Cleveland, known to many as the “Land From Whence The Cleves Came,” is rarely mentioned when you think of hotbeds of entrepreneurial energy. But yet it was the long time home to Harvey Pekar and does still have many local colleges, including Case Western Reserve, John Carroll, and Cleveland State. It is also home to Sherwin-Williams, Progressive Insurance, and now LaunchHouse.
In other words, it’s a city that’s ready to make a few sweeping changes.
LaunchHouse is a small accelerator in the LaunchHouse office park. It is accepting 10 teams out of 30 finalists set to present at their July Unconference and the winning teams will receive $25,000. LaunchHouse will retain 8% of the company on launch.
“Cleveland has a low-cost of living and operating while it is host to a highly educated and technical workforce,” said David Greenberg, LaunchHouse’s representative. They’ve seen 50 applications so far and the deadline is July 1 for submissions.
But why Cleveland?
“Because we believe in the Ohio community. We believe that Northeast Ohio can become an international center for entrepreneurship and innovation with the help and support of the local community. Cleveland is home to many fortune 500 companies, as well as many venture capital and private equity funds that will provide follow on funding to our entrepreneurs,” said Greenberg.
“We are most excited about putting Cleveland Ohio on the map as an innovative center for technology where entrepreneurs come from all over the world to build and grow their businesses.”
You can submit your proposal here and here’s hoping you don’t get hit by a rocket from the tombs.