Midweek Entrepreneur Spotlight #2: Build Institute

Midweek Entrepreneur Spotlight #2: Build Institute "Great ideas start with Build"

I hope no one will be annoyed or upset that I picked another Detroit based organization... There is just really great stuff happening in the D! it just felt right when reminding myself the point of these series of posts on the MBMBlog: Trying to bring attention to those Modern Business Minds seizing opportunity bringing and about innovation.

With that little disclaimer out the way, let's talk Build Institute. Some history off of their website tells us that Build was started in January 2012 as a program of D:hive, and originally offered as a class within the scope of d:hive's program. The classes, called Build Basics, are based on national standards for entrepreneurship education, first offered in the summer of 2012. Through success and increased demand for the classes, Build became its own entity.

FYI:  Classes are now offered every season and have expanded beyond the core curriculum to include Build Social, a class focused solely on social entrepreneurship.

What I like about Build is that it is an incubator with a classroom twist, making it more accessible to the entrepreneur found in every area of the Business Spectrum (shameless quote). It still sticks to the classic incubation mantra of "we help people turn their business ideas into reality by providing them with the necessary tools, resources, and support network in Detroit" BUT has managed to stay true to that value and mission of empowering the beginner entrepreneur to start to stand on their own. To me, they took the traditional incubator and just "watered it down"

Not to be reductive! it really is brilliant, and their impact numbers show that sometimes a stiff drink is a lot better watered down (sorry to keep the cheesy analogy going). Some key take away's from their impact numbers, in my opinion, are:

• Build has graduated over 1,400 aspiring entrepreneurs.
• 71% of Build students are female.
• 85% of graduates are low to moderate income, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Labor.
• 100% of Build graduates feel more confident in business knowledge.

Those bullets I found powerful considering they started in 2012. It has been barely 6 years and nearly 1,190 low, to moderate, income students were given the help they needed to start their own enterprise, with roughly 845 of those empowered entrepreneurs being women. Big news for Detroit and big accomplishment for Build. I think Sheryl Sandberg would be pretty happy to see this (with the caveat that women built their own table instead of elbowing their way to sitting at the existing one)

To wrap it up: Build Institute is a fairly new member of the Detroit entrepreneurial ecosystem (and the business world for that matter) and it has already made huge strides in the way of value and impact. It's for these reasons, and the general perception of the city of Detroit that I felt they deserved some time in the spotlight. Regardless of spotlight, Build Institute is not stopping any time soon- check out their upcoming events and see for yourself their potential and more importantly, maybe you'll learn something

Feel free to comment, critique, and share!
let's continue to acknowledge, celebrate, and encourage the present day entrepreneurial mind.

Sincerely,
MBMJeremy