BENTONVILLE, Ark. — The NWA Council and EcoMap Technologies have joined together to launch the NWA Startup Hub, a resource for local business owners.
Danielle Chaney at the U of A Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation said it offers a wealth of resources such as mentorship and connections to investors for budding entrepreneurs.
"It's like a digital resource that basically is a one stop shop for entrepreneurial resources for founders in the area," Chaney said. "They can find mentorship opportunities, accelerators, incubators for their business as they're getting it off the ground, as well as connections to different investors or investment firms."
Chaney adds there's a component where users can access events that entrepreneurial support organizations upload into the hub.
The hub is supported by a Walton Family Foundation grant, allowing EcoMap Technologies to use artificial intelligence to create the platform.
"When you search entrepreneurial resources in Northwest Arkansas, you get millions of results. So having this hub, entrepreneurs can feel assured that the things that are listed in there are pre-vetted," Chaney said. "They know that it'll actually be useful to them and they're not going to have to sift through so much static anymore to find what they need."
While this hub can be a game changer for new business owners, it's beneficial for seasoned ones as well.
Michael Burton and Clayton Woodruff, two MBA grads turned entrepreneurs from the University of Arkansas, started Lockstop, a company capitalizing on the success of mountain biking in Bentonville.
Lockstop is an app-enabled bike lock that helps cyclists keep their bikes safe and secure.
"It's a smart app enabled bike lock. So, we take our bike lock, and we mount that on bike racks that are already located throughout a city. We have a universal mounting bracket, and it effectively takes this old infrastructure and creates these smart security stations so that riders in the area can lock their bike without carrying their own lock," Burton, the CEO and co-founder of the company, explained.
Burton and Woodruff launched their business two years ago. While they had mentors to help point them in the right direction, not everyone has those connections. They say the Startup Hub is a good resource for those new to the business world.
"I would almost say there's an aspect that's more important now, even than in the beginning. Because now we can utilize it for finding resources, for finding or venture capitalist firms, or anybody that might be willing to fund us," Woodruff, the COO and co-founder, said.
The Startup Hub is free and accessible for anyone to use with internet access.
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