StartingBlock Madison opened last year at 821 E. Washington Ave., near the state Capitol. The three-floor entrepreneurial hub, six years and $10 million in the making, is part of American Family Insurance’s Spark Building.
Six months in, about 37 early-stage companies with 159 total full-time and 79 part-time employees are now working out of the StartingBlock space. Community partners, including venture funds, also have offices in StartingBlock.
From breakout spaces for after-5 meetups to huddle rooms to phone booths, StartingBlock aims to foster collaboration among its users. Chandra Miller Fienen is the executive director.
One area includes pods of cubes for month-to-month renters, while offices around the edges of the space are for more established startups. There are also a number of open tables and huddle spots around the space.
“One of the pieces we focus on, certain centers will cluster around a certain type of technology. Madison, just given its size and density, we don’t have that competitive advantage, but we try to build a more holistic place around entrepreneurship where any company regardless of their business model or discipline can find this as a home,” said Scott Resnick, entrepreneur-in-residence at StartingBlock.
StartingBlock companies
- Arch Virtual
- bluDiagnostics
- Blueprint for Education
- BRIO
- Bump Studios
- Carepool Inc.
- Changing the Face of Politics
- Chefs for Seniors
- Coach Catalyst
- Co-D Therapeutics Inc.
- Digsite
- ESM
- FactoryFix
- Feelings at Work
- GrocerKey
- Hankr
- Highly
- Holos
- Hemp for the Future
- LUM
- Murfie Inc.
- OmniValley
- PayCove
- Polco
- Politiscope
- Rebate Bus
- RehabPath
- Soha Diamonds
- Stratus Silver Lining
- XSELL Health
