Oregon Regional Accelerator and Innovation Network

Location

Eugene, OR

 

Project Name

Rapid Recovery In Oregon: Building Resilient Regional Innovation Economies by Accelerating Delivery of Pandemic-Inspired Resources to Impacted Entrepreneurs and Activating Local Capital

 

Award Amount

Federal Share

Local Match

 

$748,833

$$193,095

Oregon RAIN will serve as a recovery and resiliency hub for startups and small businesses impacted by the pandemic in Oregon’s Lane, Linn, Benton, and Grant counties. As an established entrepreneurial ecosystem builder in this region, RAIN has the trust of entrepreneurs and a vast network to draw upon to swiftly spin-up and deliver these programs.

Oregon RAIN and our partners will deliver the following CEDS-aligned, just-in-time, technology-based, free programs that are designed in response to the pandemic.

  • RAINmaker Accelerators: Pivot business models to address anticipated conditions, learn new digital sales and marketing techniques, and get connected to needed resources (people, programs, technology, and capital).
  • MoneyMaker Accelerators: Address financial literacy deficits discovered during the scramble to submit financial documentation to get COVID emergency funding.
  • RAINdrops Program: 1:1 mentoring to implement “Entrepreneur Resiliency Kits.” Entrepreneurs will learn how to rapidly convert to online sales, extend cash runways, and get matched with experts (digital marketing, bookkeepers/accountants, lawyers).
  • Oregon RAIN will address entrepreneurs’ immediate and long-term capital needs by building and launching a fundraising platform that connects entrepreneurs to local capital sources to enable local investments to happen quickly and efficiently. The platform will lower the investment barrier for small, first-time investors, lower the barrier to capital access for local-impact, sustainable growth businesses, and expedite due diligence.

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