Business incubator opening new offices

Southeast Missouri State University will hold a grand opening today for its new business incubator offices.

Gov. Matt Blunt is scheduled to participate in the 4 p.m. ceremony on the remodeled third floor of the Southeast Innovation Center at 920 Broadway.

The business incubator facility is made up of 11 new office spaces totaling 4,200 square feet. The individual offices vary in size from 80 to 1,100 square feet, school officials said.

The center encourages development of new businesses and technologies.

"An incubator is a facility where a startup business can be nurtured until it is a viable company and can move out into the business community on its own," said the innovation center's Gina Harper. "We are here to help the business owner with resources to nurture and grow their business."

Startup businesses stay in an incubator for an average of three years, she said, and they have a significantly higher rate of survival than other small businesses.

Dennis Roedemeier, chief executive officer of the university's Missouri Research Corp., praised the incubator concept. "Everything you need to help your business succeed is at your fingertips or down the hall. The reason that incubator businesses succeed is that they can ask questions and receive advice from management and their peers," he said. "Clients are often surprised to find out they do not have a monopoly on problems and there is more than one day to address a situation."

The university hopes to attract incubator businesses in research, light manufacturing, technology and service.

A single office rental fee includes daily mail service, weekly janitorial services, all utilities, free parking and 24-hour building access. The incubator businesses also have access to a business receptionist and use of a conference room and state-of-the-art training room.

Incubator businesses also can take advantage of business development and planning services, off-site equipment and product testing, help from interns and access to investment capital, school officials said.

The U.S. Small Business Administration has an office in the center.

A number of new businesses currently are housed in the remodeled facility: Cyber Nanny Surveillance, owned by John Brown III and Wendell Hood Jr.; River City Biologicals, owned by Skip Wrape; Missouri Enterprise, represented by John Kunze and Dewayne Whitener; the Center for Environmental Analysis, managed by Dr. John Kraemer of the university; MB Medical Reimbursement LLC, owned by Stacey Gallaher; Westray Consulting, owned by Dr. Joel Ray; and the Taylor Institute, owned by Dr. David Crowe.

Winners of Southeast's student entrepreneurship program also will be housed in one of the incubator office spaces soon, school officials said.

"This is an exciting opportunity for new businesses," Harper said. "We are offering a facility that is not just overhead lighting and four walls, but instead it is intended to be a home for start-up businesses."

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123