IMPACT 307 to expand statewide

Opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs in Wyoming are growing. The University of Wyoming announced on Feb. 2, that IMPACT 307, a business incubator program at UW, is expanding statewide.

The program has helped create and launch more than 200 Wyoming businesses, with the majority of those coming in the past three years of IMPACT 307 community startup challenges, including a satellite in Sheridan. These help connect clients to the resources and support needed to launch their business.

“We can help with everything an entrepreneur needs from the ground up, including pitching their idea, marketing, early financials and connecting with a lawyer. Our goal is to help these businesses thrive and be a one-stop shop for resources,” IMPACT 307 Laramie Interim Director Fred Schmechel said.

According to UW, IMPACT 307 was founded in 2005 as the Wyoming Technology Business Center, in part through a $1.6 million U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) investment. It has primarily been serving entrepreneurs in the more populous cities of Sheridan, Laramie and Casper, but is now expanding statewide into more rural areas.

A recent $2.4 million EDA grant is broadening the program, which will serve clients through a hybrid virtual and in-person structure.

“The virtual environment allows for better collaboration across the state and is facilitating even faster growth of the companies. It allows for putting the right resources with the right people,” Schmechel says.

UW is partnering with eight community colleges across the state to tailor the support for each community’s needs.

“One thing that entrepreneurs are very excited about is that the EDA grant is allowing us to expand across the state and to have someone physically in smaller cities,” IMPACT 307 Assistant Director Monica Jo Patten says. “It makes the community feel like they are that much more supported, and they are more eager to connect because we are right there.”

Through the new resources, IMPACT 307 will expand its program from six pitch competitions a year to 12-14.