Business Incubators... Growing Companies

If you could improve the probability of success for your start-up business, would you take advantage of the opportunity?

Business incubators provide an environment conducive to growth, as well as the support, advice and services needed to nurture a company in the start-up or expansion stage. With the help of an incubator, business owners are allowed to focus on what they know best – their business.

Central Tech is the service provider for the Central Oklahoma Business and Job Development Corporation (COBJDC) incubator program. In addition to the office space available in the Drumright facility, Central Tech and COBJDC work with the Oklahoma Department of Commerce to certify incubator spaces in towns throughout the Central Tech district, allowing companies to benefit from incubator services and stay in their local community.

“The business incubator program is a way to encourage entrepreneurship and help new business owners succeed,” Julie Griffin, COBJDC Incubator Manager. “Statewide, there are 36 small business incubators, with 137 tenants providing nearly 1,000 full-time jobs. That’s a tremendous impact on the Oklahoma economy.”

Incubator tenant companies benefit from business coaching and a five-year income tax exemption, with an additional five-year exemption for businesses doing a majority of their sales outside of Oklahoma.

According to the National Business Incubator Association, studies show 88 percent of businesses who have graduated from incubators are still in business after five years, whereas generally 20 percent of start-up businesses survive in the real world.

Ideal incubator client businesses have above average potential for revitalizing neighborhoods, creating high-paying jobs in the local area, commercializing new technology, and strengthening local, regional and national economies.

To learn more about Central Tech and COBJDC’s incubator program, come to Central Tech’s 45th Anniversary Open House on Sunday, February 15, between 1pm-4pm in Drumright and visit Julie Griffin in the Seminar Center.