Find Your Fit: A Guide to IGNITE’s Business Incubators

Since the initial implementation of The Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce’s incubator services at the Scranton Enterprise Center (SEC), several different business sectors have been given the room to grow and thrive. The IGNITE program keeps this long-running diversity and success alive.

The addition of the TekRidge Enterprise Center and Carbondale Enterprise Center (CEC) to the Chamber’s incubator portfolio has only expanded the sectors that can be served by IGNITE. Each building is suited for specific industries, and matching a business to the right facility is an emphasis point for the IGNITE team.

Some sectors are more prominent in certain buildings, so consider this your guide to the businesses that you might find in each of the three incubators operated by IGNITE.

For Technology Businesses

Technology is one of the most active industries in the IGNITE program. Businesses currently in the program manage web compliance, web design,and search engine optimization, and interact closely with other industries, such as healthcare and hospitality.

Traditional office space is typically the desired setting for a technology company that is prepared to leave the home office. For that reason, we recommend technology entrepreneurs tour the available spaces at the SEC or TekRidge Enterprise Center.

For Product Designers

Product design companies in the IGNITE program are often manufacturing outside of the incubator, but the operations piece of the business still requires a lot of time and effort. Our product design companies produce a variety of helpful items, from office supplies to alternative, compliant pill bottles.

IGNITE clients in the product design sector need to keep some inventory on hand, so a wider office space is certainly preferred. While any of the three incubators can serve a product design company, we would first suggest the SEC or TekRidge Enterprise Center as options.

For Manufacturers

Light manufacturing entrepreneurs are welcomed into the IGNITE program with open arms, as this is one of the sectors that can be served at the newly acquired CEC. A number of light manufacturing entrepreneurs have already made their home in Carbondale, with some even relocating from as far away as Texas to make northeastern Pennsylvania their base of operations.

Approximately half of the CEC’s floor plan is dedicated to serving light manufacturing companies that could not operate in any other setting. High ceilings, an open workspace and additional room for standard office meetings made the CEC a perfect location for light manufacturing entrepreneurs.

For Food Entrepreneurs

In addition to light manufacturing, entrepreneurs in the food industry now have a home in the IGNITE program thanks to the acquisition of the CEC. The half of the building that is not a manufacturing space is a commercial kitchen, which can be used by incubator clients and anchor tenants.

Since The Chamber’s operations began taking hold in the CEC, the kitchen has garnered a lot of attention. Clients are traveling from across the region to tour the kitchen and are becoming a part of the IGNITE program, giving them access to all of the resources and networking opportunities that come with it.

Other Business Opportunities

If an entrepreneur has a different kind of business idea that doesn’t fit neatly into the sectors listed above, the IGNITE program still has options. We offer a “Beyond the Walls” option, which loops in businesses that would not be able to operate in one of the three incubator buildings.

Additionally, many of the businesses in our incubators are not in the technology, product design, light manufacturing or kitchen sectors. We have welcomed education and media companies, and even a dental assistance school into the program. In other words, there are hardly any limits on what the IGNITE program can do to help small businesses grow.

To find the incubator building that best suits your business’ needs, contact Sam Zavada at szavada@scrantonchamber.com.