StartingBlock Madison
StartingBlock Madison is a 501(c)(3) entrepreneurship hub operating a 50,000 sq ft coworking space in Madison, WI, offering memberships, accelerator and fellowship programs, and investor connections to roughly 140 companies and 425-plus founders across south central Wisconsin.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersMadison, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
StartingBlock Madison firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- StartingBlock Madison
- Legal name
- StartingBlock Madison, Inc
- Website
- https://startingblockmadison.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- StartingBlock Madison is a 501(c)(3) entrepreneurship hub operating a 50,000 sq ft coworking space in Madison, WI, offering memberships, accelerator and fellowship programs, and investor connections to roughly 140 companies and 425-plus founders across south central Wisconsin.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
StartingBlock Madison industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Coworking & Startup Incubator Services
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (61171)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM), Workforce Readiness, Career Pathways & Youth Employment Nonprofits (BPAGADAF)
Keywords
Where StartingBlock Madison is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Madison
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
StartingBlock Madison business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Coworking Memberships: StartingBlock generates revenue through various tiers of coworking memberships including Day Pass, Flex Desk, Reserved Desk, and Private Office memberships. These are recurring revenue streams from entrepreneurs, startups, freelancers, and small businesses.
- Grant Funding: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, StartingBlock receives grant funding from government and institutional sources including the SBA Growth Accelerator Fund Competition ($75,000 in 2025 and 2023) and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation's Entrepreneurial Partnership Grant.
- Leap Year Program Fees: The Leap Year program charges $10,000 total per participant, which includes a software license ($1,200), books and supplies ($200), one-year membership and dedicated desk ($3,600), and instructional and guest speaker fees ($5,000).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | Day Pass - Single-day coworking access |
| Subscription | Monthly | Flex Desk - Open coworking access |
| Subscription | Monthly | Reserved Desk - Dedicated personal desk |
| Subscription | Monthly | Private Office - Teams of 5+ from 700-5,000 sq ft |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Leap Year Program - 9-month entrepreneurship immersion |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels10 records
StartingBlock Madison product offering
Product offeringCore offering
StartingBlock Madison operates a nonprofit entrepreneurship hub providing coworking space memberships and structured accelerator, fellowship, and educational programs for entrepreneurs and early-stage companies. It sells access to physical workspaces (Day Pass, Flex Desk, Reserved Desk, Private Office), runs cohort-based accelerators (Madworks, Level Set, Next Level, Leap Year, Veterans Cohort, Midwest Housing Accelerator), and offers a fellowship for women entrepreneurs and recurring Lunch & Learn skill-building workshops.
Product overview
StartingBlock Madison is a 501(c)3 entrepreneurship hub in Madison, Wisconsin offering a comprehensive ecosystem for startups and entrepreneurs. The organization provides flexible coworking memberships (Day Pass, Flex Desk, Reserved Desk, Private Office) alongside accelerator programs (Madworks with Level Set, Next Level, and core tracks; Leap Year for young entrepreneurs; Veterans and Housing accelerators), professional development (Lunch & Learn Tactical Skills Series), fellowship programs (Summit Credit Union Fellowship for Women Entrepreneurs), and meeting/event spaces. The 50,000 sq ft facility in Madison's Capitol East neighborhood serves as a collaborative workspace and launchpad for startups at various stages.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Day Pass Single-day drop-in access to StartingBlock Madison's coworking facility for prospective members, visitors, and occasional users needing workspace for one day.
- Flex Desk membership Recurring monthly coworking access to non-reserved shared desks at StartingBlock Madison's 50,000 sq. ft. facility, targeted at solo entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small teams needing flexible workspace.
- Reserved Desk membership Recurring monthly access to a dedicated, reserved desk within StartingBlock Madison's coworking space, for members who want a consistent personal workstation.
- Private Office membership Rental of an enclosed, lockable private office inside StartingBlock Madison's facility for small companies and founding teams that need a dedicated, private workspace with the amenities of the larger hub.
- Madworks Accelerator A cohort-based accelerator program at StartingBlock Madison for early-stage startup founders, applying the LeanStack customer development methodology to validate ideas and progress toward product-market fit.
- Level Set program An early-stage program in StartingBlock Madison's accelerator lineup, designed to help founders establish foundational elements of their venture before advancing to later-stage cohorts.
- Next Level program A mid-stage program in StartingBlock Madison's accelerator continuum, supporting founders who have completed earlier validation work and are scaling their ventures.
- Leap Year program An extended-duration program in StartingBlock Madison's accelerator continuum, providing longer-term structured support for founders progressing through their company's growth stages.
- Associated Bank Veterans Cohort A cohort accelerator at StartingBlock Madison serving veteran entrepreneurs, delivered in partnership with sponsor Associated Bank to provide structured programming and community.
- Midwest Housing Accelerator A cohort accelerator at StartingBlock Madison focused on startups innovating in the housing sector across the U.S. Midwest, providing structured support, mentorship, and ecosystem connections.
- Summit Credit Union Fellowship for Women Entrepreneurs A sponsored fellowship program at StartingBlock Madison supporting women entrepreneurs, delivered in partnership with Summit Credit Union.
- Lunch & Learn: Tactical Skills Series A recurring Lunch & Learn workshop series at StartingBlock Madison delivering tactical, skill-building sessions for founders and the local entrepreneur community.
- Meeting & Event Spaces Rental of meeting rooms and event spaces within StartingBlock Madison's 50,000 sq. ft. facility for member and community use.
Quantifiable outcome
- Served 85 entrepreneurs through WEDC's 2024-2025 Entrepreneurial Partnership Grant
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use StartingBlock Madison
Customer profileNamed customers20 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
StartingBlock Madison technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
StartingBlock Madison partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Summit Credit UnioncoreSummit Credit Union and StartingBlock co-host the 'Summit Credit Union Fellowship for Women Entrepreneurs,' a 12-week accelerator-style boot camp followed by nine months of monthly coaching. The second cohort (2025) includes 11 women entrepreneurs. The fellowship provides business basics, financial literacy, funding insights, mentorship, and workspace access. Summit CEO Kim Sponem noted the fellowship supports women building financial security and wealth through entrepreneurship.
- Associated BankminorAssociated Bank partners with StartingBlock to host the Associated Bank Veterans Cohort, a specialized accelerator program track supporting veteran entrepreneurs in the Madison region.
- Madison CollegeminorStartingBlock maintains relationships with Madison College entrepreneurship programs as part of its network supporting aspiring entrepreneurs and alternative education pathways alongside its Leap Year program.
- UW-MadisoncoreStartingBlock serves as a landing place for UW-Madison student founders who outgrow campus resources. The organization collaborates with UW's Entrepreneurship Hub, student organizations (Transcend UW), and individual student founders. Student founders regularly present at StartingBlock events including One Million Cups and Lunch with a Founder. The relationship creates a pipeline from campus to the startup hub.
- Livingston Street Parking RampminorStartingBlock offers its members monthly parking access at the Livingston Street parking ramp, addressing a practical need for commuting members.
- Hubspot, Wix, Stripe, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TwitterminorStartingBlock uses third-party technology platforms for its operations: Hubspot (CRM/marketing automation), Wix (website), Stripe (payment processing), and social platforms Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter for community engagement. No mobile information is shared with third parties for marketing purposes.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
StartingBlock Madison competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- 1871: Chicago's flagship nonprofit tech hub offering coworking, accelerator programs, and corporate partnerships for early-stage entrepreneurs. Closest analog as a nonprofit entrepreneurship hub combining workspace with structured programming.
- gener8tor: Wisconsin-based accelerator running multiple cohorts per year across the Midwest and nationally. Directly comparable through accelerator cohort structure, regional Wisconsin/Midwest roots, and founder-development focus.
- Rev1 Ventures: Columbus, Ohio-based startup hub combining coworking, accelerator programming, and venture capital. Directly comparable as an integrated hub-plus-investor model serving regional entrepreneurs.
- MassChallenge: Global nonprofit accelerator supporting early-stage entrepreneurs across multiple verticals with no equity taken. Comparable as a mission-driven, nonprofit accelerator serving cohorts of diverse startups.
- Galvanize: Coworking and education hybrid combining workspace with immersive data science and software engineering bootcamps. Comparable through the combination of physical coworking space plus structured educational programming.
Broad incumbents
- Techstars: Global accelerator network operating hundreds of programs worldwide with a structured 13-week cohort model. Comparable accelerator framework, but operates at vastly larger scale with equity-based model.
- Founder Institute: Global pre-seed accelerator running cohort-based founder development programs across many cities. Comparable in curriculum-driven accelerator approach, but operates as a for-profit with equity participation.
- Industrious: Premium flexible workspace provider offering private offices and coworking across dozens of U.S. markets. Comparable in offering private office and coworking tiers, but is a venture-backed for-profit without accelerator programming.
- WeWork: Global coworking and flexible office operator offering shared and private workspace for entrepreneurs and enterprises. Comparable in coworking membership tiers and target SMB/entrepreneur segment, though far broader in scale and geographic reach.
Regional players
- University Research Park: UW-Madison-affiliated research park offering lab and office space for early-stage companies in Madison. Comparable as a regional innovation cluster serving Madison entrepreneurs, but focused on lab/research tenants rather than coworking members.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
StartingBlock Madison social profiles
Digital presenceStartingBlock Madison financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
StartingBlock Madison leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
StartingBlock Madison funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
StartingBlock Madison M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about StartingBlock Madison
What does StartingBlock Madison do?
StartingBlock Madison operates a nonprofit entrepreneurship hub providing coworking space memberships and structured accelerator, fellowship, and educational programs for entrepreneurs and early-stage companies. It sells access to physical workspaces (Day Pass, Flex Desk, Reserved Desk, Private Office), runs cohort-based accelerators (Madworks, Level Set, Next Level, Leap Year, Veterans Cohort, Midwest Housing Accelerator), and offers a fellowship for women entrepreneurs and recurring Lunch & Learn skill-building workshops.
Is StartingBlock Madison a public or private company?
StartingBlock Madison is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was StartingBlock Madison founded?
StartingBlock Madison was founded in 2012. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is StartingBlock Madison based?
StartingBlock Madison is headquartered in Madison, United States, in the North America region.
How does StartingBlock Madison make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Coworking Memberships are the primary driver. The others are grant Funding and leap Year Program Fees.
Who are StartingBlock Madison's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are 1871, gener8tor, Rev1 Ventures, MassChallenge and Galvanize. Broad incumbents are Techstars, Founder Institute, Industrious and WeWork. University Research Park is listed as a regional player.
Does StartingBlock Madison have an API?
No public API is recorded for StartingBlock Madison.
What industry is StartingBlock Madison in?
StartingBlock Madison's product category is Coworking & Startup Incubator Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMAHAC, Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators, with a secondary code of FSANAAAM, Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated). Its NAICS code is 61171 and its SIC code is 8600.