How Rural Entrepreneurs Founded A Regional Conference for Startups

In 2018, a group of business owners gathered around a conference table in downtown Grand Junction to discuss the challenges entrepreneurs face on the Western Slope. Chief among these was access to resources — everything from funding and legal services to mentorship and networking opportunities. Starting a business is a challenge regardless of where you live, but it can be particularly difficult in rural areas. 

That’s why this group of founders created West Slope Startup Week, a multi-tiered business conference with virtual and in-person workshops, lectures, and networking opportunities across Colorado’s Western Slope. This year’s event on July 11-15, 2022 will be the fourth annual West Slope Startup Week, with the majority of in-person opportunities taking place in Grand Junction Tuesday through Friday.

“This event has changed the way people think about economic development regionally,” said Taylor Grande, executive director of Startup Colorado, an organization dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs across rural Colorado. “Our view is no longer myopic, focused on each individual mountain town community, but has now expanded to include the entire Western Slope region.”

A Movement is Born on the West Slope

Startup Weeks have become a staple in urban hubs, providing educational opportunities across industries and business stages. The event was pioneered by TechStars, a global investment and mentorship business for early-stage entrepreneurs. Most of these events — such as the Denver or Boulder Startup Weeks — target a specific city, but none of the communities on the rural Western Slope were large enough to support an offering of this size. Instead, the West Slope Startup Week founders developed an event that was inclusive of the entire region.

“I wanted to see West Slope Startup Week come to fruition because I have observed a phenomenal amount of talent located on the Western Slope,” said Brian Watson, one of the founding members of the event organizing team and a successful tech entrepreneur.  

The first annual West Slope Startup Week took place in June of 2019, bringing more than 500-plus individuals together for a week of events in Grand Junction. The inaugural year was marked by a keynote presentation from Brad Feld, Colorado entrepreneur and cofounder of TechStars. A year later, when the pandemic pulled the plug on events everywhere, the organizing team quickly reimagined the Startup Week as an entirely virtual event, which expanded the reach of the workshops and sessions to even more rural entrepreneurs. 

“We learned so much from both of those events that we decided to use a hybrid event format moving forward,” said Kayleen Cohen, lead organizer of West Slope Startup Week 2022. “We can reach a larger audience by offering virtual programming, but also nothing compares to the engagement potential of in-person events. This year we’re leaning into that even more by offering virtual programming all five days and by live streaming our in-person headline events.”

Regional Expansion with Hometown Events

Colorado's Western Slope region occupies nearly a third of the state. From bustling mountain communities to sparse desert towns, the region is as geographically diverse as it is demographically. To serve the needs of different communities like Montrose, Durango and Steamboat Springs, West Slope Startup Week organizers developed “hometown events” to provide local networking opportunities. 

Hometown events feature local panelists, speakers, and networking opportunities in the context of a relaxed happy hour or coffee chat. This year’s West Slope Startup Week Hometown Events are scheduled before the main event in Grand Junction. 

“I was able to expand my small business community both here in Steamboat and regionally across the Western Slope thanks to my participation in several West Slope Startup Week Hometown Events,” said Robin Hall, regional entrepreneur and founder of Town Hall Co.

These microevents are organized by an expansive network of regional volunteers, including Brittany Cupp of SCAPE, the Southwest Colorado Accelerator Program for Entrepreneurs.

“We believe in supporting West Slope Startup Week here in Durango because it helps our local business community have access to the connections and resources of the greater Western Slope beyond our accelerator program,” said Cupp.

Businesses are Born at West Slope Startup Week

Last summer, a recent college graduate stepped on stage at the historic Avalon Theatre in Grand Junction. In front of a packed audience of investors, mentors and peers, Georgia Grace described her vision for SheFly, an innovative outdoor apparel business. By the end of the night, she had been awarded a cash prize from the Greater Colorado Pitch Series. She has since gone on to establish her company’s headquarters in Gunnison, recently launching their first line of apparel. This pitch event takes place annually as a part of West Slope Startup Week and offers regional entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch for funding opportunities between $25K-1M.

Since its inception, the five-day event has provided the opportunity for entrepreneurs to mix and mingle with a larger group of regional peers and mentors than typically available at small town events. Connections made at West Slope Startup Week allow entrepreneurs to leverage the talent of resources across the entire region. It’s no wonder that so many new business ideas have been born or further developed at West Slope Startup Week.

“Meeting other makers, other marketers and business people at West Slope Startup Week helped me in my due diligence to make a decision.” said Bryan Wachs, regional entrepreneur and recent founder of QuikrStuff, a manufacturing and outdoor recreation business. Wachs is one of the co-founding members of the West Slope Startup Week organizing committee and has contributed to the event’s production since 2019.

Sign Up Now for #WSSW22

Don’t miss the action! Thanks to support from 20+ regional sponsors, West Slope Startup Week is a completely free event for attendees. Learn more and sign up now for 45+ sessions happening July 11-15, 2022 at westslopestartupweek.com.