• CBI partners and supporters are shown above at the groundbreaking ceremony.

By KEVIN DONALDSON

CROSSVILLE-A business incubator to help establish and support new or small enterprises has been formed on the campus of Roane State Community College here.

The Cumberland Business Incubator (CBI) is being developed as a community partnership. “We (Roane State) are so proud to be a partner with the City of Crossville, Cumberland County, and several federal agencies to build a business incubator for Cumberland County,” said Robert Safdie, an associate professor at Roane State and the CBI director. The CBI will provide a variety of services for possible clients.

“The CBI is a support enterprise that helps small business and entrepreneurs turn their ideas into prospering and growing businesses,” said Safdie. “To help make their business idea become a reality, the CBI provides affordable office and manufacturing space in conjunction with a nurturing and supportive environment. With each successful entrepreneur, our community will grow stronger, gaining much-needed jobs, and new employment opportunities.

“The real benefit for our community is growing the job market and higher wages,” he said.

CBI is designed to identify, evaluate, mentor, support and grow new small businesses, and will provide four basic services, Safdie said:

• access to a “brick and mortar facility,”

• office support services,

• business advisement services, and

• outreach services to help create a culture of entrepreneurism.

“An additional benefit of the CBI is that many of its business programs will be open to the general public and business community,” Safdie said. “We are working closely with the Crossville/Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce, the Small Business Development Centers, and the university and college system (TTU, TTC, and RSCC) to provide training support for both new and well established businesses.”

The facility

The CBI facility is located on the Roane State campus on Cook Road in Crossville, one mile off I-40’s Genesis Road exit. The new 10,000 square-foot facility is built to LEED specifications, and has nine office spaces. In addition, there is about 4,000 square feet of open manufacturing space that can be sub-divided to meet a client’s space needs, Safdie said.

“We wanted to establish a productive, low-cost work environment for the entrepreneur,” he said. “The building is energy-efficient, ensuring lower energy costs. Labor for any approved build-out requests will be donated by Roane State. Office space is large enough to handle a business’ growth needs, and each office space has ample electrical outlets for power, wiring for phone and high-speed Internet service. Wet labs are available so scientific research can take place in an environment that meets regulatory guidelines. Every office has large thermal windows, allowing ample natural light to come in during the day.”

The building has a break room, a conference room, receptionist area, mail room, shipping and receiving area for large packages, secured hallways with cameras, and external doors with digital keypad entry locks.

Participation, screening process

The incubator can support up to 12 qualified entrepreneurs, Safdie said. “Prior to being admitted to the incubator, the client applicant will be screened and their business plans refined to insure a better chance of their success.”

Those eligible to apply for participation in the CBI program are:

• new small businesses with growth potential,

• entrepreneurs with a well-defined business concept who need help to get started, and

• college or high school students with a good business idea that can benefit from CBI services.

The CBI plans to focus on the pool of local entrepreneurs for potential clients, but Safdie added, “We look forward to working with all companies that have the potential to bring new employment to Cumberland County.

“The CBI will accept a diverse range of clients,” he said. “We will consider applications from profit or not-for-profit organizations with good growth prospects.” The start-up applicant must be early-stage, generally within the first two years of business operations, not yet profitable and still growing. Exceptions may be made for small firms that are changing focus, in a “turn-around” mode, substantially restructuring or launching a new business project,  he said.

The steps in the screening process will be conducted by qualified local volunteers with experience in the areas of accounting, finance, operations, business law, sales and marketing. The screening process includes a review of the client’s business concept, a review of their business plan, ability to execute the plan, financial status, and business history. “We have a great working relationship with the SBDC and plan to take advantage of their staff’s experience to help our entrepreneurs through some of the CBI’s application requirements,” Safdie said.

Mentoring, coaching

CBI clients will have access to a network of volunteers with executive business backgrounds.

“Starting an incubator in Cumberland County is an incredible experience. We are in the process of developing a network of volunteers who will work with the CBI client by coaching, mentoring, and facilitating,” Safdie said. “We have local residents who are successfully operating their own business, other residents that have been executive officers at GM, Hewlett Packard, 3-M, General Electric, and other fortune 500 companies. All the people I have talked to are excited about using their experience to assist fledgling companies with the hope that their volunteer contribution can make a difference in our community, and help those businesses successfully create a livelihood for others. As far as I am concerned, it doesn’t get much better than that.

“It won’t be the goal of CBI volunteers to do the work for any client, but they will work with CBI clients to help them expand their problem-solving abilities and skills to become self-sufficient,” Safdie said.

Office support and services

The CBI will offer a wide range of free and fee-based services to its clients. Among the free services will be telephone equipment and a switchboard receptionist, mail box and postal services, conference room, shipping and receiving room, break room and multi-media equipment.

Fee-based services will include typing and printing services, furniture, laser printing and graphics, recording equipment, photo copier and fax, and brochure design and layout. The CBI will assist its tenants in moving out of the incubator upon graduation to readily-available commercial locations in the county.

Why Cumberland County?

Safdie said there are numerous reasons why Cumberland County is a good spot for the incubator and for new businesses to locate here:

• natural assets – moderate climate, natural resources, land availability and location,

• recreation and entertainment – a tremendous amount of outdoor, fine art and entertainment venues,

• a community based pre-K thru 12 education system, post-secondary and technical education – including Roane State, Tennessee Tech University and the Tennessee Technology Institute, and

• governmental and economic environment – low cost of living, low tax rate, and local government cooperation.

Graduating from the incubator

Clients of the CBI program housed in the incubator will be able to remain in the incubator between one and four years. During this time, CBI staff will work with the start-up business to set realistic goals, achieve those goals, and become a viable and self-sustaining business, Safdie said. “Our goal is to see these businesses prosper and grow, and then get them out of the incubator, so the next entrepreneur can come in.”

Applying for the CBI program

For more information on CBI, call Robert Safdie 931-456-9880 or send your correspondence to [email protected].