Louisiana Entrepreneurs and VILLAGEx Accelerator Participants Raise Over $9.5 Million

Earlier this year, New Orleans-based entrepreneurial support organization The Idea Village celebrated the latest cohort to graduate from its VILLAGEx accelerator program. The organization welcomed nine startups to the program designed for emerging, technology-enabled ventures. 

Combined, the nine startups have raised $9.5 million in growth capital and created more than 80 jobs for the Louisiana ecosystem. 

“The founders from these nine companies are true representations of the possibilities within our region, as we’ve seen them grow tremendously over such a short period of time and raise the kind of capital that is often overlooked in the Gulf South,” said Soumitra Sengupta, lead Entrepreneur-in-Residence for VILLAGEx 2021. “Our 2021 cohort achieved the kind of success that this program was founded in belief of.”

The VILLAGEx participants include: 

  • Bloks: Bloks provides easy custom development of mobile apps. 
  • BypassLines: Bypasslines is a venue specific ordering system that allows consumers to see onsite food and retail merchants all in one place to order, pay, pickup or have in-seat delivery.
  • El Guapo Bitters: El Guapo Bitters offers clean labels, impeccably sourced cocktail bitters, syrups, and mixers. 
  • hampr: hampr is an on-demand laundry app with a subscription model that offers next-day wash/dry/fold services. 
  • HookM Solutions: HookM is a fishing charter management app for Captains, Guides, and Boat Owners that offers booking, scheduling, and payment services. 
  • Kinemagic: Kinemagic offers collaborative, evolutionary software for AR and VR experiences. 
  • Skilltype: A talent management software for library professionals
  • Something Borrowed Blooms: Something Borrowed Blooms seeks to revolutionize the wedding flower industry by offering premium silk flowers to rent, saving customers up to 70% of traditional costs and offering a more sustainable product. 
  • Spot2Night: Spot2Night offers users the ability to find and book vacant RV camping spots that meet their needs and criteria.

The Idea Village also shared that the VILLAGEx program will continue for another three years after receiving $1.8 million in support. 

To learn more, visit ideavillage.org.