Dozens of firms take off from Blackstone LaunchPad at WSU

The Blackstone LaunchPad at Wayne State University is starting to gain more traction this fall as more and more student-led businesses spin out of the entrepreneurial training program.

So far 380 people have signed up to participate in the 2-year-old program. Of those, 180 have shared business ideas or businesses they are already building. Staff of Blackstone LaunchPad have met with nearly all of them to help connect them with entrepreneurial training, business mentorship and seed capital.

“We probably have 30-40 ventures that are working very hard to to launch or grow their business,” says Aubrey Agee, senior program administrator for Blackstone LaunchPad at Wayne State University.

Those businesses range from a mobile app maker to a cake baker. Several students are also utilizing the program’s resources to work on nonprofits. More and more fashion- and design-oriented entrepreneurs are taking advantage of the resources.

“We have a lot of energy here,” Agee says. “We have so many students with ideas. There is a plethora of that here.”

Source: Aubrey Agee, senior program administrator for Blackstone LaunchPad at Wayne State University
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.