Accelerate Baltimore and the Emerging Technology Center (ETC) operate under the umbrella of the Baltimore Development Corporation.
“The ETC promotes economic development, providing business, technical, and networking connections to help these companies grow,” according to a media release announcing the 2018 Accelerate Boston participating companies.
“Since 1999, the ETC has provided assistance to over 450 companies, 85% of which are still in business, creating more than 2,500 jobs and raising more than $2.4 billion in outside funding.”
A new beauty app
Well-Kept Beauty is yet-to-be launched app that promises to help women keep track of their beauty products an routines. The blurb on the company splash page describes the app as “the easiest way to monitor and track the ingredients in your beauty products that work best for you and when they no longer perform.”
Sheena Deanne is the beauty tech entrepreneur behind Well-Kept Beauty; and she’s set up an iFundWomen page for the app (a Kickstarter-style funding platform for women-led businesses)—the Well-Kept Beauty campaign on that site runs till the end of March and as of this writing just over half of the $5,000 goal has been pledged. On the iFundWomen page Deanne shares some of the data (apparently from Poshly) that illustrates a need for this sort of tech tool: 80% of consumers “have problems with old products, but forget to discard them;” and 80% are also “looking for an easy solution to track expiry dates.”
The iFundWomen page explains the app to prospective consumers this way: “Well-Kept Beauty is your personal beauty assistant helping you keep your makeup and skin care collection current, fresh, and complete. You can save any product by searching from the products in our database or manually adding your own; all while shopping for replacements and discovering new must-haves. Most importantly when it’s time to toss an old product we’ll send you a personalized alert.”
And as with all good digital beauty tools, there’s useful data being gathered that can help brands and retailers serve cosmetics and personal care consumers better. The app promises to be “the beauty industry’s first comprehensive beauty database empowering brands and retailers to make faster, smarter choices in creating smarter products and better beauty experiences for all women,” according to the funding site.
A local support system
The Accelerate Baltimore program runs for 13 weeks, with weekly interactive sessions, a roster of guest speakers, executive coaching from Leslie Woodward (an accomplished financial executive turned leadership expert working in the DC metro area). The companies also have access to several mentors and the Pitch Creator workshop.
Each company receives $25,000 in seed funding and one will be selected to receive an addition $100,000 when the program concludes in June. Also that month the companies of Accelerate Baltimore take part in Investor Pitch Night, presenting their businesses to angel investors, venture capitalists, media, and the local tech community.
“Accelerate Baltimore has become a valuable resource for the development and growth of entrepreneurs and start-ups in the City of Baltimore,” says William H. Cole, president and CEO of the Baltimore Development Corporation. “This program provides the right climate for start-ups to succeed, including access to capital and business advisors, which are vital to the process. These small businesses are gaining the tools they need to become sustainable and profitable ventures creating new employment opportunities in the city.”
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Deanna Utroske, CosmeticsDesign.com Editor, covers beauty business news in the Americas region and publishes the weekly Indie Beauty Profile column, showcasing the inspiring work of entrepreneurs and innovative brands.