Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com • February 11, 2019 • Hartford Business Journal 15 Quality Construction + Butler Manufacturing = Repeat Customers www.borghesibuilding.com © 2011 BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc. All rights reserved. Butler Manufacturing™ is a division of BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc. 2155 East Main Street • Torrington, Connecticut 06790 Napoli Retail, Southington, CT | 2016 | 7,300 sq. ft. Napoli Foods Corporate Offices & Refrigerated/Freezer Warehouse/Distribution Center, Cheshire, CT | 2008 | 215,000 sq. ft. Contact us at 860-482-7613 or visit us on the web. 10:00 am: Registration, Networking & Women's Wellness Showcase 12:15 pm: Luncheon and Keynote featuring Dr. Gina Barreca 2:00 pm: VIP Reception ©2019 American Heart Association, Inc., a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit. All rights reserved. Go Red for Women is a registered trademark of AHA. The Red Dress Design is a trademark of U.S. DHHS. Unauthorized use prohibited. 2019 Greater Hartford Go Red For Women ® Luncheon Go Red For Women is nationally sponsored by locally sponsored by Wednesday, March 13 th ~ Connecticut Convention Center ~ To register visit HARTFORDGOREDLUNCHEON.AHAEVENTS.ORG or call Christina Asaro at (203) 303-3340 John F. Rodis, MD, MBA, FACHE President Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center; Event Co-Chair Anita M. Kelsey, MD, FACC, FASE Assoc. Chief, Section of Cardiology Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center; Event Co-Chair signature sponsor local sponsor In the city's Parkville neighborhood, nonprofit reSET runs perhaps the city's oldest accelerator, which just accepted 16 new startups for its 2019 program and has graduated 98 busi- nesses to date. One thing the accelerators have in common is their international reach — they've recruited to Hartford companies that span the globe from Canada, Israel and Europe, to as far away as Australia. That, in some ways, raises the chances these startups may stay in Connecticut, which often gets a bad rap for its expensive and/or unfriendly business climate, but is more afford- able than other countries. The state's position between Boston and New York — and comparatively less expensive cost of living — also provides an advantage. Sticking around In its first year, the Stanley+Techstars Accelerator focused on technologies that build 3D objects with materials layering such as plastics, metals and concrete, among others. Technologies included 3D printing, layered manufacturing and additive fabrication and rapid prototyping. In 2019, the accelerator will con- sider startups focused on additive manufacturing or environmentally friendly sustainable packaging. Reuter and Martin Guay, Stanley vice president of business develop- ment, say having some of the initial 10 accelerator participants remain in the state is an added bonus to having a relationship with TechStars, which is designed to last as long as the startup. "For us, we feel this is important because we're seeking to continue with all of our startups,'' Reuter said. "But if they're closer, we can work with them faster.'' Moreover, she said, their pres- ence exposes them to other startup and men- tor companies and their execu- tives, fostering a deeper exchange of ideas and technologies, and product-service collaborations. "Once you're accepted into Tech- Stars, you're in for life,'' Reuter said. "The accelerator portion is over. But they will continue to get support from the Stanley (Technology) Center." Having recent accelerator alumni stick around benefits enrollees in the program's second year as well, Guay said. They become a resource with whom fresh startups can engage, to accelerate their businesses, and to learn faster. "Innovation often happens through collaboration," Guay said, "so develop- ing an ecosystem with additional per- spectives and startups at varying levels of maturity helps foster an innovative environment for the Hartford region." "We are also keen,'' he said, "to enable an advanced-manufacturing ecosystem in metro Hartford. Re- taining entrepreneurs and talent in the area will attract more talent, risk capital, and ecosystem development." CT's appeal Access is what Lawless says con- vinced him and his partners to re- main in Connecticut. After residing downtown for 2½ months, the CALT co-founder said he found an affordable place to live in West Hartford. A rela- tively short commute into downtown Hartford was the main appeal. Since MetalMaker's arrival in Hartford in mid-July last year to participate in the Stanley+Techstars programs, Sammut said " … we have realized the value of this city as a base of operations for our startup." Sammut subsequently chose to stay and make Hartford MetalMaker's headquarters because, he said, the city is at the heart of this state's manufac- turing sector and strategically situated between New York and Boston. Also, he said, "Hartford rents are more affordable than other large cit- ies and we don't have to spend hours each day in traffic. It is ideal for an early stage manufacturing startup that needs to run lean while main- taining ties to the U.S. market." AstroPrint founder-CEO Drew Tay- lor admits "we hadn't thought much about being in the Hartford area'' prior to enrolling in the Stanley+Techstars accelerator program. But once here, Taylor, 45, who calls San Diego, Calif., home despite regular- ly traveling the globe, says "it became apparent this was the place to be.'' His company is developing a cloud-based operating software he and his team devised to run multiple 3D printers at once. Not only did AstroPrint succeed in landing Stanley as a client, but his company's presence amid so many other prospective New England manufacturing customers made it imperative the company stay in Hartford, Taylor said. He said the 12- to 18 months it takes to cultivate and seal a contract makes not having to travel far an advantage. AstroPrint claims about 80,000 customers worldwide. He said AstroPrint is eager to hire by summer a couple of local salespeople to his global staff of 10. Meantime, Taylor is homing in on the city's Parkville neighborhood as his nesting place, citing the neighbor- hood's "gritty feel'' and its confluence of startup entrepreneurs. MetalMaker 3D founder Eric Sammut says his company "has realized the value of [Hartford] as a base of operations.''

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