The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Spring class includes Crown of Folklore, The Shade, Hithr
The latest class of the Incubator—an annual program at the ICELab designed to foster startup companies in Gunnison County—graduated in May. Erica Woodward of Crown of Folklore (Crested Butte), Rob and Teri Harper of The Shade (Crested Butte South) and Ky B. Hamilton of Hithr (Gunnison) recently finished the eight-week program through the economic development hub under the direction of ICELab director David Assad.
In a first for the Incubator, the program was conducted entirely online because of the coronavirus pandemic. Nevertheless, diverse topics were covered in group settings and one-on-one coaching was provided by Fluent of Denver. In addition, many established professionals and mentors hailing from the Gunnison Valley made themselves available for presentations on topics ranging from finance and marketing to mindset and entrepreneurship.
The graduates:
Crown of Folklore is a sustainable children’s apparel and accessory brand to challenge the one-time use costume industry. Like the root of its name, each piece provides a platform for open-ended storytelling with European charm and playful expression designed with a quality to pass down. During its development, more information can be given by contacting erica@crownoffolklore.com.
The Shade from Crested Butte South is the simple, solid and safe system to provide shade on a whitewater raft. It is made for rafters, by rafters—learn more at raftintheshade.com.
The Hithr team is leveraging its two decades of expertise building world-class apps to develop a social-event application that simplifies the process of making plans with friends. Sign up to be one of the first users at hithr.com.
“The ICELab has been delighted with the intense participation from the teams in such hectic times,” said Assad. “As always, the cohort was incredibly supportive of each other and likely gained as much from being in the cohort together as they did from the ICELab programming and one-on-one coaching.
“The potential for impact on our local economy from this trio of emerging businesses is, in a word, high. These companies are going to produce more high-paying jobs in the valley and help us put a stronger, third leg on our valley’s economic stool.”
The Incubator program fulfills one of the four groups of economic development on which the ICELab focuses: co-working, startups, existing businesses and business recruitment. Co-working is seen as the foundation piece of economic development and is expected to return to full operations this summer at the ICELab’s physical facilities on the campus of Western Colorado University.
The Incubator program’s focus on startup companies within Gun nison County promises to be crucial to economic development in both the near-term and long-term. The ICELab’s local Accelerator program focuses on the growth of existing businesses and graduated three teams in 2019 and is expected to have even more interest in the fall of 2020.
