How to Apply - Cincinnati Minority Business Accelerator

Portfolio Company Application Requirements

Accelerator portfolio firms are sizeable, high-growth-potential, minority-owned business enterprises. Qualifications for inclusion include, but are not limited to the following:

01.

Annual revenues of $1 million or more.

04.

Headquarters or a significant presence in the Cincinnati region.

02.

Business plan or defined growth strategy that indicates strong potential for accelerated growth in 2-5 years.

05.

Business to Business (B2B) or Business to Government (B2G) business model

03.

Certification as a minority business enterprise by a third-party agency such as the local minority business supplier development council or a government agency.

Expectations of Portfolio Firms

The Accelerator provides Portfolio Firms with business development services, including:

Work closely with the Accelerator to develop a business strategy that defines where your business will play and how it will win.

Willingness to confidentially share financials, customer lists, and other key company data.

Strategically align with the Accelerator’s five-year goal of creating an additional 3,500 new jobs and $1 billion in aggregate annual sales among our region’s minority-owned companies.

SCORE

Lincoln & Gilbert Requirements

To take advantage of the Lincoln & Gilbert collaborative, the emerging small business must be at least 51% minority-owned and controlled. Additionally, the applicant firm is required to demonstrate an unambiguous path to sustainable business growth. The most common indicators of growth potential:

Demonstrate a sales forecast of $5 million+ in sustainable annual revenues within 3-5 years
Demonstrate potential to create a minimum of 15 permanent jobs within 3-5 years

Success Stories

The Accelerator and Lincoln & Gilbert partnered to share stories of eleven high potential minority businesses in the Cincinnati region as part of its “Building A Business Enterprise” campaign.