SAN ANTONIO and BROWNSVILLE, Feb. 23, 2023 – The eBridge Center for Business & Commercialization will host a Startup Bootcamp in partnership with Geekdom, San Antonio’s premier collaborative startup community. The free, three-day workshop will take place from March 31 to April 2 at the newly opened facility in downtown Brownsville, 1304 East Adams Street., 78520. The Startup Bootcamp is facilitated by Geekdom and sponsored by eBridge partners, the UTRGV Entrepreneurship & Commercialization Center (UTRGV ECC) and Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC). Interested applicants are welcome to apply online at Start.eBridgeCenter.org.
The partnership between eBridge Center and Geekdom is just one example of the ever-growing ‘South Texas Triangle,’ a regional economic development zone drawing a line drawn from the Rio Grande Valley to San Antonio, from San Antonio to Monterrey, and Monterrey back to the Valley, with Laredo and Corpus Christi included.
“For more than 10 years, Geekdom has been supporting startup founders at every step of their entrepreneurial journeys. We fully believe in the potential of the South Texas Triangle and are eager to share our proven programming model with our partners at eBridge Center,” said Geekdom CEO Charles Woodin. “Not only will the Startup Bootcamp give entrepreneurs in the Valley a kickstart to growing their businesses, but it will strengthen the network of startup founders there, and that’s a powerful thing.
“Thank you to Geekdom for their leadership in bringing their Startup Bootcamp series to Brownsville and for choosing our City,” said Linda Ufland Romo, Director of Entrepreneurship, Commercialization and Innovation for the UTRGV ECC. “This is the first of hopefully many partnerships with Geekdom as we continue to expand our services to everyone in the RGV. We want to see more businesses and people starting businesses in Brownsville and the Valley.”
The three-day program will help new early-stage entrepreneurs obtain the proper foundation they need for launching their new businesses. This includes building a minimum viable product, mentorship from local industry experts, and opportunities to network with other founders. At the end of the program, the participants will have a lean canvas and pitch deck model necessary to obtain funding and get their businesses started.
“At BCIC, we understand how entrepreneurship stimulates job growth and creates new opportunities in industries and communities that need them,” says Cori Pena, President & CEO of BCIC. “We’re excited to bring together our regional partners, Geekdom, and our local entrepreneurs in building a more informed and engaged, thriving business community.”
The Startup Bootcamp is just one part of an ongoing series of programming and events taking place at the newly minted eBridge Center, set in motion just three weeks ago with the first of three bilingual Kauffman FastTrac cohorts scheduled throughout the year.
“This partnership with Geekdom is our first official program with one of our regional ‘South Texas Triangle’ partners, but it’s certainly not the last,” says Nathan Burkhart, Director of Business Development for BCIC. “Since starting construction of the eBridge Center to now, we have built bridges with multiple communities and organizations to help strengthen the open and inclusive ecosystem of entrepreneurship we are developing in Brownsville and the greater Rio Grande Valley. We have many more exciting events like these to come.”
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