Guidant Financial Group Blog

In our area, most 5th grade classrooms take part in hatching baby chicks. For whatever reason, real mother hens are not used to keep the eggs warm, so electric incubators are brought in to heat the calcium-encased bundles of joy until they emerge.

Who would have known that, much in the same way these baby chicks can be artificially hatched, so can your new business!

Many cities and states have non-profit “small business incubators” that serve as commercial space for new businesses and offer on-site mentoring and shared resources, such as a receptionist, copy machine and phone system.

The Tennessean announced today that Gellatin, Tenn., will be building a business incubator as a part of a development project on the city’s east-side (see Gallatin Business Incubator Would Support Entrepreneurs).

As the article points out, incubators provide resources to help small businesses grow as well as cut costs. On-site mentors and business-development programs help to ease entrepreneurs into their new venture.

Most incubators have a set timeframe in which a new business can lease the space and take advantage of its offerings. Once a business is ready to strike out on its own, a new business is selected via application and/or interview to take its place.

We’ve found that the best way to find a business incubator in your area is to perform a Google search, or to contact your local chapter of the National Business Incubator Association (www.nbia.org).