DogPatch Labs: A New Home For Start-Ups

Polaris Ventures are launching the New York branch of their Dogpatch Labs initiative; an eco-system that houses start-ups for 3-6 months.  Providing them with a free place to live, wi-fi, coffee and snacks, they’re also equipped with an opportunity to develop their business in the space until they can acquire investors to continue their business or project. Central to the function of the space is what General Partner, Peter Flint, coins as ‘open source entrepreneurism; basically collaboration’.  Besides accommodation in an environment that breeds connectivity, Flint and his team host strategic meet-ups or dinners discussing subjects which can further nurture their development.

“Hallmark to what we do is the emphasis and strategy towards diversification in businesses’, further explains Flint about the firm, which since founded in 1996 in Boston has hosted approximately $3 billion under their management.  Seed deals are core to their ethos, backing entrepreneurs in the worlds of life science and technology. So far they have identified investment opportunities within the labs that include Brizzly/Thing Labs, a twitter app maker and LOLapps, a Facebook app maker.

Dogpatch labs first kicked off in San Francisco as a test bed for the idea, moving to Cambridge, Massachusetts to cater to their backyard of growing start-ups.  Recognizing a gap in the support system for the vibrant community of New York entrepreneurs, Polaris Ventures wanted to replicate the already flourishing business model for the next wave in new business ideas.

Eight businesses are set to sit side by side in the New Year, including KidMango, a video site for kids led by Yahoo vet Paul Marcum, Sonik Architects/Sonifi; a cool iPhone music app company, online dating company Good Crush started by Josh Weinstein at Princeton and ekoVenture, an OpenTable for travel experiences and day activities by Dan Gruneberg.

Parented by Peter Flint and Jon Steinberg (two Polaris VCs who will also be based out of the labs), start-ups are welcome to email them with an outline of their business and apply for involvement.  However access to the space remains by invitation basis only.

Dogpatch Labs