By Tracy Wright
An idea remains an idea until you turn it on
In 2022 alone, the Greater Gainesville area has already had several big boons for its thriving entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem. In April, the Florida campus of Scripps Research was integrated as a part of the University of Florida’s (UF) academic health center as UF Scripps Biomedical Research. Earlier in January, ground was broken for The Convergence, a 420-acre development located adjacent to Progress Park in Alachua and “designed as a hub for major science and technology research companies.”
Both steps signal a huge leap forward in the Greater Gainesville area’s booming business and innovation scene. The Convergence joins San Felasco Tech City, another “live, work, play,” mixed use community focused on sustainability and healthy living. Both communities were designed with residential housing adjacent to high-tech businesses as well as miles of adjacent nature trails, sports facilities and community recreation amenities.
“Greater Gainesville provides affordable living and a vibrant cultural scene with a richly supportive community of startup founders and entrepreneurs who are eager to pay-it-forward. Greater Gainesville is also home to multiple incubator programs through UF’s Innovate | Accelerate and Santa Fe College’s GTEC incubator,” said Tammy Dygert, Director of startGNV, a nonprofit dedicated to the growing innovation ecosystem in Greater Gainesville.
“In the town of Alachua alone, you can witness a vastly expanding biotechnology scene as well as innovative business growth through San Felasco’s Tech City. The talent pool for jobs in technology and biotechnology is also rapidly growing, making Greater Gainesville not only a great place to live but also a great place to find that next career.”
The local entrepreneurial environment began with the commercialization of products at UF, most notably Gatorade. In the mid-1990s, the Sid Martin Biotech Incubator was founded, which is now the only incubator to be recognized as the top incubator in the world more than once (winning three times). Along with Sid Martin, a growing number of companies like RTI Surgical, Ology, and Thermo Fisher began to form a thriving and growing research cluster going from Sid Martin along the “high tech corridor” to San Felasco.
“This corridor is the future of our community,” said Mitch Glaeser, co-founder of San Felasco Tech City. “Within a decade, I believe this area will look completely different. The surrounding community is a beacon of opportunity for startups and entrepreneurs.”
UF Innovate |Sid Martin Biotech Incubator helps bioscience entrepreneurs in all product areas relating to the life sciences, biomedical research, medicine, and chemical sciences by providing specialized laboratory space, equipment, education, mentoring, networking, and investment. Born with its Tech Licensing office in 1985, UF Innovate then added the world-renown Sid Martin Biotech Incubator in 1995, the Hub in 2011, and Pathways just last year.
“Those aren’t just names of individual units, they are intentional, service-oriented resources that drive business and the startup economy in our area,” said Sara Dagen, Assistant Director of Marketing and Communications at UF Innovate. “UF Innovate prides itself on building business on innovation for the benefit of the whole world.”
UF Innovate has helped launch nearly 300 companies; 64 percent of them remain in Florida and 38 percent remain in Alachua County. In fact, 12 percent of Florida biotech companies in business today got their start in UF Innovate’s incubation facilities.
“Companies that incubated with either Sid Martin Biotech or The Hub have created more than 7,900 jobs with an average annual salary of $79,200 and have generated more than $12 billion in private investment. Our Entrepreneurs in Residence, part of our Ventures program, are located throughout the state, and their presence benefits startups licensing UF technologies,” Dagen said.
Santa Fe College also has a wealth of resources available to entrepreneurs through their Center for Innovation and Economic Development (CIED) and the Gainesville Technology Entrepreneurship Center (GTEC) to “foster innovation and economic development by adding value and providing enrichment to individuals and organizations within our business community.” Entrepreneurs are supported through access to business development resources, shared office space, and administrative and technical support. Professional meeting space is also available.
Clearly many business resources are available for budding entrepreneurs, but to attract more businesses and employees to the Greater Gainesville area, more amenities need to be available, which is what Brian Crawford, CEO of Concept Companies, and his team is looking to provide with The Convergence. Concept Companies “create[s] environments that encourage the advancement of our clients in their mission to enhance, educate, fuel, feed and heal the world.”
“I think that science and technology will be the core business of our community,” Crawford said. “When you combine the strong health care systems in the area with a research community rooted in human sciences, you have a truly unique environment with a strong cluster of companies in the life sciences and technology.”
But Crawford explains that to attract and retain the talent in the community, we need to promote our robust infrastructure of housing and real estate, a quality school system both at the K-12 and university level as well as an attractive selection of recreation activities, many of which are rooted in ecotourism tied to the area’s beautiful parks and great weather.
“In trying to create this research-based community, we shouldn’t have to sacrifice access to a wonderful quality of life where your work life is in close proximity to your place of business,” Crawford said. “We want to create a balanced living community where you can accomplish your life and work goals.”
Organizations like StartGNV and UF Innovate have a mission to not only continue the support of the entrepreneurial community but also to shine a spotlight on the abundant resources available to those who could be attracted to the community.
“One key role we play in driving the business in our area is through attracting top tech talent. We have a wonderful number of startups and scaling businesses that provide extraordinary services and culture. These businesses also need help with acquiring and retaining talent,” Dygert said. “We consciously shine a spotlight on the tech businesses in Greater Gainesville to identify their hiring needs and help broadcast this through our jobs’ portal, social media and numerous networking events. We are continuing to adapt and grow with local needs to highlight ways in which local partnerships contribute to overall economic growth.”
Business Incubators
(courtesy of Alachuacounty.us)
Gainesville Hackerspace
Provides a physical space where hackers, engineers, scientists, artists, and other creative types can gather to share ideas, equipment, opinions, and even food.
101 SE 2nd Pl,
Suite 100,
Gainesville, FL
GatorLab
Business incubator at Starter Space in downtown Gainesville.
Program that connects students with the entrepreneurial industry. The lab recruits students to work on startup projects that could eventually turn into businesses.
308 W University Ave,
Gainesville, FL
UF Innovate | The Hub
A 48,000 sq. ft. facility, all-inclusive business incubator near UF and plenty of free parking.
Modern laboratories with access to biological safety cabinets, fume hoods, DI waters, vacuum, gas autoclave and other essential equipment.
747 SW 2nd Ave,
Gainesville, FL
352-392-8929
Gainesville Technology Entrepreneur Center (GTEC)
A 30,000 sq. ft. facility situated in east Gainesville that provides tools, training and infrastructure to help early-stage technology and light manufacturing companies launch and grow.
2153 SE Hawthorne Rd,
Suite 101,
Gainesville, FL
352-393-6000
Newberry Main Street Incubator
Collaborates and partners with the City of Newberry and other private entities, to help reach Economic Development and revitalization goals of the City.
25435 W Newberry Rd,
Newberry, FL
352-472-2112
Santa Fe Center for Innovation and Economic Development (CIED)
Located very close to downtown Gainesville, the center is host of an entrepreneur incubator program, offering services to assist in the growth and development of startup and fledgling companies.
Entrepreneurs are supported through access to business development resources, shared office space, and administrative and technical support.
530 W University Ave,
Gainesville, FL
352-395-5053
UF Innovate | Sid Martin Biotech
Located 25 miles northwest of UF in Progress Corporate Park in the City of Alachua, FL.
The facility features 40,000 sq. ft. of customized biotech incubator space, outfitted with 22 wet labs, pilot scale fermentation facilities, climate-controlled greenhouses and extensive array of scientific equipment.
12085 Research Dr,
Alachua, FL
386-462-0880
SYNOGEN Downtown Technology Center (DTC)
Business incubator located in the Sun Center in downtown Gainesville.
Entrepreneurs and start-up companies rent private offices with shared reception area, conference room and office equipment.
101 SE 2nd Pl,
Suite 201-B,
Gainesville, FL
352-371-2075
Founders Pad
Tech incubator located in downtown Gainesville, for small teams involved in mobile and web development, or similar areas.
Incubated companies taken under the wing of Grooveshark’s staff and receive In-depth CTO-level services for startups looking for help building a development team and launching apps/products.
201 SE 2nd Ave,
Suite 209
Gainesville, FL
Mind Space Collective
834 E. University Ave.
Gainesville, FL 32691
(352) 316-7088
Pathfinders Research Inc.
P.O. Box 1889
High Springs, FL 32655
(386) 454-5676
Florida Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research
747 SW. 2nd Ave., Suite 340,
Gainesville, FL 32601
(352) 294-2728
Newberry Main Street Organization
Main Street Incubators
25435 W. Newberry Road
Newberry, FL 32669
(352) 472-2112
UF Office of Technology Licensing (OTL)
747 SW. 2nd Ave.
Gainesville, FL 32601
Tech Licensing: (352) 392-8929
The Hub: (352) 294-0885
Sid Martin Biotech: (386) 462-0880
Co-Work Spaces
EnCoSpace LLC
Coworking facility where home businesses and other individuals can rent space for meetings and other business matters.
Offers office desks, a private office and a conference room all with Wifi for its customers on half-day, full-day, weekly and monthly renting rates.
Email [email protected]
1201 E University Ave,
Gainesville, FL
352-240-6878
Starter Space
Starter Space, a shared coworking space for entrepreneurs by entrepreneurs in Downtown Gainesville.
Starter Space has launched several programs to enhance and support entrepreneurial initiatives in Gainesville including GatorLab, which tasks students to create a business within three months; Business Hatchery, a program designed for non-tech and social entrepreneurs; and Hobnob, a joint venture with the Gainesville Chamber of Commerce where Starter space hosts a career fair.
308 W University Ave.
Gainesville, FL
Paradise Park
717 NW 1st Street Suite B
Gainesville, FL 32601
Collective & Co.
Collective & Co. focuses on growing startups with the mentorship, resources, network and environment they need to launch, fund and grow. Members receive access to an investor syndicate, customized curriculum and coaching, tailored mentorship pairings and full-service innovation services. Tenants receive access to the Collective & Co. space with private boardrooms, event space and podcast studios.
13900 Tech City Circle Suite 200,
Alachua, FL 32615
(877) 992-6326