Impact Report: 2021 Series II Accelerator
About Founded In Philly
Philly Startup Leaders created our MVP-Stage Accelerator Program to provide resources, education, impactful connections, and funding to early-stage entrepreneurs, to grow the number of entrepreneurs in Philadelphia.
Each week, founders, mentors, and keynote speakers met for a 2-hour virtual session. The sessions would start with introductions, which are a great snapshot of the milestones achieved during the cohort’s time together. Each week, the 30-second intro evolved as they selected their missions, visions, value propositions, ideal customers, and more. Next, founders watched weekly presentations by at least one expert from the PSL Community - founders, executives, intrapreneurs, service providers, enterprise companies and more.
This cohort was extremely energetic and eager to learn and push their businesses forward. We are proud to share the milestones achieved, wins celebrated, and opportunities created by the founders during their time in the program.
“Access to the co-hort, in my opinion, was the greatest asset. Being surrounded by other founders from different backgrounds allowed for new ideas and solutions to problems that we struggled with.
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Meet the Founders
Out of the 40+ applications received, PSL hand-selected 10 companies with passion, drive and innovative solutions for the final cohort. Many of the founders are striving to establish their own companies while still working full-time jobs, while others dove head-first into their entrepreneurship journey.
Of our program graduates, 60% consider themselves solo founders, and about 70% are pre-revenue. Many of them balance full-time jobs and the responsibilities of community and family life, yet on average they find about 33 hours a week to dedicate to their business. Additionally, they operate across many verticals but generally fit within the following categories:
10% E-Commerce
30% Health & Wellness
30% Education & Career Development
20% Hospitality, Travel & Entertainment
10% Consumer Goods
Founders & CEOs include:
If interested in learning more about the founders and their startups, please reach out to the PSL Team at engage@phillystartupleaders.org.
“Networking. I wouldn’t have gotten out of the house or had access to all the new folks without this experience. I’ve also felt more confident to reach out to people on my own knowing that I and Grumbles are affiliated with PSL.”
Curriculum
During the course of the 12-week program, the founders were reminded to take a step back and allow the curriculum to reshape the lens with which they looked at their companies. The speakers, mentors and PSL community asked tough questions such as “Is that prospect really the right customer for you?” and “What types of funding are right for you?”
The Financial snapshot was important to begin with, so that founders had a sense of their personal and business financial health, and how that can impact their milestones and strategy ahead. We then took the founders through exercises to determine their mission, vision, value proposition, and ideal customer. Once the ideal customer profile was created, the founders answered the critical question: Who will pay for this, and how valuable is it for them?
When it was time for the lightning pitch night, the founders and investors gathered at Ben Franklin Technology Partners in the Navy Yard for an in-person pitch experience. For many, this was their first time pitching in front of investors, and the feedback received after their 5 minutes led to breakthroughs—and sometimes pivots—in their businesses.
Feedback from investors is valuable, but unless it is expanded upon, it can leave founders unsure how to move forward. Fortunately, our community experts led the cohort through sessions on storytelling and considerations for growth mode—including marketing, sales and building a system of support and alignment in your internal and external teams.
Finally, expert service providers and enterprise executives taught the founders how to communicate effectively—creating visibility for your company in the form of public relations, investor pipelines and corporate communications.
Using lessons learned from our 2020 and early 2021 accelerators, we gave the founders countless opportunities for collaboration—including weekly assigned Accountability Partners, monthly in-person networking opportunities and extracurricular activities.
Prior to the Lightning Pitch Night, Rick Genzer from Ben Franklin Technology Partners led a pitch prep workshop, which helped founders cross critical barriers in their quest for funding and refine their pitches. Then, we had a Talent Acquisition & Hiring Panel with Juno Search Partners and Neuroflow, which gave more context to the nuanced process of hiring during a time of growth and change.
We are always grateful for the ways our curriculum is shaped by our speakers, mentors and partners, and their willingness to share their expertise and lived experiences so that our cohort is confident moving their business forward.
“The program kept me on task while also providing me new ways of thinking of the business. Having the “space” to do this on a weekly basis is invaluable.”
SPEAKERS & MENTORS
At PSL, support from our community means the world. For this program, 18 well-established business leaders from varying industries supported the weekly sessions, in addition to the 10 dedicated mentors who helped our founders each week. Truly, it is their vast knowledge and experience which provided invaluable insight and lessons for the founders, and brought the curriculum into real-life action items.
About 80% of participants said they gained at least 5 mentors during the program, while the remaining 20% said they gained anywhere from 5 - 15 mentors. We know that our program would not be the same if it was not for the time and effort of our community members. Thank you so much!
If you would like to volunteer as a speaker or mentor for any upcoming accelerator session, program or event, please fill out this form and we’ll be in touch:
“During COVID-19, daily life became less structured, as many people worked remotely or were unemployed, and so this daily structure helped us to stay focused and motivated on making progress on Keep.id during this time. Also, it was so wonderful to see the same faces each week at the meeting, and I feel like I got to know a lot of new people, both mentors and cohort participants, during a time when it is hard to meet new people.”
Key Takeaways
Here’s a peek at just some of the data that was collected over the course of the program:
90% of graduates say the accelerator experience had an immense impact on their company’s progress.
100% of graduates say the accelerator is responsible for a key relationship (mentor, co-founder, or investor) for their startup.
100% of graduates say the accelerator has made them feel more confident as an entrepreneur.
90% of graduates say the accelerator has made them more likely to keep their business in Philly long-term.
100% of graduates say they are more likely to continue pursuing their startup because of the PSL accelerator.
100% of graduates consider PSL to be one of the most important resources for their company during this time.
100% of graduates see value in having a long term relationship with Philly Startup Leaders organization and community.
“ I feel very much reconnected back to the city I left 20 years ago. I now feel confident to work with businesses & share my story in a way that demonstrates the value delivered & the community (PSL) that supported me. I am now directly connected to Rowan University students/faculty, the Ben Franklin Tech team, the feel like a “family member” of the local startup scene. To simplify, so many “maybe look this way, instead of that way” has helped me reshape & redirect my time to the things that matter most.
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After The Program
On Wednesday, May 12, 6 of the 2021 Series I cohort participants competed in the Alumni Lightning Pitch Lunch, sponsored by Ben Franklin Technology Partners. The first and second place prizes were claimed by EmpathED and Keep.id, respectively.
We’re so proud of the businesses that we added to the #FoundedinPhilly Alumni family. We cannot wait to see them use what they learned throughout this accelerator to take their idea-stage businesses and make them wildly successful. Make sure to follow all of these founders on their journeys ahead!
Interested in being a part of Founded in Philly? Learn more here.
“The Founded in Philly program has kept us focused, especially through our mentor who held us accountable every week.”