The eFactory Accelerator: Cohort No. 2 has out-of-state flair

Entrepreneurs from Alabama and Florida are making their way to Springfield. And for one of them, The eFactory business accelerator program beat out two others in California.

The eFactory on Jan. 12 announced the second cohort for its accelerator program, and two of the five companies chosen are from outside Missouri. A mobile survey platform called Reaction was developed by Stuart Emerson, of Birmingham, Alabama, and Pull-Up-A-Seat, a private community marketplace that connects consumers with on-demand home cooking, was created by Camille Baker from Orlando, Florida.

“We’ve had, both in cohort one and two, a very diverse pool of applicants both in geography and industry, in background and in stage of company,” said Brian Kincaid, director of The eFactory.

The other companies in the cohort that begins Feb. 6 – Apt Crowd, Let’s Do Lunch and Solely Jolie – are based locally. Last year’s cohort, which had 40 applicants, was made up of all local companies. Kincaid declined to disclose the number of applicants in the second round.

Through the accelerator, the selected companies receive $30,000 in funding from The eFactory investment committee in exchange for 8 percent equity, as well as access to office space, business consulting, a mentor network, discounts to services and customized presentations from industry professionals.

Kincaid said The eFactory’s investment committee doesn’t choose companies based on geography; the group reviews the viability of the business model, the stage of operations and the ability for that company to scale.

“The investment decision is looking at the quality of the business,” he said.

Baker said Pull-Up-A-Seat applied for a variety of accelerator programs around the country. She was accepted into three programs, the others in California, but chose The eFactory because of the diverse resources, the hands-on mentorship and the college-town market.

Springfield’s nearly 50,000 student population also appealed to Emerson.

“Launching our app around a college campus is a big plus to have that young tech-savvy student body,” said Emerson, who also applied to the Velocity Accelerator in his hometown but wasn’t accepted.

After developing her company in October 2015, people told Baker not to bother getting help from accelerator programs because they are usually detached from the individual and not worth the time investment. As she got further into the company’s creation, Baker realized she needed additional resources and support.

“This is the one that I knew would be dedicated to me,” Baker said of The eFactory’s accelerator.

Baker has personally invested $25,000 into the company, and her goal is to prove its viability outside of her hometown.

“I think we’ve hit on the right combination of value proposition here in Springfield,” Kincaid said. “We put together the right combination of partners and opportunities so that people see this as an opportunity for them to be successful.”

The most recent development by a startup from the first cohort comes from Eagle Speak LLC, a desktop communications platform for minimal interruption of workflow. On Jan. 18 at a 1 Million Cups event, Eagle Speak CEO Jason Arend announced the release of a major platform update that will bring improvements to the voice recognition software.

The firm also was nominated for three Excellence in Technology Awards from the Association of Information Technology Professionals: most innovative startup, best software application and engineer of the year. The awards event is March 2.

Arend said 25 companies now are using Eagle Speak.

Through the accelerator program, the companies engage on-site with The eFactory for 12 weeks of mentorship and development. At the end, they take part in a “demo day” in which they share their business with the Springfield community and potential additional investors. As part of the program guidelines, each company must keep their business in the state of Missouri for 12 months.

For Emerson and Baker, it’s a big step.

Emerson has never lived outside of Alabama, and Baker’s never even been to Missouri; she interviewed for the program entirely over Skype and will see Springfield for the first time when she relocates next month.

“Our ultimate goal is to get them here for good,” Kincaid said. “Our position is that we want to see companies grow, scale and create economic impact, and that manifests itself through job creation, increased revenue and investments back into the company.”


[[In-content Ad]]