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The Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation just got a big boost in its mission to cultivate entrepreneurship in Brownsville and the region in the form of a $1.2 million “Build to Scale” grant from the Economic Development Administration (EDA).
The money will be used to fortify the Brownsville region’s technological and entrepreneurial capacity, according to BCIC, which is contributing matching funds in the same amount. Cori Pena, the organization’s president and CEO, said BCIC’s portion is what it already spends on entrepreneurial programs through StartUp Texas and the eBridge Center for Business & Commercialization, and a portion of staff salaries, for instance.
“So really there’s not much totally out of pocket anymore, which is great,” she said.
Pena said EDA’s Build to Scale grant program is highly competitive and that BCIC is one of only four recipients statewide.
The eBridge Center, the largest start-up company incubator and entrepreneurial resource center of its kind in the Valley, is a partnership among BCIC, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Entrepreneurship & Commercialization Center, EDA (part of the Commerce Department), the city of Brownsville and the Lower RGV Development Council.
The EDA grant will support what goes on under the eBridge Center’s roof, starting with a regional marketing campaign to get the word out about resources available through the center to start-up companies and budding entrepreneurs.
“We want to identify and engage in ventures that look like they can be a scalable business and have commercial viability,” Pena said. “From there we have our pre-acceleration phase. … We’re looking at it to validate their concept and find out if their product (or service) is a market fit.”
The next step is a hands-on, seven-week “crash course” in which entrepreneurs come away with a more comprehensive business plan and firmer grasp of the viability of their ventures. Then comes BCIC’s StartUp Texas accelerator program, for business owners who already have a viable product or service, and finally Demo Day pitch competitions, where entrepreneurs compete for tens of thousands of dollars in seed money to grow their businesses.
Pena said too many businesses have had to leave the region for larger cities because of a lack of helpful resources here, and that BCIC and the eBridge Center are all about changing that.
“We want to prevent that leakage, that talent from leaving the Valley,” she said. “We want them to stay here and contribute to our economy. … We want to have them build their business and have them build their families here and be a part of the community. At the end of the day, we want these businesses to scale.”
That, in turn, creates more jobs locally, Pena said.
BCIC Board Chairwoman Jill Dominguez said the EDA grant “transcends mere financial aid.”
“It is the spark that will ignite our capacity to elevate Brownsville’s youth and early-stage entrepreneurs,” she said. “It offers them a global platform while showcasing the rich potential of our diverse local community.”
Linda Ufland, UTRGV director of Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Commercialization, said that “BCIC’s dedication to enhancing the quality of life and elevating local startups aligns perfectly with our mission to bring together university and industry.”
“The economic future of Brownsville is as bright as the minds we’re nurturing together,” she said. “What our eBridge community has accomplished is a driving force in the economic and educational landscape of the city.”
