TULSA’S ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM HELPS LOCAL BUSINESS OWNERS GROW AND SUCCEED.

STORY BY LAURA DENNIS • PHOTOS BY MICHELLE POLLARD

The landscape of Tulsa’s entrepreneurial industry is evolving at a rapid rate. Along with resource rich centers, incubators and accelerators are popping up all over the city, with many aimed at traditionally underserved populations that include Black, minority, women and industryspecific business owners.

A business incubator provides very early-stage startups access to mentorship, investors and various resources to help get them organized, while accelerators are fixed-term, cohortbased programs that offer mentorship, capital and connections to investors and business partners. They are designed for select startups, sometimes industry specific, as a way to rapidly scale growth. Although they provide different services, incubators and accelerators have the same goal in mind: to help businesses grow and succeed, no matter the stage of the startup.