Tech Startup Firms Prospering in Gainesville
October 29th, 2012 by gainesvillechamberIt’s a fact that Gainesville is becoming the tech hub Florida, leaving economists to believe that our community may become the next Silicon Valley of the southeast. Recently, eight tech startup companies in Gainesville have announced that their financing deals totaled more than $50 million this year excluding one of the companies. Meanwhile, the Florida Innovation Hub has reported that its tenant companies have secured a combined $72 million in private investments through June 30.
You’re going to see more,” said Gainesville entrepreneur and investor Jamie Grooms. “This should not be a surprise going forward.” Grooms, the co-founder of RTI Biologics and Axogen, believes that there is a time when companies had to travel to venture capital destinations including California or New York. Now, Grooms says the barrier has been broken where companies prefer to put an office in Gainesville. His reasoning for why he believes more companies will open and prosper in the community include having the support from higher education, business and government to provide startups with connections they need to build a stronger company, as well as being surrounded by a community that supports the development of research in medicine, engineering and information technology.
With RegisterPatient recently receiving a $4.1 million grant, Gainesville is looking toward a bright future with more jobs and more innovative products being developed than in years past.“Gainesville probably has more entrepreneurial activity going on per capita than anyplace else in the state,” said Bob Bob Crutchfield, who runs the Gainesville office of Harbert Venture Partners.
“Gainesville is doing a remarkable job in incubating and advancing early stage companies to a point where you’ve created a critical mass of quality investable companies in your area,” said Cruthfield. “The second part is that Florida in general is doing a wonderful job of attracting venture capital to the state by investing in quality firms and really putting money to work in Florida.”
To read the full article in the Gainesville Sun, click here.
