How it works

From idea to open doors in four steps.

Find, Form, Fund, Grow. What happens at each step, how long it takes, what it costs you and who pays for it.

01 / The four steps

Mostly free, start to finish.

01Find

We meet you early

Iowa Founders Club spots new businesses the week they file with the state. Hackathons, events and referrals bring in people who only have an idea.

TimeWeek 0
Cost to you$0
Paid for byCorporate partners and sponsors
02Form

Startology builds your business

Your LLC, EIN and licenses, your brand, website and email, a test with 100 real customers and a week-by-week plan to your first sale.

TimeWeeks 1 to 4
Cost to you$0
Paid for byBanks, insurers and software companies
03Fund

First revenue, then capital

We point you to the loans, grants, pitch prizes and investors that fit, help you apply, and introduce you to Iowa companies that could become your customers.

TimeMonths 2 to 6
Cost to you$0 to apply
Paid for byCorporate partners
04Grow

People and help to scale

First hires, including Iowa Career Routes students, introductions to investors, and done-for-you help through Fracs, our sister company, priced up front when you want it.

TimeMonths 6 to 12 and on
Cost to youYour choice
Paid for byYou, only for what you choose

02 / One founder’s first year

What the first 12 months look like.

An example path for a sourdough subscription business in Ankeny. Every founder’s timing is different, and each step is open to you.

Week 1Brings an idea for sourdough subscriptions to the Iowa Business Hackathon.
Week 2Startology files the Iowa LLC and EIN.
Week 3Brand, website and business email go live.
Week 4100 Ankeny parents answer the customer test. 58% say they would buy.
Month 2First paying customers from the test list.
Month 3Applies for a microloan for an oven, with our help on the application.
Month 6Pitches at EntreFEST.
Month 9Hires a high school student through Iowa Career Routes.
Month 12Counted in the Iowa Innovation Economy Report as one of the first 100.

03 / Build What Iowa Needs

Three Iowa problems. Three founder cohorts in 2027.

Each cohort starts with a hackathon on one problem and ends with new Iowa businesses working on it.

Cohort · Clean water

600,000

people in central Iowa were put under the first lawn watering ban in Des Moines history in June 2025, after nitrates spiked in the Des Moines and Raccoon rivers.

Source: Iowa Public Radio ↗
What we buildBusinesses that keep nitrates out of rivers, test water and turn runoff into value.

Cohort · Good food

Half

of Iowa’s rural grocery stores closed in a decade, from about 1,400 in 1995 to just over 700 in 2005.

Source: Center for Rural Affairs, via Iowa Farm Bureau ↗
What we buildSmall-town grocers, local food delivery and farm-to-table businesses that bring fresh food back to rural towns.

Cohort · Child care and early learning

Up to 35%

of Iowans live in a child care desert, a gap that costs Iowa about $1.1 billion a year in lost earnings and tax revenue.

Source: Center for American Progress and Annie E. Casey Foundation, via Creston News Advertiser ↗
What we buildIn-home child care businesses, early learning programs and the tools that help providers stay open.
Bring an idea to a cohort Fund a cohort

04 / The scoreboard

Iowa businesses built in 2027.

Every business we help start shows up here the week it opens: what it is, where it is and which Iowa problem it takes on.

0/100

The first businesses open with the 2027 cohorts

Be one of the first 100

Ready for step one?

Start free at Startology See funding