Maybe you already know that the comfortable (and allegedly edible) innovation; the Crocs shoe, was created in Boulder County. Today we’re checking out some less explosive, but equally clever, Boulder-based inventions. This is one smart city, and the products created here prove it! Nimbus Cloud Dome The Nimbus Cloud Dome is a deceptively simple invention created by Boulder resident Cindy Litchfield. As a jewelry maker, she struggled to create close-up, glare-free photos of her products. No one had addressed the problem before, so she took on the challenge. The result was the Nimbus Cloud... Read More

“Bobo’s Oat Bars are very moist and delicious. When people hear that they are gluten free and vegan that do not expect to have such a tasty product. Most granola bars are crunchy, but not Bobo’s!” Organic, non-GMO, vegan, gluten-free, and fit for athletes… ok Boulder people this one is definitely for you. This week’s budding Boulder business is Bobo’s Oat Bars. Actually Bobo’s is not so “budding” because they are currently ranked No. 2 in the United States behind Kind Bar, and are sold across the country, even into the far-off other country up north (Canada…). You... Read More

Sometimes, as an entrepreneur, it can be difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel. You craft an amazing idea, map it out on the napkin of your favorite restaurant and now you must take it from concept to reality – but how? Taking an idea from concept to reality seems easy while you’re in the conceptual stage, but as the idea starts to snowball on top of itself you begin to realize how far you truly are from the finish line. So what do you do? I personally, do not have the perfect answer, as every entrepreneurs individual situation has an equally important, individual... Read More

Grab your smartphones and tablets and get ready, because automated learning just got cuddly with this local startup’s toy. Meet Ubooly, the uber cute and unboring toy for your kids ‘guaranteed to outlast any other toy’. At its most basic, Ubooly is an interactive, smart technology based stuffed animal that is powered by your smartphone or tablet.   When you purchase an Ubooly, you receive the adorably furry toy case for your phone or tablet as well as a free membership for Ubooly’s interactive features to provide your child with an engaging and educational play experience. Once your... Read More

Almost anyone with a dog will tell you that their furry friend is more than just a pet, it’s their beloved best friend and they do everything they can together; walks, runs, hikes and in the case of some of the lucky well behaved and registered support dogs, even errands! And in a city where tech and dogs rule all, its no surprise that one of Boulder’s youngest startups offers smart technology for mans best friend. WÜF is a smart dog collar striving to become the leader in smart technology for animals.  Their mission: to enable better dog owners and provide unique communication with... Read More

  Generally speaking, most companies offer a multitude of benefits for their employees. Benefits can range anywhere from local bus passes to health and dental benefits or 401k matching. But nowadays, with startups and new businesses placing such a heavy emphasis on engaging company cultures, new and unique takes on employee perks and benefits are popping up all over, it’s not just your average health insurance coverage anymore. Major companies like Eventbrite offer employees weekly massage, acupuncture and chiropractic sessions covered by the company; Thrilllist and Foursquare allow their... Read More

Last Wednesday, I saw into the future. Boulder Techstars’ public Demo Day played the part of crystal ball, foretelling a future of virtual reality and revolutionary healthcare platforms. The 13 startups of Techstars’ 10th-anniversary class offer a new reality: a future that prioritizes efficiency and convenience to the point that the questions “Is there an app for that?” becomes on par with “Is the sky blue?” Every startup deserves praise for undertaking a monetary risk in the name of making our lives easier. However, as a young professional seeking both organization and inner peace,... Read More

Everyone is very familiar with the rise and dramatic fall of the dot com boom. Now we are embracing a similar rise in technology that people are calling the “startup” era. The main difference between the late 90s – early 2000s and now is that technology is solving true problems. Problem solving is a constant reminder to entrepreneurs and innovators alike that there are still untouched sectors of every market just waiting to be capitalized on. Both people and businesses are faced with seemingly insurmountable problems on a daily basis and startups serve to find innovative solutions. One... Read More

Ever heard of Sir Richard Branson? Chances are, you most definitely have. Richard Branson is the English businessman and investor that created Virgin Group, which currently umbrellas over 400 companies world-wide. Somewhere within his busy schedule, Sir Branson decided to create a tech challenge. Starting in 2014, Sir Richard Branson developed the Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC) in order to “bring together targeted resources and world class advisors to help high-energy, wicked-smart entrepreneurs that are executing on big ideas”. The final showdown takes place on Neckar Island (Sir Branson’s... Read More

This week I want to touch on an important topic that was brought to my attention by a colleague of mine, Xavier Lemon. Xavier insists, as I agree, that a big aspect of being an entrepreneur is being able to walk away from failures with a lesson learned. This has been a major driving force in my success and in the success of many others around me. In order to appropriately touch on the topic I thought it would be wise to garnish lessons from those who have truly achieved success. Steve Jobs  Steve Jobs, as many of you know, created Apple. Apple is currently worth more, in liquid cash value,... Read More

“When I was a kid, there was no collaboration; it’s you with a camera bossing your friends around. But as an adult, filmmaking is all about appreciating the talents of the people you surround yourself with and knowing you could never have made any of these films by yourself.” – Steven Spielberg. For this week’s blog, I want to take a step back from the general scope of the Boulder Startup Boom and write about an extremely influential part in becoming a successful entrepreneur – networking. While the quote above pertains to the film industry, we must not look... Read More

It’s that time of the week again, and to kick things off I’m implementing a new topic. Once a month I will be blogging about an up and coming startup in Boulder. For the first “Startup of the Month”, I will be focusing on a recent tea startup called Wu Mountain Tea. Wu Mountain was co-founded by University of Colorado Student, Dylan Rothenberg. Dylan, President of Wu Mountain Tea, originally went to China as a Boren Scholar to study Chinese, and ended-up living and working in the famous Tea Markets of Gungzhou where he learned to source tea for a European premium tea distributor.... Read More

Last Friday local startup accelerator Boomtown presented their spring 2015 startup class in all their glory at the Boulder Theater. These brand new startups—literally some of them launched just days before Demo Day—showcase how they have spent the last 12 weeks using the $20k in investment, office space in Boulder, CO, mentorship from leaders in their respected fields and a plethora of other benefits provided by Boomtown as part of their accelerator program. The doors opened at 3:30PM on Friday, May 15th and the line of people waiting to get in snaked around the block and then some. Once the... Read More

With spring springing and summer just around the corner, the pace in Boulder is picking up quickly as Boulderites prepare for a summer filled with fun activities around every corner. For the tech lovers, entrepreneurs, students and investors of all kinds, the beginning of this summer season promises lots of fun and opportunities with Boulder kicking off its sixth Startup Week. Founded in 2010, Boulder Startup Week is five days dedicated to all things entrepreneurial, business and startup, celebrating the incredible startup scene Boulder has to offer.   The five-day event takes place from May... Read More

It’s important to note that I currently work at Impact Hub Boulder, as a social media and communications intern. Before that, I had spent some time in the Techstars Boulder office. These spaces are what introduced me to the profundity that is open-space and collaborative workspaces. What we have in Boulder is no recreation of the wheel. If anything, it’s just taking advantage of an economic triumph turned boom and bringing back a very good set of wheels that were lost through years of competitive capitalism selfishness, and a poor U.S. economy. That’s not the case for the City of Boulder... Read More