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American Underground Launches with Big Splash

July 26, 2010

American Tobacco’s  Entrepreneurial Hub Revs Up Region's Momentum

(RTP) - The American Underground, offering innovative companies the energy of a start-up campus and the amenities of a world class office complex, will debut in the fall amid a sustained burst of entrepreneurial zeal in the region.  

The first tenants in the thoroughly modernized 26,000 sq ft space at Durham’s nationally acclaimed American Tobacco Campus will be the Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED), Joystick Labs and LaunchBox Digital.

Leaders of those organizations as well as NC Small Business Commissioner Scott Daugherty, Research Triangle Foundation President Rick Weddle and Durham Mayor Bill Bell announced plans on Tuesday morning.   The Underground will play a crucial role in building the state and nation’s entrepreneurial new economy, much of which is based in Durham and the famed Research Triangle Park.

“Innovation drives our economy and it’s what drove our decision to create The American Underground,” said Jim Goodmon, president and CEO of American Tobacco’s owner, Capitol Broadcasting Company.  “We want to be the place where entrepreneurs thrive and ideas soar.  Where we stand today, once the site of tobacco production, is now the epicenter of innovation.”

Designed to foster creativity and collaboration, the Underground will occupy the lower levels of American Tobacco’s historic Strickland and Crowe Buildings.  Features being readied include: individual tenant suites and single offices of flexible sizes, a large classroom, multiple shared ‘conference cabanas’, a common break room and a vintage arcade.  Synergy Commercial Advisers is leading recruitment.    

But on Tuesday, the emphasis was on the Underground’s first tenants and the high energy new economy they represent:

CED will relocate to the Underground in October.  Founded in 1984, CED identifies, enables and promotes high-growth, high-impact companies and accelerates the entrepreneurial culture of the Research Triangle and North Carolina.  “CED has a legacy of being at the center of the entrepreneurial activities in RTP and this move represents CED’s continued focus on remaining relevant to and engaged with its members and the greater entrepreneurial community,” said CED President Joan Siefert Rose.

Joystick Labs  is a first of its kind seed-stage accelerator program focused exclusively on launching the next generation of digitally distributed video game companies. Currently accepting applications, Joystick Labs seeks to identify teams of developers who are passionate about games and social media, have a clear vision for the experience they want to create, and who are entrepreneurs at heart. Selected teams receive seed capital and studio space, technical and business services, and access to industry mentors. 

LaunchBox Digital is the preeminent business accelerator program serving the Southeast & Mid-Atlantic regions. It provides seed capital, educational programs and structured mentoring to early stage technology-focused companies.  Applicants from around the country compete for ten slots in an intensive 12 week program.  “We are excited to be part of the region’s innovation movement,” said Executive Director Chris Heivly, “and to help make American Underground a destination for our local, regional and national portfolio companies.”

The partners also announced the Underground Over-Achievers Start Up Kit giveaway.  CED member companies generously contributed a long list of entrepreneurial resources -- from legal consultation to modern office furniture -- to the prize pack, making it  worth thousands of dollars.  Entrepreneurs can find out how to compete for the prize at www.UndergroundDurham.com.  The partners plan to announce a winner in the fall.  

ABOUT AMERICAN TOBACCO

American Tobacco offers one million square feet of premium office space in a historic factory setting bustling with restaurants and businesses. The campus serves as a bridge between Durham’s past as one of the Tobacco capitals of the world to its present and future as a knowledge, science and medical capital.