MARC JACOBS
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — StartUp Hutch is launching several fall programs designed to help entrepreneurs, skilled-trade workers and downtown businesses develop their skills and grow their operations.
Executive Director Graham Klemme said the organization will begin its new Avante startup boot camp Monday, Sept. 21. The six-week program’s first cohort is full, with 15 participants and a waiting list.
The program combines online material with in-person workshops covering customer identification, finances, marketing, business planning and incorporation. Participants will also learn how to prepare to approach a bank and will have access to individual coaching through StartUp Hutch.
“This is foundational,” Klemme said. “It covers all the basics.”
The inaugural class includes a mix of startup founders and existing small-business owners. Klemme said another session is expected to be offered in the spring.
StartUp Hutch is also accepting applications for a housing entrepreneurship program led by Jim Gruver, who has more than 40 years of experience in construction and real estate development.
The program begins Oct. 14 and includes 10 weeks of instruction, along with onboarding and offboarding sessions. Applicants will also be encouraged to meet individually with Gruver before the program begins.
Klemme said the program is intended for people throughout the building trades, including recent trade-school graduates, contractors, subcontractors and homebuilders. Participants will receive instruction on trade skills, marketing, finances and business operations.
“We want people to not only go into the trades, but to be able to operate at peak capacity — to be the best business owners they can be,” Klemme said.
He said strengthening the local construction workforce could also help Hutchinson address its housing shortage.
“By upskilling contractors and subcontractors, we can have a larger base to draw from and hopefully build more houses,” Klemme said.
Applications will be accepted through the end of September, with a possible cutoff around Oct. 2 or Oct. 3.
Gruver will also speak about his career during an Entrepreneurship Connections event at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 22 at Sandhills Brewing. His experience includes new construction, rehabilitation projects and managing a real estate development company during the 2008 housing-market crash.
StartUp Hutch will also host a Downtown Business Owners Workshop from 2 to 4 p.m. Sept. 21 at the Hutchinson Community Foundation, located on the fifth floor of the First National Bank building.
Brandi Willett, regional director of the Kansas Small Business Development Center in Wichita, will discuss destination building, downtown development and business best practices.
Klemme said the workshop was scheduled ahead of a busy early-October weekend that includes the Rod Run and Brewfest.
“That weekend downtown is going to be filled with people, and we want to put our best foot forward as a community,” Klemme said.
Downtown and nearby business owners are encouraged to register through the events section at StartUpHutch.com, although walk-ins will be accepted.
Klemme also provided an update on StartUp Hutch’s microgrant program. The organization has awarded three $2,500 grants, all to businesses in Arlington.
Recipients include Carolyn’s Essenhaus, the Arlington Farmers Insurance office and Amy Albright’s Bodega. The Farmers Insurance grant will help pay for repairs to its building.
Klemme said the concentration of recipients in Arlington was not intentional but reflects the business activity occurring in the community.