Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation
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Location |
Brattleboro, VT |
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|---|---|---|
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Build to Scale Program |
Capital Challenge |
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Project Name |
Windham Seed Fund |
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Award Amount |
Federal Share |
Local Match |
|
$250,000 |
$250,000 |
The Windham Seed Fund (WSF) will increase capital access in a rural region where risk capital investment tools do not currently exist. WSF will invest in businesses located in the Windham region that can scale and generate jobs and wealth, ultimately helping to build resilience and diversify the economy of southeastern Vermont. While the fund is sector-agnostic, it will prioritize inclusiveness and equity, job creation, the digital economy, wealth generation, and projects that have the greatest economic impact within the region. Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation (BDCC) anticipates that 12-15 businesses will receive early-stage risk capital funding and create 124 new jobs during the performance period. Businesses will have access to mentors and peer-to-peer entrepreneur support, incubation, acceleration services, and professional technical assistance.
Since the closure of Entergy’s Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant in 2015—located in Windham County, Vermont—BDCC has worked to build a culture of entrepreneurship and to increase capacity to assist early- and growth-stage entrepreneurs. Existing programs have generated enough deal-flow to merit a seed fund to support entrepreneurs in the region. BDCC now has a mix of debt solutions that equity investment capital would complement, along with a new innovation hub funded entirely through private investment and, separately, the shared workplace component of a multi-use redevelopment project in the region’s economic center.
Ultimately, the Windham Seed Fund will help support:
- the formation and launch of investment funds that will invest capital in scalable startups and growth-stage companies;
- the expansion of capital deployment within the Windham region; and,
- the practice of equity-based investing and cultivate other equity-based investment models appropriate for the region.