Starter Story: Shayla Sadler // Empowered for Purpose
"We want joy to be seen as a human right, not something accessible based on privilege."
Village Launch Builds Resilience Among Under-Resourced Entrepreneurs
As the City of Greenville, South Carolina experiences unprecedented growth, Village Launch ensures its more vulnerable populations aren’t left behind.
The city of Greenville is changing.
The South Carolina city is bringing in billions of dollars each year in investment, mostly brought in by high-profile economic development groups
Starter Story: Ebony Archie & Coresa Hogan // MEMFOLK
"We want joy to be seen as a human right, not something accessible based on privilege."
Reaching Memphis’ Entrepreneurs: Epicenter Ensures Access for All
For many entrepreneurship hubs and economic development organizations, it can be surprisingly challenging to connect with the people they’re trying to help.
Epicenter Memphis faced this very problem—and their solution might surprise you.
Memphis, like many other American cities, has a bustling downtown. But there is often a disconnect between the […]
Are You Ready for the Next Entrepreneurship Surge?
We’re about to see a major boom in entrepreneurship.
Why are we so confident? There are a number of reasons people take the entrepreneurial leap of faith, and several of those factors are about to hit at the same time.
People start businesses after recessions.
First, we’re about to emerge from a recession. Technically, the COVID-19-related recession […]
Starter Story: Miriam Omura // Miriam Norris Omura Art
“Even if you don’t realize it, you are always a businessperson when you are an artist.”
Reinventing Economic Development: Creatives As Entrepreneurs
Seven years ago, leaders of an arts organization in Birmingham, Alabama saw a serious opportunity to impact their local economy—but it meant reinventing themselves.
Originally established in 2004 as the Cultural Alliance of Greater Birmingham, Create Birmingham is the only local agency focused on Birmingham’s creative industries. […]
Celebrating the Black Entrepreneurs You’ve Heard Of—and Recognizing the Ones You Haven’t
Black entrepreneurship has a rich tradition, but not without its challenges.
Wheeling, West Virginia Made their Main Street Relevant with Entrepreneurship. Learn how Your Community can do the Same.
Read on to learn how Wheeling Heritage leveraged entrepreneurship to create more than 2,000 new jobs and reduce their building vacancy rate by half.
The Businesses We Can Save
Let’s face the facts: COVID-19 has wrecked many small businesses. One of the saddest experiences of 2020 (aside from the sickness, heartbreak, and grief this pandemic has inflicted on us) has been walking along a street you used to know well—whether in a large city or a small town main street—and seeing the shutters. Craving a meal from […]
Shop Small, Strengthen Your Community
The best way to support your small business community this season is to be a customer.
From Florida to Colorado: Economic Development and Entrepreneurship Success Stories
On December 16th from 2:00-3:00 PM EST CO. STARTERS will host “Rethinking Economic Development: How SOAR is Training Entrepreneurs to Restart Eastern Kentucky”, a free webinar that will share how Shaping Our Appalachian Region (SOAR) is […]
Focusing on Entrepreneurship Leads to New Businesses and Jobs in Eastern Kentucky
Shaping Our Appalachian Region (SOAR) is helping the region rethink its approach to economic development by empowering, training, and supporting local entrepreneurs.
Economic Developers and Ecosystem Builders Work to Restart Their Entrepreneurship Strategy
Both traditional economic development and ecosystem building are essential to meeting the needs of recovering and rapidly changing local economies. Catch the highlights from Restart 2020.
Shopping Our Community: Staff Favorites from our 2020 Holiday Gift Guide
Shop this years staff picks for the Holiday Gift Guide.
If You are an Economic Developer or Ecosystem Builder, What will Your First 100 Days Look Like?
As we face the long road of recovery from the crisis of today, every economic developer and entrepreneurial ecosystem developer faces a choice.
The Real Rebuilding Will Begin after the Election, and it Will Start with Entrepreneurs, Economic Developers, and Ecosystem Builders
Do you want your community and ecosystem to move beyond politics and toward a bigger, better, and more compelling vision for local economies? Here's how we can get there.
We Created a Program to Help Businesses Rebuild. Here’s What We’ve Learned So Far.
Entrepreneurs are made, not born.
I’m Ready to Get Creative With My Business. Now Where Do I Start?
Design thinking is just a fancy term for problem solving—but how exactly do you do it? A chief creative breaks down the basics of design thinking for entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurs and Economic Developers Both Want to Make a Difference in their Community. Here are Practical Ways they Can Improve their Collaboration.
Learn five ways economic developers and entrepreneurs can work better together to improve their communities.
Economic Developers Cannot Just Rely on Corporate Recruitment. They Have to Grow Their Own Ecosystem.
Economic developers need to learn from the sports world and play a little Moneyball.
Need a Mask? These Starters Have You Covered.
Spread only good things and shop masks made by our very own CO.STARTERS graduates.
The Secret to Creativity Is Not What You Think
Entrepreneur psychologist and author Shelley Prevost reveals the key to becoming more creative in order to solve problems in your business.
Entrepreneurship is About Creation. Here’s Why We Need to Train Entrepreneurs to Create the Next Economy.
Today’s entrepreneurs focus on more than just wealth creation. They want to build a more equitable world. They want to build the Next Economy.
Business and Entrepreneurship Will Play a Critical Role in Creating a Better World. Here’s How.
Business creation and entrepreneurial thinking will play a foundational role in ushering in an economy where each of us can become our best selves as we build a better world for others. This is how we start.
What We’re Doing as a Small Business to Survive the Pandemic
CO.STARTERS is a Small Business Too: Part I — Hear firsthand from our COO about what we’re doing right now (and you can too) as a small business to survive the pandemic.
Our Economy Measures Success with the Wrong Metrics. Here is How We Should Measure Successful Economic Development
When we invest in local entrepreneurs who are building the social fabric and community health of their region, we soar toward the economy we need and the future we all want.
Marketing as a Human Being to Human Beings
Marketing expert Jacqui Jones shares tips on how to market authentically during a crisis.
Black Dreams Matter, Every Day
Meet nine Black business starters who are paving the way for dreams.
Our Economy is Moving from the Industrial Age to the Connected Age. Here is What that Really Means.
Developing a strong Connected Age economy depends on fostering homegrown entrepreneurial talent and connecting those entrepreneurs to mentors and other business leaders who are ready to reimagine their community.
Moving Your Small Business Online
Dane Johnson from The Nice Center gives practical tips for what small business owners need to do (and what they don't) to start selling and marketing online.
Good News from Small Business in the Time of COVID-19
From makers to caterers to campaigns, how our network of small business communities are spreading good things through the virus crisis.
CO.STARTERS Launches New Initiative Focused on Small Business Recovery
A five-step Road to Recovery framework to help entrepreneurs adapt now and for the future