The State of Startup Communities in Rural Colorado
HOW RURAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS TRANSFORMING COLORADO'S BUSINESS LANDSCAPE
For centuries, the words “rural” and “entrepreneurship” have been at odds. Even the word itself—rural—has the connotation of rustic, uneducated, and poor. But that’s not how we see things in Colorado.
Sure we wear flannel instead of suits, but here in the Centennial State, entrepreneurs and small business owners are redefining what it means to live, work, and startup in Rural America. Thanks to an elevated quality of life, a can-do culture, and a growing number of favorable business incentives, Colorado makes rural look good.
From the mountains to the plains, rural startup communities are cropping up in the most unexpected places, offering robust entrepreneurial ecosystems to start and scale businesses.
These ecosystems are similar in many ways to their urban counterparts, but the resources essential to starting a business are often spread across major geographic boundaries. Instead of finding a co-founder or investor at a meetup in downtown Boulder, rural entrepreneurs must look across endless horizons. The state’s geographic scale, paired with a low population density, provides a unique set of challenges and opportunities.
At Startup Colorado, we work with both entrepreneurs and the local ecosystem builders who support them to further enrich our state’s potential for rural startups. For more than five years, our team has worked hand-in-hand with the people building for Rural Colorado, and we’ve developed a deep understanding of the state’s startup scene outside of the urban Front Range.
Here’s what we’ve learned about Rural Colorado’s business landscape.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
THE INGREDIENTS OF A HEALTHY STARTUP ECOSYSTEM
We get this a lot: “How do you build a startup ecosystem?” And the honest answer is this: you (singular) do not. This is not a one person job; nor is it a single organization’s job. Building a vibrant startup community or ecosystem is all about having the right ingredients and—and maybe the only time—that you want more cooks in the kitchen.
A healthy ecosystem includes: entrepreneurs/business owners, ecosystem builders (aka startup champions), access to funding and business resources, support from local and state governments, storytelling to build a culture of belief, customer/market access, and collaborative networks to facilitate business connections and innovation.
HERE'S WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IN RURAL COLORADO
>> Entrepreneurs – Rural Colorado is home to a multitude of entrepreneurial endeavors, spanning industries, business models, and stages. The folks behind these businesses are equally diverse. We’ve worked with multi-generational Coloradans transforming family businesses, locals that see a need to support their neighbors, remote workers launching their first enterprise, and out-of-staters moving their business operations to the state.
Entrepreneurship is, of course, not new to Rural Colorado. Over the years, numerous companies that launched in small towns have hit the big time like outdoor manufacturer Smartwool, the payment processor Mercury Payment Systems, and Greeley Hat Works (known for outfitting the stars of Yellowstone).
>> Ecosystem Builders – These are entrepreneurs’ biggest fans and over the years Colorado has developed a robust network of business support organizations like SBDC offices, professional networking groups, coworking spaces, and ad-hoc meetup groups. There are a lot of people who want to see Rural Colorado thrive and have dedicated themselves to developing long-term initiatives and goals for their local communities.
>> Access to funding and business resources – Access to capital is undeniably a challenge for rural entrepreneurs, but there is a growing number of funds and incentives targeting these communities and under-served demographics. The Greater Colorado Venture Fund and First Southwest Community Fund are two great examples of the unique opportunities available to rural founders.
Access to and visibility of business resources has also been a historic challenge, but that too is beginning to change. Check out our Resource Center and Ecosystem Map to search resources by region, business stage, type, and more.
>> Local and state government support – Colorado is one of the more progressive states in terms of its support for entrepreneurship. There are numerous tax incentives, funding programs, and other forms of support that not only support entrepreneurs currently in the state, but attract new business as well.
>> Collaborative networks and partnerships – While somewhat nebulous, collaborative programming is essential to the health of a startup ecosystem. These types of programs and partnerships can take a variety of forms—from networking meetups to local industry groups to educational programming. In Steamboat Springs, a group of outdoor industry founders created a monthly event called Garage Beers as an opportunity to brainstorm solutions to community problems like the housing crisis.
Coworking spaces like Olathe Conexion near Montrose host regular meetups to facilitate networking connections. Check out the Startup Colorado rural events calendar to find something in your neck of the woods.
>> Access to markets and customers – For many businesses—particularly brick-and-mortar retail and service-based companies—market access and a reliable customer base in a rural community can be a challenge. But that doesn’t mean impossible. Maya’s Carniceria, for example, in the agricultural-hub of Rocky Ford, has found success by addressing unique community needs.
On the other side of the state, in Durango, Backcountry Experience has been able to diversify its revenue stream beyond a local customer base by creating a corporate sales division to generate bulk orders on backpacks and apparel. As high-speed internet becomes more accessible, online businesses and tech enterprises can access customers anywhere in the world.