Business Council Soliciting Support for ‘Incubators’

Business-incubator projects are an increasingly popular method of nurturing entrepreneurial start-ups and spurring economic development. They’ve taken root throughout the country in high-tech hotbeds in the Northeast and in the Bay Area. In Los Angeles, USC’s EC2 Annenberg Incubator project has enjoyed a high profile in the business community.

But in Orange County, such a facility has been noticeably lacking. That might soon change, as local business boosters gear up to start some incubators in the county.

Business incubators provide services to small businesses during the start-up phase, including providing affordable office and research and development space, shared support functions and counseling.

Spearheading the local effort to start incubators, the Orange County Business Council is trying to drum up support and financial backing.

One idea that the group is floating is to open a media incubator at the Tustin Marine Corps Air Base, which is due to close next year. Plans are also underway to start a photonics incubator at UC Irvine’s Beckman Laser Institute to support businesses involved in the use of light energy.

The business council hopes to find an underwriter for a large incubator dedicated to several industry clusters, such as biomedical devices, software and electronics.

Jay DeLong, the council’s director of strategic initiatives, cited a national study that found incubator-bred businesses have an 80% success rate, as opposed to the 20% success rate among other start-ups.

Incubators are much more than just a place for entrepreneurs to hang their hats, DeLong said. They give fledgling businesses help in marketing and management and in finding capital. Being part of an incubator can raise a company’s profile among venture capitalists and other potential investors, he said.

“We have a virtual incubator going,” with the support services offered by the council and other local groups, he said. “The next step is for us to have physical space so companies can move in together to lower overhead costs.”

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Patrice Apodaca covers economic issues for The Times. She can be reached at (714) 966-5979 and at patrice.apodaca@latimes.com