Petersburg Founders Fund

The Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC), in collaboration with Virginia’s Secretary of Commerce & Trade and local stakeholders, has established the Petersburg Founders Fund (PFF), a new competitive grant fund, that supports the launch and growth of scalable companies in Petersburg.

VIPC is actively engaged with key stakeholders in the Petersburg region to establish, promote, and administer the PFF to assist creative entrepreneurs with high-impact potential in the community.

The Petersburg Founders Fund (PFF) is a competitive direct grant program, and VIPC will not take an equity stake in the companies. However, via the PFF, the Commonwealth will invest in the future growth of Petersburg’s economy and entrepreneurial ecosystem. Services for founders will also include mentoring, access to markets, business acceleration and incubation, introduction to potential lenders and investors, and other important benefits. The PFF will connect to and build on existing entrepreneurship programs in the City and surrounding communities.

Grants of up to $25,000 will be available from the Petersburg Founders Fund. VIPC anticipates offering at least two grant application cycles in 2023.

PFF Program Guidelines

The Petersburg Founders Fund supports startups and small businesses in the city of Petersburg.
It focuses on high-potential, early-stage Petersburg entrepreneurs or established, mature Petersburg-based companies seeking to innovate toward new operations, markets, products, and services (specific eligibility criteria follows).

Grants of up to $25,000 can support activities that include but are not limited to: hiring or promoting employees, customer discovery, market research, finance and accounting system upgrades, business model validation, development of prototypes or minimum viable product (MVP), customer pilots, intellectual property protection, staff development, website development and e-commerce, leasehold improvements and renovations, purchase-order fulfillment, inventory replenishment, business credit enhancement and debt repayment, purchasing new or refurbished equipment, and securing business investments or loans. Funding cannot be used for property management or real estate investment.

Companies may only apply for one PFF grant per solicitation cycle and may only receive one PFF grant per year.

Applications will be accepted starting on December 1, 2022, and they will be reviewed on an ongoing basis until January 31, 2023.

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