Dedicated to Boosting Awareness
The Entrepreneurs Center (TEC) today announced the TEC Marketplace initiative, an e-commerce platform linked to TEC’s website that features and sells products from its client companies as a means of boosting awareness and sales for local entrepreneurs. With plans to market and launch the site before Black Friday kicks off the holiday season, TEC will target consumers in the region who want to support local businesses when doing their holiday shopping.
Entrepreneurs and small businesses who are clients of TEC and want to have their products featured on the TEC Marketplace website, are encouraged to apply now at this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FFS33FX.
As part of the initiative, selected companies will participate in a half-day bootcamp and may also pitch to retailers directly during a Fall pitch event designed specifically for regional retailers that may be interested in featuring products from local entrepreneurs.
Responding to both the challenges and the opportunities that the pandemic provides, TEC Marketplace offers the community a one-stop shopping option for those who want to support local businesses.
“We’ve seen so many in our community step up to help small businesses through the pandemic,” said Scott Koorndyk, president of TEC. “With TEC Marketplace, we want to provide the community a vehicle to continue this support through the holiday season.”
Offering a Broader Range of Services
At the same time, it offers TEC clients an opportunity to showcase to a broader community the products and services they offer. “We have some fabulous client companies, and we’d like to showcase their innovative products and inspiring stories,” said Katie Hill, an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at TEC.
TEC and its clients have had to shift their business models as a response to Covid19. From food service to retail products, companies across the US are increasingly shifting to digital options, and Dayton companies are no exception. Holiday says are expected to continue with this trend. “At the same time, many businesses rely heavily on holiday sales, and this is a way we can support them,” said LeKeisha Grant, business advisor at TEC’s Small Business Development Center.
Dayton’s entrepreneurial community has been growing steadily over the last five years. “We are proud of the work that our entrepreneurs and small businesses are doing, and we look forward to launching this website so that the greater community can see it too — and do some shopping,” said Koorndyk.
“We are proud of the work that our entrepreneurs and small businesses are doing, and we look forward to launching this website so that the greater community can see it too — and do some shopping.”
About the Entrepreneurs’ Center
The Entrepreneurs Center (TEC) offers solutions to all Miami Valley entrepreneurs by assisting small businesses, scalable high-tech startups, and research institutes ready to commercialize. Mentorship, connections, business planning, professional services, and technology commercialization programs are available at little-to-no cost to local entrepreneurs. TEC also manages multiple properties offering affordable, flexible space solutions such as co-working, shared space, and private offices. In partnership with the University of Dayton, TEC drives innovation in the region as the anchor tenant at The Arcade revitalization project in downtown Dayton, scheduled to open in early 2021.