Geary County Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

Geary County
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

The Entrepreneurial Ecosystem model was derived from Main Street America. Junction City Main Street was one of 30 communities within the United States and Puerto Rico selected for the E3 (Equitable Entrepreneur Ecosystem) pilot program. During this pilot program, the direction of Flint Hills Business Builder community navigator website was restructured from the original design to capture the Main Street American model.

Place Factors
Social Capital
Financial Capital
Culture
Regulation
Education & Training
Human Capital

Place Factors

Real Estate

Unique buildings (think breweries); move-in ready spaces; affordable start-up spaces, diversity of housing.

Support Spaces

Maker spaces, incubators/accelerators, shared-use food kitchens, night kitchens, mobile retail/food trucks, co-work spaces; entrepreneur hub centers:

Programming

Pitch contests, pop-up programming, soup events

Innovation Expo Home
JCE 101/201 JCE101/201 Registration
Lunch & Learns
JCACC- Business After Hours/During Hours

Third Spaces

Breweries, coffee houses, libraries – places that allow for entry

Social Capital

Networking Events

Entrepreneur and Small Business Network Groups

Financial Capital

Personal Equity

Home, credit cards, personal savings, friends and family

Government Loans & Grants

Local, State and Federal:

Nonprofit Entities

CDFIs, façade loan programs, low-interest loans from economic development groups:

JC1st Revolving Loan Fund

Private Equity

Angel and venture capital investors

Culture

Media

Features on small business and new business announcements:

Buy Local

Presence of buy local and promotions like “Shop Small” campaigns:

New Businesses

New residents opening businesses:

Junction City Area Chamber of Commerce Ribbon Cuttings
Junction City Main Street First Dollar Presentations

Local Civic Organization

Small business owners engaged in local civic organization:

Access to social amenities within the community

Regulation

Web Resources

Web resources on how to start a business:

Economic Development Resources

Economic development resources and capacity targeting small business development:

Zoning Practices

Zoning practices that provide for protections while allowing for a broader mix of uses and functions:

Education & Training

Involvement and engagement from:

Small Business Development Council (SBDC)
Women’s Business Center (WBC)
Office of Minority and women in Business Development
Minority Business Development Agency
Mountain Plains Minority Supplier Development Council

Annual small business needs assessment:

Diversity of Access to Education & Training

Traditional onsite, virtual, and on-demand:

Local Colleges and Universities

Entrepreneurship training programs:

Human Capital

Minority and Women-Owned Businesses

Levels of minority and women-owned businesses as compared to local demographic profiles.

Youth Entrepreneurship Programming

Economic development resources and capacity targeting small business development:

Local Universities and Colleges

Engagement of local universities and colleges in workforce development matched to local market needs:

Counties

Click on the counties below to learn more about the Place Factors in that county.

Geary County Entrepreneurial Ecosystem