TULSA, Okla. — Heartland Forward and Builders and Backers have been partnering in Tulsa since 2021, guiding business-minded individuals through the process of turning their ideas into a feasible business proposition.
About 200 Tulsans have gone through the idea accelerator program, a 90-day program that takes entrepreneurs through the steps of validating their plans.
From mentorship to grant funding, the two entities help put these future business owners on the path towards success.
Shadrach Igwe and Devin Patterson of Tulsa never thought they would get approved for the $5000 grant with no catch attached.
However, they did, and now they have about 3,000 healthcare professionals on a waiting list, anxious to use their new product.
“When we got the money, we were nowhere, it was an idea that we talked about and chuckled over,” said Igwe. “Like, ‘Yeah, yeah, great idea, someday we’re gonna do it.’ The someday is where the money helps because now you have money, but they’re not just going to give you the money willy nilly… You actually have to go through the process of validation, tell them what the pinpoint is, who are your customers?”
The duo is passionate about healthcare, which is where their new career path started. As a nurse, Patterson said keeping all of her 10 or more licenses and certifications current can be overwhelming.
“If one expires and you don’t notice before renewing, then you know, you can be suspended at your job, you can lose your job,” she said. “I noticed that I was always waiting until that last minute, getting reminded by my job or panicking like ‘I think it’s coming soon,’ and then I would check, and I’d only have a short amount of time [to renew].”
That’s when the pair had their lightbulb moment. They came up with Certracker, a digital filing cabinet that stores all of a healthcare professional’s important paperwork and sends reminders if something is close to an expiration date. But they didn’t know how to really turn their idea into something more.
Katie Milligan with Heartland Forward said that is exactly why they have brought this program forward.
“Small business is the lifeblood of the Heartland economy, and the process to start your business can be really difficult,” Milligan said. “It can be hard if you don’t have friends or family money to get started, it can be hard to know where to go, and it can be hard to understand if people even want what you’re offering. So, the idea accelerator allows for people to get support, to figure out what their business or service could look like, and then to actually go test it out in real-time.”
Igwe and Patterson went through the idea accelerator, and we were paired with a mentor who helped them navigate the early stages of being an entrepreneur.
“Every time we met with everyone from Builders and Backers and Heartland Forward, they were giving us insight and markers of where we needed to be,” said Patterson. “Super lifechanging, because now here we are, we’re ready to launch our business, we’re hosting an event, and all of that really draws back to Heartland Forward and Builders and Backers.”
2 News asked Igwe where he thought they would be if they didn’t apply for support through the idea accelerator.
“We’d still be dreaming, and thinking about the idea, and waiting for the day that we finally saved a chunk of money,” said Igwe.
Whether it’s a product or a storefront, Milligan said the goal is to get more ideas off the sidelines and into the local business game.
“We’ve seen Tulsans do everything, from pop-up sober bars to apps that help train nurses and help them pass their medication exams and everything in between,” she said. We’ve worked with local partners to be able to say, ‘What is next for you after you’ve completed the 90 days? ' What other resources are in Tulsa that you can tap into?'"
Applications for anyone interested in testing out their idea are open now and close on May 12. The next idea accelerator will begin in early June.
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