Accelerating
One of the biggest challenges for start ups is running a business on a shoestring budget. It always makes me laugh when I have to input my department or job function on a web form - how can I select “I do all those things!” Andrea and I work every day, and we do market research, product design, feature specification, management of the dev team, social media posts, accounting, and so much more. We’re not experts at most of these things, so it’s fair to say we learn a lot everyday.
It’s difficult to make decisions with incomplete information. Often you wish you knew someone who’d been in this spot before, someone with more experience who could guide you. And that’s where accelerators come in. For those who don’t know, accelerators are competitive programs designed to help startups increase their likelihood of success. If a startup is accepted into an accelerator, they get access to mentors and a great network of business professionals, and sometimes even additional funding. Most often, the startup has to giveaway equity in their company in exchange for these amazing resources.
In July, we competed to get into the Jones + Foster Accelerator which is operated out of the Buerck Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Washington. We were thrilled to learn that we were one of the top companies, and we were accepted into the program. The J+ F Accelerator is unique in that, instead of taking a percentage of your company, they operate on a “Pay it Forward” model. If indeed your business is successful, you’re expected to support the Accelerator in the future.
In August, we met our mentors, a remarkable set of business leaders in the Seattle area, including other entrepreneurs, folks from the venture capital world, and people with related industry experience. We’re excited to embark on this journey, and confident that in addition to making Knitrino a better business, the J + F Accelerator will also help us create happier customers.
Read more about the accelerator here: Jones + Foster Accelerator Cohort