Do you have a business idea but don’t know where to begin? Entrepreneurship for All Cape Cod, or EforAll, offers a twice yearly business accelerator that helps aspiring entrepreneurs turn their dreams into businesses. If you have a business idea, apply for the Spring 2022 business accelerator program which includes twice weekly business classes, mentorship, and the potential to win prize money to invest in your business. EforAll provides the extra support, encouragement, and positive peer pressure to move your business forward quickly. Applications are due January 19, 2022. More information here.
The Harvard Alumni Entrepreneurs Accelerator powered by Pegasus Tech Ventures is a ten-week, equity-free program for early-stage companies designed to give alumni-founded companies the tools needed to scale up to the next level. This virtual accelerator features world-class faculty and mentors providing in-depth workshops designed to provide customized support to address your challenges and meet your requirements. The program concludes with a Demo Day featuring a panel of experts and investors who will provide feedback to each company. The company with the best presentation on Demo Day will be invited to compete at the Grand Finale of the Startup World Cup in September 30, 2022, which has a grand prize of $1 million in San Francisco. Applications are due January 22. More information here.
The Massachusetts Export Center’s Export Expo on January 27-28, 2022 provides a forum for exporters to connect with the wide range of export resources available in Massachusetts while learning about issues that impact their day-to-day operations. This year’s Export Expo will again be a virtual event that will include an exhibit area featuring government, non-profit and private sector service providers serving the export community. The Export Expo will also feature a lineup of workshops, panel discussions and special addresses on a wide variety of export-related topics. More information here.
The Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs is an on-ramp for undergraduate women seeking access to entrepreneurship opportunities, capital and networks. The Competition is designed to hone the skills that undergraduate women need to advance from idea to venture creation. Through multiple rounds of competition, students demonstrate an understanding of a problem, why the problem requires a new venture to address it, and how their idea presents the best solution to the problem. Application deadline is February 4. More information here.
The Blue Innovation Symposium (BIS) on February 22-24 is the premier event in New England for connecting the marine technology industry for education, networking and facilitating partnering opportunities. The conference brings together a broad spectrum of representatives of the marine technology industry from the US and beyond. The BIS has welcomed more than 300 attendees and nearly 40 sponsors for the three-day event, which included keynote addresses, panel discussions and a unique series of five-minute flash talks. More information here.
The 2022 Virtual Local Food Trade Show of New England is a dynamic space for local food producers and buyers from across of our region to connect. In this year’s online Trade Floor, producers will set up virtual booths that buyers will be able to browse, initiate conversation, and establish sales connections. In addition to the Trade Floor, they will also be offering other opportunities to ensure quality connections with producers. Applications are due March 8. More information here.
FinTech Sandbox is a nonprofit which enables financial technology entrepreneurs to build robust products by providing access to critical data, development tools and a curated network of customers, entirely for free. FinTech Sandbox is open to all startups innovating in financial services that can use financial data products we offer for product development and testing. The spirit of the program is to offer data to start-ups that could not otherwise afford it. More information here.
The NAACP Power Forward Small Business Grant is available for Black-owned businesses with one to 25 employees located in New England (Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, and select areas of Connecticut (more details in the application). $25,000 in grants are available on a rolling basis. More information here.
Eligible Massachusetts businesses of any size may apply for training grants through the Workforce Training Fund’s Express Program. The Express Program offers cash grants to businesses to cover up to 50% of the cost of training employees, up to $3,000 per employee per course. Additional limitations apply. More information here.
The Seed Investments Program is a two-stage investment program that provides up to $250,000 in convertible notes to pre-seed or seed-stage clean energy startups. The program exists to support companies as they advance and commercialize clean energy technologies and business models. More information here.
Venture Lane will be piloting a new virtual membership in Q2 called Venture Lane Connect. The membership will enable B2B startup founders based in Boston to tap into Venture Lane’s curated network, weekly programming focused on go-to-market strategy, $400K in perks like AWS and Microsoft Azure and other resources for early-stage growth. Interested B2B startup founders and their teams can sign up for the private beta here.
Created as a key pillar of KKR’s COVID-19 Relief Effort, KKR Small Business Builders (SBB) aims to support entrepreneurs and their small businesses around the world. The grants are designed to help business owners sustain their enterprises, maintain or create jobs, and spur economic opportunity as they respond to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and recover from its resultant economic dislocation. More information here.