on the path
By Lydia Freudenberg
A Great Place to Raise a Company Innovate New Albany continues to help launch new businesses after 10 years
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Kwame Christian of American Negotiation Institute and the Christian Law Office LLC addresses the audience at an Innovate New Albany TIGER Talk.
to an incubator. … He has put Innovate New Albany on the map.” Today, Collins still has his Results office, but also oversees Innovate with business coordinator Angela Hobart. Now in an even more thriving environment, Col-
lins has created TIGER Talks, in which successful entrepreneurs tell their stories, and TIGER Workshops, which provide lessons on business-related topics. Collins says residents can now “earn their stripes” and gain the skills to
Innovate New Albany has helped businesses inside and outside the community thrive; just another factor that’s making New Albany stronger and more tightly connected with the world around it. www.healthynewalbanymagazine.com
Photos courtesy of Sam Malik, Malik Media LLC
n 2007, the U.S. economy was edging toward crisis, and many would have thought twice before launching a new business. But when New Albany’s Community Improvement Corporation decided to start Innovate New Albany, fears turned into hope. Jennifer Chrysler, director of community development for the city of New Albany, and a team of creative minds launched this entrepreneurial ecosystem by partnering with the New Albany Company and becoming an affiliate of Rev1 Ventures. With a strong focus on providing space to small tech-oriented businesses – as, often, these companies do not see an immediate profit return, but are still vital – Innovate has also allowed other service-providing companies into its space in hopes of boosting not only the New Albany community, but the Ohio economy. “We really needed to create an environment that was good for businesses to grow,” Chrysler says. “Innovate is this hub, and from the hub come all these spokes.” Innovate provides physical and virtual office space for startups, as well as in-house conference rooms, networking opportunities and resources to help grow and promote each business’ brand. Within the past two years, resources have grown significantly, all thanks to a local professional brander. Starting out simply as a resident at Innovate, Neil Collins rented out a full-time office for his startup, Results Marketing Group. But after showing a great deal of interest in enhancing Innovate, the organization decided to hire him to help publicize and recruit new businesses. “He really gave us the opportunity to grow Innovate New Albany into something even more than what we imagined,” Chrysler says. “The energy he has created in that physical space is so vital