Rising stars of entrepreneurship fuel Northern Kentucky success

Effective business leaders know that success starts with a great location. Access to reliable transport, skilled local workers, favorable tax incentives, supportive government, and vibrant communities are all crucial attributes that Kentucky boasts in spades — which is why some of the world's most profitable businesses are setting up shop with remarkable frequency in the Bluegrass state.
 
But what about those less-established yet equally vital contributors to the regional economy — the fledgling start-ups whose potential for success far outweighs their business savvy, connections, and capital? How do we ensure that they get their slice of the economic pie?

This month Thrive takes a close look at the tight-knit entrepreneurial community in Northern Kentucky region, gleaning revealing insights from some of the key players whose ample resources are helping small companies angle for big success.
 
ezone paves the way for entrepreneurs

In 2001, the Northern Kentucky Tri-ED launched the ezone, an entrepreneurial support division and Northern Kentucky's branch of the Kentucky Innovation Network. The ezone works to support businesses of every stripe, helping them to commercialize new products, technologies, and processes and get crucial funding through programs like the Kentucky Enterprise Fund and the state's Office of Commercialization and Innovation.
 
To date, the ezone has assisted more than 300 companies, raising over $135 million in grants, equity and forgivable loans.
 
"The fundamental aspects of the program have not changed in 12 years," says Casey Barach, Director of the ezone, whose "ABC" formula — assessment, business planning, and capital-seeking — helps area businesses reach their maximum potential.
 
UpTech provides a unique leg up for entrepreneurs

An important component of the ezone's mission is UpTech, a "super accelerator" program that ezone operates in conjunction with Northern Kentucky University's College of Informatics.
 
Of UpTech's inaugural 2012 class, there's good news to report.

"The UpTech I companies are all making progress on their businesses," says Barach. "The companies have gone from fledgling ideas to full-fledged customer-seeking businesses in a short, ten-month period. The class has made some major and minor pivots to their original business models, and many have stayed the course. The market place is always tough for new businesses, but we think they all still have a great chance of huge success at this stage." 
 
Barach is also happy to announce that UpTech II is now accepting applications for the next class, slated begin in September of 2013, coinciding with the start of NKU's fall semester. "NKU and the involvement of its student and faculty are the ‘secret sauce' of the UpTech program," says Barach.
 
On the heels of this recent success, the ezone is taking things at UpTech a step further to address the needs of Northern Kentucky's advanced manufacturing industry with a unique program called mUpTech. In partnership with Gateway Community and Technical College, Northern Kentucky Tri-ED, the ezone, Vision 2015, UpTech and the Duke Energy Foundation, mUpTech hopes to address three issues in the NKY manufacturing sector: image, innovation and workforce.

"The pilot program will run in conjunction with the Kenton County Academy of Innovation and Technology's High Performance Production Technology program, culminating in a competition May 7 at the Gateway Center for Advanced Manufacturing," Barach says. "The two winning student-teams will receive tuition for six hours per academic year at Gateway for up to two years (while still attending high school), textbook reimbursement, start-up counseling from the ezone, and free legal consultation."

Those interested in learning more about the UpTech and mUpTech programs can visit www.uptechideas.org and attend one of the organization's weekly informational seminars.

Barach's advice to start-up companies wondering if it's worthwhile to apply? Apply.

"Every company will get invaluable feedback from the judging panels and make contacts they can use to start growing their businesses," he assures.
 
ZoomEssence: an ezone success story

Serving as a shining example of what such concerted community efforts can do is ZoomEssence, a Hebron-based research and development firm that has worked closely with the ezone since 2008 to launch a revolutionary new powder-flavoring process in the multi-billion-dollar food additive industry.
 
"From the day [ZoomEssence representatives] walked into the ezone's boardroom and gave me a glass of juice made from their product, I was a believer and a big fan … you might say that I drank the Kool-Aid," laughs Barach. "We were excited to assist them in any way we could, providing regional contacts and access to state programs that would help grow their business."

Echoing that sentiment, ZoomEssence's CFO and Director of Business Development Steve Hardek credits the ezone with some of the company's most important gains.

"The ezone has really been involved almost since the inception of Zoom," Hardek says. "As we looked at different ways to fund the company, whether it was in the form of loans or tax incentives, ezone was helpful across the board as a partner."
 
ZoomEssence, with help from the ezone's Duke Energy connections, was recently chosen from a pool of several thousand applicants to receive a $5.4 million grant that it will use to expand its Northern Kentucky facilities.

At a groundbreaking ceremony last week, Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear applauded the company's success.

"ZoomEssence is an example of a high-tech company that is developing and manufacturing innovative products here in the Commonwealth, and we are very proud of that," said Gov. Beshear. "The workforce, logistical advantages and business climate in Kentucky all play vital roles, but quality products and top-notch people make companies such as ZoomEssence stand out."

Speaking to the breadth of services available through programs like the ezone's UpTech, Hardek offers words of wisdom for fellow entrepreneurs in Northern Kentucky — which he describes as "the most welcoming climate imaginable." He feels that crucial elements must be in place: "You really need someone who's an expert in the sales, marketing, and commercialization of a new business, as well as someone who can design the technology, or if it's a manufacturing company, someone who can drive the operations," he says. "You can have a genius developer who created brilliant software or technology, but you may not have the acumen to get it commercial. If you can get both, you'll have a great chance for success."