TechTown is Detroit’s Entrepreneurship Hub

We help tech startups and local businesses launch and grow. We are an incubator and accelerator. We support businesses with coworking and office space, meeting space and event space. We also connect entrepreneurs to resources, and learning and networking events in Detroit.

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Tech. Neighborhoods. We mean business.

In the last 10 years, TechTown has supported nearly 2,000 startups and small businesses. Our entrepreneurs do whatever it takes to make their good ideas happen. And what does TechTown do? Whatever it takes to help them get there.

Tech Startup Programs

If you’re serious about your startup, have an innovative technology or want to play a larger role in the city’s burgeoning tech industry, TechTown is the place to start. We can help you with proof of concept, incubation and commercialization services.

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Small Business Support Programs

We can help you start or grow a retail business like a bakery, coffee shop, clothing boutique or grocery store. We also support service-based or lifestyle businesses like fitness studios or hair salons, as well as small manufacturers.

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Check out more than 150 TechTown-supported businesses on our Shop Local directory.

TechTown Spotlight

Meet Irma Fuentes, owner of ESI

Technology can be daunting, and the use of it to increase awareness for your business can be especially intimidating if you haven’t been exposed to it. Irma Fuentes, owner of ESI Hardware in Southwest Detroit, credits the training provided by a TechTown Professional Services Network (PSN) member as the reason why she’s been able to manage her fear of technology. When ESI Hardware opened in 2003, Mexican-American immigrants Irma and Edgar Fuentes relied on word of mouth to gain more customers for their business. After opening, however, they struggled to keep the store in business amidst many personal tribulations, including the death of Edgar and Irma’s battle with cancer. Irma found that social media would be a powerful tool to increase awareness and gain more clientele. Small businesses can have the best products, prices, location and customer service, but if the surrounding community isn’t aware, they must find additional avenues to gain recognition.

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How to identify the right Microloan for your business

Most people believe that when you apply for a microloan the “one fits all” concept will be the norm. With microlending, this is not true. Microlenders lend up to $50,000 with slightly higher interest rates than bank loans; however, they have a much more flexible underwriting criterion. Are microlenders lending in Detroit? Absolutely. They are providing access to much-needed capital for entrepreneurs throughout the city. Microlenders usually will lend to entrepreneurs if they don’t qualify for traditional small business loans, but what we are seeing in Detroit is that microlenders and traditional lenders are partnering on loan deals with entrepreneurs. Community lenders are filling in the lending gap between microlenders and traditional lenders (i.e. Detroit Development Fund, Invest Detroit and other similar lenders).

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Ariya’s Apparel & Accessories

“Just learning about TechTown and Retail Boot Camp, to me, was just an eye-opener of just knowing the type of resources that we have available in the city.” Ariya’s Apparel & Accessories, a women’s boutique that opened in April in Grandmont Rosedale Workplace, specializes in modern, modest apparel for women ages 25 and up.

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Expert Business Advisors at TechTown

Get Involved

Offer your expertise to small businesses and startups in Detroit. Join our Professional Services Network and give back to the community by mentoring Detroit entrepreneurs.

Join our Professional Services Network

Events At TechTown

Our calendar is full of great business events and learning events. Join us at an upcoming event.

Host your next event at TechTown. 

Support our Work

Your tax-deductible donation helps launch and grow businesses across Detroit while contributing to the revitalization of a great American city.

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