Maine
Maine Venture Fund partners with Central Maine Growth Council and Dirigo Labs to support Central Maine entrepreneurs
WATERVILLE — Maine Enterprise Fund is proud to announce a brand new partnership with Dirigo Labs, a startup accelerator launched by the Central Maine Development Council, to extend capital funding into corporations situated in central Maine. Dirigo Labs will present MVF with “boots on the bottom” within the area and develop a channel by way of which corporations can be taught in regards to the fairness financing choices out there from MVF. In flip, MVF will take part in Dirigo Labs accelerator programming and work immediately with corporations to assist them perceive the fundraising course of and determine sources of capital in Maine and past, together with however not restricted to Maine Enterprise Fund itself.
Dr. Brien Walton, MVF Board chair, acknowledged, “Partnering with Dirigo Labs follows the MVF Board’s strategic precedence of increasing influence throughout Maine. As a lean workforce, MVF could be extra environment friendly by working to assist present regional companions moderately than recreating these sources. The connection with Dirigo Labs and the Central Maine Development Council is an ideal instance of the sort of partnership, to raised join the state’s sources with dynamic leaders on the entrance strains of rising central Maine’s financial system.”
Susan Ruhlin of Dirigo Labs agreed. “As Maine’s enterprise capital fund, it made sense to ally with Maine Enterprise Fund to make sure that taking part Dirigo Labs startups have direct entry to state funding that seeks to assist excessive development corporations. Maine Enterprise Fund’s demonstrated success within the state over the previous 25 years bolsters the potential for brand new financial improvement organizations like Dirigo Labs to realize a foothold and thrive over the following 25 years in higher serving the central Maine area.”
MVF is already participating with a number of of the businesses enrolled within the Dirigo Labs inaugural accelerator class in a variety of actions from basic fundraising schooling to capital funding analysis. MVF expects to leverage the newly introduced MVF Microfund program to supply a wider vary of fairness funding choices to the businesses at Dirigo Labs and within the wider central Maine area.
Dirigo Labs is a regional startup accelerator based mostly in Waterville, Maine. With a mission to develop the better Waterville space’s digital financial system by supporting entrepreneurs constructing innovation-based corporations, the Dirigo Labs ecosystem brings collectively individuals, sources, and organizations to make sure the profitable launch of latest startups. Dirigo Labs operates beneath Central Maine Development Council and is supported by a number of organizations, tutorial establishments, and funding corporations. To be taught extra about Dirigo Labs, please go to http://www.dirigolabs.org.
Maine Enterprise Fund invests in dynamic companies which have the potential for important development and influence in Maine. The Fund has invested over $25 million in Maine corporations since 1997, after its creation by an act of the Maine Legislature as a revolving “evergreen” state-sponsored fund. For extra data, go to maineventurefund.com.