Startup accelerators have proven to be an important way to attract global startups to Hartford, but some are more interested in building up entrepreneurs within their communities.
Since 2007, reSET has focused its efforts on boosting local startups intent on grappling with specific societal problems like sustainable garbage disposal and poverty, said Sarah Brodley, the nonprofit’s executive director.
“We’re really prioritizing our recruitment in Hartford, we’re not actively recruiting companies to move here from out of state,” Brodley said. “Our belief is the people closest to the problems are the people with solutions to the problems.”
ReSET provides services to about 200 companies per year, and 112 have gone through its three-month “Impact Accelerator” program since it was established in 2013.
For example, one of the companies working out of reSET’s office in Hartford’s Parkville neighborhood is Engagement Solutions, which makes a digital platform that links people to public services like food stamps and other programs. Another, Blue Earth Compost, is a Hartford-based startup that collects food scraps from about 400 residential and commercial customers in Greater Hartford, and then uses a natural recycling process to turn the scraps into nutrient-rich compost that it delivers back to customers.
Brodley points to companies like Ben & Jerry’s and Patagonia as evidence that socially-conscious businesses can be financially successful. And reSET is primarily concerned with backing homegrown entrepreneurs, offering a unique part of Hartford’s startup scene.
“I think there’s plenty of room for all of us, and I think there’s a chance for each of us to be very specific and clear about our goals,” she said.
Meanwhile, in Farmington, UConn’s Technology Incubation Program has been hosting startups since 2003. The 45 startups currently working out of TIP’s labs and offices in Farmington and Storrs raised more than $263 million in 2019, said Mostafa Analoui, who leads the program and is the college’s executive director of venture development.
TIP provides companies with guidance from 11 executives-in-residence, who can give entrepreneurs advice on anything from issues with the product they’re making to business leads. While TIP companies often have ties to UConn, the program is open to all entrepreneurs, as long as their company has a serious business model, Analoui said.
“They have to be companies with a clear business plan,” Analoui said.
TIP companies range from VetiVax, which is testing a cancer vaccine for dogs, to Savkar Inc., which is working on a remote-learning platform called Stemify that uses artificial intelligence to customize individual curricula in STEM subjects for students.
While TIP companies don’t make up a huge portion of startup activity in Greater Hartford, UConn’s Technology Incubation Program has created nearly 200 jobs in Connecticut, Analoui said.
“If you look at the broader picture of the state, I’d say TIP is a smaller player, but it’s making a relevant contribution,” Analoui said.
