesota food and agriculture businesses participating in MBOLD's entrepreneurship program this year will get a boost from some of Minnesota's biggest corporations.
On Wednesday, MBOLD announced the 2022 cohort of its "Bold Growth" program, offering targeted support from senior leaders within its coalition, which includes Target Corp., General Mills Inc., Cargill Inc. and Land O’Lakes Inc.
The businesses selected for this year's cohort are:
- Step One Foods: An Eden Prairie-based maker of meals and snacks aimed at supporting healthy cholesterol levels.
- Local Crate: A provider of restaurant-quality meal kits featuring locally-sourced foods, headquartered in St. Paul.
- HidrateSpark: A Minneapolis-based developer of a smart-water-bottle system that tracks water intake.
- Bizzy Coffee: A producer of cold brew coffee, headquartered in Brooklyn Center.
Bold Growth launched in 2021, providing year-long engagement to agriculture insights firm Sentera and probiotic beverage maker So Good So You and more limited to support to Bizzy Coffee, Katana Agri-Science and Peace Coffee.
“We’ve had a phenomenal experience with Bold Growth. MBOLD spent a lot of time getting to know our business and what we were trying to solve for. They facilitated connectivity and engagement by the right corporate leaders – people we wouldn’t have had access to otherwise. They were incredible partners. This program has helped us take our business to a whole new level," So Good So You CEO Eric Hall said in a statement.
Bold Growth leaders collaborate with cohort participants to identify their business' unique needs and design an engagement plan to support those needs. Experts within MBOLD’s network also provide ongoing advisory support to help each business where they need it most.
"Bold Growth provides individualized support to address critical needs chosen by each cohort member, such as planning for their next growth horizon, vetting key business opportunities, honing their value proposition, or growing financial resources while navigating the choppy waters of scaling up," MBOLD Managing Director JoAnne Berkenkamp said.
MBOLD is a CEO-driven coalition of Minnesota’s leading food and agriculture business and research leaders. It aims to accelerate solutions to the most pressing challenges facing food and agriculture, particularly climate change and growing global food demand.
“As large businesses, we need to help small businesses scale up and thrive. That’s what Bold Growth does," Compeer Financial CEO Rod Hebrink said in a statement. He also serves as MBOLD’s executive champion for entrepreneurship. "Compeer is excited to be part of this program and join other Minnesota leaders in helping propel these terrific businesses to their next level of growth."
