“So, do you really want to work in a basement?” That was among the first in a series of skeptical questions raised by yours truly to multiple early tenants committed to something called The American Underground back in the day.

And another question: “Are there really enough startups to make something like this work?”

That was 2010.

And let’s not forget, the “Great Recession” was still raging.

Yes,anyone who is really honest had doubts about whether the Underground would work when launched in the dark, foreboding, chilly basement of a former tobacco factory in Durham. Sunlamps should have been a health requirement. Today, there’s a lot of light shining on the AU – the light of success. The doubters were wrong – on multiple fronts.

Today, the Underground – or AU, for short – occupies space at three locations (including the original basement) and is adding even more to keep up with demand.

So, to answer that first question:

  • “I’ll work in a basement if it meets the following requirements:
  • “It makes me part of a community
  • It’s a truly shared work environment – not just facilities but networking and mentoring
  • “It’s fun
  • “Oh, and did we mention affordable rates, etc.?”
  • “And just a few steps away from the darkness was the light of the American Tobacco Campus with food, entertainment, scores of lively companies – and much more.”

As to the startups question:

The AU launched with a few key tenants, just as shopping malls do. Around the Council for Entrepreneurial Development and NC IDEA/IDEA Fund Partners, a thriving hub grew quickly.

True believers such as Michael Goodmon, who heads up the American Tobacco Campus for corporate parent Capitol Broadcasting Company (and WTW’s parent, too) strived to turn that dank basement into an entrepreneurial hub that quickly all space.

Startups and entrepreneurs emerged from their own shadows (garages, their own basements) to get good space at good rates – and to have the chance to learn/share/sell/get investment money and mentoring from others who swarmed the place.

As AU caught fire underground, the concept expanded to a second Durham location (@ Main) and Raleigh. Both are above ground. Both are restored, remodeled structures that draw startups like magnets, too.

All the above is NOT cheerleading. It’s based on facts as disclosed in the AU’s annual report on Wednesday.

Some highlights as WTW reported elsewhere today:

  • Companies based at the Underground’s Triangle locations created more than 400 jobs, generated 40 percent more investment capital than a year earlier, and also helped drive diversity in 2015.
  • Nearly 30 percent of its tenants now run by women, and another 22 percent are led by minorities. Both figures are far above national averages.
  • Plus, 227 companies now are housed at the three Underground locations – an increase of 21 percent over 2014.
  • More than 2,300 people now work at Underground-affiliated companies.
  • And there’s good news for job seekers: Startups and emerging companies at the Underground are continuing to hire.

(Read more at https://wraltechwire.com/american-underground-we-re-creating-jobs-expanding-diversity-bringing-more-capital-to-nc/15180590/#zeqp2OWhbGKecvZt.99

So the doubters were wrong.

Here’s a tip of The Skinny’s Cap to all the believers who made AU work, from Michael Goodmon to Chief Strategist Adam Klein to many more, such as CED President Joan Siefert Rose and Dave Rizzo of IDEA Fund Partners/NC IDEA who bought in to The AU dream.