StartOut Celebrates an Incredible First Year of Success

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Fostering Entrepreneurship in the LGBT Community

In just one year, we took StartOut from an idea into a national organization with over 2,500 participants from coast to coast

New York, NY (PRWEB) December 8, 2010

StartOut , a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering and developing entrepreneurship in the LGBT community, is kicking off its second year and looking ahead to even faster growth and expansion into new geographies.

“In just one year, we took StartOut from an idea into a national organization with over 2,500 participants from coast to coast”, said Darren Spedale, a Director and founder of StartOut. “In that time we’ve attracted some of the greatest LGBT names in the entrepreneurial community to participate in our events and our organization, including venture capitalists such as Patrick Chung and Amy Errett, and celebrated entrepreneurs such as Mitchell Gold and Chip Conley. All-in-all we’ve learned a great deal about how we can help entrepreneurs start, grow and expand successful companies. 2011 will be focused on growing existing programs and starting new chapters in areas we aren’t currently located in.”

StartOut members benefit from a variety of programs that are designed to support entrepreneurs at any stage of their business. Programs address a broad variety of entrepreneurial issues and bring together resources needed to succeed. StartOut also helps the LGBT community by building equality through promoting the economic empowerment of the LGBT community, and combating discrimination by promoting the visibility of successful LGBT entrepreneurs, among other activities.

One program that has been very successful is the StartOut Salon. Traditionally, the “Salon” in 17th and 18th Century Europe was an opportunity for the educated class to get together at the home of an enlightened host and to share ideas in a social setting. The StartOut Salon format is small-dinner events of approximately 15-20 people with a passion for entrepreneurship, coming together to share their ideas, interests and knowledge. They are held either at a restaurant or at the home of an “enlightened host”.
StartOut has already seen many entrepreneur success stories from the organization’s events.
“I first attended StartOut Salons last year,” said Brian Backus, Founder and CEO of Kidlandia . “I met an investor who then participated in our seed round of funding. Through the salons I’ve also made helpful connections, which have led to important partnerships for the company.”

StartOut Milestones in 2010

•     Held more than 20 local events in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco
•     Built an initial membership base of over 2,500 entrepreneurs and investors
•     Rang the Opening Bell on the NYSE on June 7, 2010
•     Introduced new programs such as its Major Speaker Series and StartOut University
•     Built a Board of Directors and Advisory Board with leaders in the entrepreneurial community

About StartOut
Founded in 2009 with chapters in New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles, StartOut is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating the next generation of LGBT business leaders by helping aspiring entrepreneurs start new companies, assisting current entrepreneurs to grow and expand their businesses, and engaging successful entrepreneurs as role models and mentors for up-and-coming entrepreneurs. For more information, visit http://www.startout.org.

Contact Information:

Rosie Hausler
SandhillPR
rosie(at)sandhillpr(dot)com
@sandhillpr

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