Business accelerator to launch 12-month program in Worcester
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Downtown Worcester
Massachusetts nonprofit Entrepreneurship for All, known as EforAll, will launch a free, 12-month business accelerator program in Greater Worcester, the organization announced on Wednesday.
Sessions will begin in January. EforAll will also host a pitch contest for would-be entrepreneurs in Central Massachusetts in the fall.
EforAll, which with the Worcester accelerator operates in nine locations across Massachusetts as well as in one Colorado community, has helped its participants start more than 500 businesses since 2013, according to its Wednesday announcement.
The founding committee of EforAll Greater Worcester includes several prominent business people, including Mike Covino from the restaurant company Niche Hospitality Group, Jon Weaver from the incubator Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives, Jeannie Hebert of Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce, Barry Maloney of Worcester State University, Satya Mitra of The Guru Tax & Financial Services Inc. and Luis Pedraja of Quinsigamond Community College. Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus is the honorary chair of the committee.
John Esler, founder of the Rhode Island home improvement firm Esler Cos., and his wife Jeanne Esler led the fundraising effort to bring EforAll to Worceester.
“When my wife and I learned about EforAll in the spring of 2020, COVID-19 was just beginning to have a devastating impact on many businesses,” Esler said in a statement. "It struck us that the timing was perfect to launch an EforAll effort in the Worcester community.”
The program has, so far, been known for specifically helping women, people of color, immigrants and previously unemployed individuals get their business ideas off the ground. According to EforAll, 74% of businesses started by participants are owned by women, 50% are owned by people of color, 46% are owned by immigrants and 39% are owned by people who were previously unemployed.
Those interested in participating in EforAll programming should visit the organization’s website.
Editor's Note: WBJ Publisher Peter Stanton is a member of the EforAll Greater Worcester founding committee.
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