Los Alamos County Economic Development Administrator Dan Ungerleider addresses the second cohort of the Los Alamos Business Accelerator. Photo Courtesy LACDC
LACDC NEWS RELEASE
The second cohort of the Los Alamos Business Accelerator has been meeting weekly at projectY cowork in Los Alamos and connecting with a variety of existing local business owners, Los Alamos County staff, the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at UNM-Los Alamos, and other business advisors.
The program is hosted by Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce and Los Alamos MainStreet, programs that are part of Los Alamos Commerce & Development Corporation. This year the program accepted 16 businesses into its cohort; a handful of those businesses will advance to a pop-up phase that will run mid-November through the end of the year. More information can be found at LosAlamosMainStreet.com/Business-Accelerator.
Entrepreneurs selected for the program can help de-risk their entry into Los Alamos. The program is conducted in two phases, with the first serving as a business training program in conjunction with New Mexico MainStreet, and the second serving as a viability test in a vacant retail storefront. Program participants who advance to Phase II are provided free rent, utilities, marketing and merchandising display costs for a period of time. Last year’s cohort resulted in four new businesses starting in Los Alamos County: Little Studio on the Mesa (White Rock), Samizdat Bookstore & Teahouse (Los Alamos), Inspired Jewelers (Los Alamos) and Wheeed (Los Alamos).
Anyone interested in starting a business in Los Alamos County is welcome to stop by the LACDC and Chamber/MainStreet offices at 190 Central Park Square in Los Alamos, or reach out by phone or email. The 2022 Los Alamos Business Accelerator program is sponsored by the New Mexico Economic Development Department LEADS program, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Community Partnerships Office, New Mexico Resiliency Alliance, LANL Foundation, New Mexico MainStreet, Enterprise Bank & Trust, and Del Norte Credit Union.
Los Alamos Business Accelerator participants engage in training. Photo Courtesy LACDC