RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – With regular updates to keep content fresh, WRAL TechWire’s Triangle Startup Guide offers a timely resource package for anyone looking to start or grow a business in the Triangle area.
Today, we’re back with another resource for local entrepreneurs. The latest update comes to the “Inspiration, Advice and More Resources” section of the guide, which features dozens of podcasts, blogs, video series and other content made by (and for) entrepreneurs local to the Triangle. It also includes resources from organizations and universities that provide free support for early-stage startups.
The newest addition to the list is a comprehensive business research guide from North Carolina State University Libraries. This resource is packed with market research and business planning sources. It’s divided into several subtopics, including finance and investing resources, data on industries and supply chains, markets and advertising, and GIS (geographic information system) information.
Startups of any size can use this resource for a range of purposes, from creating a well-informed business model and identifying funding opportunities to conducting market research and due diligence.
Find the guide on NC State Libraries’ website and scroll through the subtopics on the left-side panel.
Startup bazinga! Triangle ‘Tweeners’ smash fundraising record; new list swells to 251 emerging stars
Other recent additions to the Triangle Startup Guide
Every week, we update the guide with new resources for local entrepreneurs for our exclusive Triangle Startup Guide. If we missed something, please feel free to suggest it for inclusion using this contact form.
In case you missed it, check out all the updates we made in 2021. And here’s a review of the additions from recent weeks:
- In the “Inspiration, Advice and More Resources” section, we added the latest edition of “Triangle Tweeners,” an annual collection of the region’s most promising technology startups curated by local entrepreneur and investor Scot Wingo. The 2022 list, released earlier this month, includes 251 companies raising over $700 million in 2021 and documents 12 exits. To be selected, startups must have $1 million to $80 million in annual recurring revenue or 10 to 500 full-time employees. Triangle Tweeners launched seven years ago to track the local startup community as it grew to today’s heights. In December, the report expanded into a rolling fund that invests in local tech startups.
- In the “Accelerators & Mentorship Programs” section of the guide, we updated our listing for RevTech Labs, a 14-week accelerator geared towards fintech and insurtech startups that have developed a minimum viable product or reached the post-revenue stage. Though the program is based in Charlotte, it follows a hybrid model with a mix of virtual sessions and in-person events. Charlotte Business Journal recently reported that RevTech Labs alumni have raised $2.5 billion. Now with 102 alumni startups and hundreds of mentors, the program recently started accepting applications for its 17th cohort this fall. The deadline is June 30.
More additions
- In the “Inspiration, Advice and More Resources” section of the guide, we added the Hustle + Gather podcast (by Raleigh-based sister entrepreneurs Dana Kadwell and Courtney Hopper) and The Launch Place podcast (a new podcast to highlight various companies in the VC fund’s network). Plus, we added three reports profiling the local startup/tech ecosystem: Research Triangle Park’s 2021 Community Impact Report, Duke University’s 2021 “By the Numbers” report and NC TECH’s 2022 State of the Technology Industry report.
- In the “Competitions, Grants & Other Funding Sources” section, we added Raleigh Founded’s annual Pitch Please event. It’s an opportunity for startup founders to present their products/services and get live feedback from local venture capitalists. The second annual Pitch Please was held on June 16.
- In the “Accelerators and Mentorship Programs” section, we added the WheelsUP Accelerator—a new program from RTP-based First Flight Venture Center. In its first cohort, kicking off this August, the 12-week program will guide startups through scaling their biotech and health security products/services. In addition to education and mentorship, companies get cash prizes and the potential for follow-on funding from the program’s partner venture funds.
First Flight Venture Center has new strategic plan, centered on ‘new building’
Even more additions
- In the “COVID Relief Resources” section, we added the NC Department of Revenue’s recently re-opened Business Recovery Grant Program. Serving businesses with economic losses of at least 20%, the program consists of a hospitality grant for arts, entertainment and recreation businesses, as well as food-service and accommodation businesses. A reimbursement grant of up to $500,000 is also available for other businesses, even ones that have received COVID relief from other programs.
- We added The Loading Dock’s new Wake Forest space to the guide’s interactive map of local coworking spaces and incubators. The space opened in December, marking The Loading Dock’s first expansion outside of Raleigh. Fitting for both individual entrepreneurs and startup teams, the space includes dedicated desks, oversized coworking tables, private offices, meeting rooms for up to 45 people and event space for over 200 attendees.
- We added Dolphin Tank, a series of pitch events for women entrepreneurs, to the “Competitions, Grants & Other Funding Sources” section. The program is expanding to the Triangle, with an agtech-focused event on June 1 in RTP. According to the website, the event is part of a partnership with a handful of prominent organizations in the local startup ecosystem, including Pappas Capital, NC IDEA, Rex Health Ventures and Alexandria LaunchLabs.
