Entrepreneurs / Small Business  January 27, 2015

Boulder’s MergeLane accelerator unveils first class of 8 startups

BOULDER – A pair of Boulder companies will be part of the first class of the MergeLane accelerator, founded last fall with a focus on promoting women-run startups.

MergeLane announced the group of eight startups on Tuesday. The group will begin the 12-week program Feb. 2. Founders will spend the first two weeks of the program in Boulder, as well as the last week.

MergeLane officials didn’t release the exact number of applicants they received for the program’s first class, but did say it was in the hundreds.

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“We couldn’t be more pleased with both the quantity and the quality of the MergeLane applicant companies,” MergeLane co-founder and chief executive Sue Heilbronner said. “We think our unique structure accomplished the goal of attracting a phenomenal startup class from around the U.S. MergeLane has definitely struck a chord.”

Heilbronner founded MergeLane with fellow Boulder entrepreneur and angel investor Elizabeth Kraus last year as a way to address some of the unique issues female leaders face.

Participating companies, chosen through an open application process, each must have at least one female founder. And while the focus is on early-stage startups, participants also must have some market traction. Participants will receive $20,000 in seed funding, as well as mentoring and professional services, in exchange for 6 percent equity. The companies have the opportunity for up to $100,000 in additional funding at the end of the program.

Heilbronner and Kraus said at the time they founded MergeLane that they felt women-led startups weren’t embracing accelerators at the same pace of male-led companies.

Initially, the plan was for the first class to begin in September of this year. But a wave of demand from the start led them to move up the start.

The first group of eight companies includes startups with roots on each coast, Las Vegas and Colorado. The list includes:

Havenly: Located in Denver and New York, the company connects interior designers with consumers to design spaces for a low flat fee.

Idacity: A Las Vegas-based company that provides real-time access to global financial data for users to create, visualize, analyze, share and collaborate around “stories” about companies and trends.

Intelligent Eyes: Located in Boulder and Berkeley, Calif., and founded by Debbie Taylor and Mark Leffers, the business-to-business software-as-a-service platform helps companies select business intelligence and data visualization tools.

Mapistry: The Oakland, Calif.-based company makes a mapping tool that allows the entire workforce to create, update and analyze maps and spatial data on civil engineering and construction projects.

Sugarwish: The Denver firm lets gift-givers purchase a candy box of a certain size, while recipients then choose what candies they want delivered in the package.

TomboyX: Based in Seattle, the company makes and sells menswear-inspired clothing and accessories for women.

The QuickZip Sheet Company: The Denver company sells zip-on fitted sheets, helping streamline the changing of sheets on cribs, bunk beds, beds of the elderly, and others.

ZaZa: Based in Boulder and founded by Elisabeth Saucier, the company makes nut-based desserts that are gluten-free, soy-free, paleo, vegan and non-GMO certified.

BOULDER – A pair of Boulder companies will be part of the first class of the MergeLane accelerator, founded last fall with a focus on promoting women-run startups.

MergeLane announced the group of eight startups on Tuesday. The group will begin the 12-week program Feb. 2. Founders will spend the first two weeks of the program in Boulder, as well as the last week.

MergeLane officials didn’t release the exact number of applicants they received for the program’s first class, but did say it was in the hundreds.

“We couldn’t be more pleased with both the quantity and the quality of the MergeLane…

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