OTR nonprofit awards $265K in grants to local startups
Summary
In total, the Over-the-Rhine-based nonprofit distributed $1,103,754 to 64 startups this year.These grants are part of Main Street Ventures Leap and Launch funding programs. In 2010, MSV launched The Brandery, a seed-stage startup accelerator that offered expertise in areas such as branding, marketing and design.Today, the organization provides equity-free funding to entrepreneurs and early-stage businesses in eight Greater Cincinnati counties. It also supports businesses through workshops, mentorship and business development resources.Since 2018, Main Street Ventures has distributed nearly $3.5 million to 164 companies.These grants are possible, in part, because of financial support from Ohio Third Frontier, the Hubert Family Foundation, the McDonald Family Foundation, The P&G Fund, Jacob G. Schmidlapp Trust, Northern Kentucky Entrepreneurship Fund, in collaboration with Blue North and Horizon Community Funds.Main Street Ventures also benefited from American Rescue Plan Act funding from Cincinnati City Council. Since 2021, the ARPA funding allowed Main Street Ventures to distribute approximately $900,000 in grants to 44 women-owned businesses in Cincinnati. Live N Learn creates international education opportunities for students and families to travel, host and make connections with peers from around the world.