CINCINNATI, April 5, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nationally recognized startup accelerator The Brandery is now accepting applications for its 2013 class via its Web site, www.brandery.org, f6s.com and Angel List.
Applications are due by May 1, with early-admission decisions being made on April 15. The 2013 class of 10 companies will be announced on June 1.
The Brandery is a founding member of the Global Accelerator Network and has been ranked as one of the top accelerators in the United States by the Kellogg School of Management/Kauffman Fellows/Tech Cocktail rankings.
Twenty-six startups have benefitted from Brandery acceleration, and have collectively raised over $15 million from investors nationwide. Brandery mentors and investors represent regional, national and international venture capital firms and angel groups, such as SoftBank Capital, Crosslink Capital, Draper Associates, Transmedia Capital, Andreesen Horowitz, First Round Capital, Union Square Ventures, Lerer Ventures, AOL Ventures, Mercury Fund, SV Angel, kbs+, Dundee VC and CincyTech.
The Brandery runs a four-month program in Cincinnati for consumer internet startups that are consumer focused and brand driven, as well as B2B startups whose customers will be brands or creative agencies. The Brandery prides itself on providing its startups with an "unfair advantage" through its top-notch mentor network and access to strategic partners, such as Procter & Gamble.
"2012 was a fantastic year for the Brandery, and we look forward to building on those successes. With applicants from over 40 states and 40 countries, we were able to select extremely high caliber teams and interesting concepts last year. Our Alums have built some amazing brands and are solving big problems. They continue to have success building their teams and raising money." says Mike Bott, general manager of the Brandery. "Cincinnati and the Brandery are uniquely positioned to help startups build a brand and a product their consumers will love, and make sure they have the right user acquisition strategy to get their product to the masses. We're looking forward to accelerating strong founding teams and disruptive ideas."
Due to its global recruiting footprint, the Brandery offers a number of opportunities for entrepreneurs to engage with them through office hours:
- Online Town Hall (leveraging Brandery alum CrowdHall): Get to know more about Brandery by submitting questions to the Brandery leadership team, mentors and alums.
- Cincinnati, New York City and Chicago Office Hours. Pitch the Brandery staff, mentors and alums in person.
- Virtual Office Hours. Whether you're in Tel Aviv, Santiago or Washington, DC, pitch the Brandery via a Google Hangout.
Event details are available at http://brandery.org/schedule.
The Brandery provides each company with $20,000 in seed money, training sessions with other entrepreneurs and industry experts, and networking with more than 60 mentors who work with startups to provide insights and help grow each idea into an investable, scalable product. Additionally, Cincinnati's world-class design agencies have donated their services to help each of the startups develop their branding and visual identity.
Building upon a mentor list of industry leaders, the Brandery has recently welcomed Mark Hasebroock of Dundee Ventures, Doug Pepper of InterWest, Dustin Dolginow of Atlas Venture, and international serial entrepreneur Avi Ram.
The 2013 session begins on June 21 and culminates on October 2nd at Demo Day, where each Brandery company pitches its startup to a room of angel investors, venture capitalists, marketers and media. Last year's Demo Day attracted more than 550 people to Great American Ball Park.
About The Brandery
The Brandery is a Cincinnati-based, nonprofit startup accelerator founded in 2010 by David Knox, J.B. Kropp, Bryan Radtke and Rob McDonald with the goal of supporting startups in technology-based consumer experiences. More than 60 mentors work with the companies, which each receive $20,000 in seed money. Leading Cincinnati-based design firms offer free branding and visual identity guidance to each of the startups. Quantifiable benefits available to Brandery companies exceed $200,000. Brandery startups can be found at www.brandery.org/companies.
The Brandery is an inaugural member of the Global Accelerator Network -- independently owned regional organizations that operate startup accelerator programs in dozens of cities across the United States and around the world.