Accelerator

An action packed intense program designed to help impact enterprises scale and succeed

Innovation Accelerator

Villgro’s Innovation Accelerator is a fast track program that identifies, supports and grows high-potential solutions that can transform the lives of poor. The Accelerator adapts Villgro’s intensive incubation methodology to shorter programs with a deep focus on go-to-market strategy and investment-readiness to help ready-to-scale enterprises.

What does Innovation Accelerator mean?

The Villgro Innovation Accelerator is a bespoke program that is ‘theme-based’ that combines ‘Go-To- Market’ and ‘Investment Readiness’ capacity-building over 6 to 12 months. In this program, we focus on rapid testing of models with early traction, building out a growth strategy for the business and getting you ready to connect you to the right capital for your business.

Our goal here is to bring together people from a specific sub-sector or theme – mentors, funders, partners, policy makers, corporates – who are best positioned in solving problems within that focus area. During the program, you as an enterprise will be in a position to iterate and scale your solutions effectively and efficiently. The end result of the Accelerator is that you are put in the fast tag lane to grow your impact thanks to the relevant connections built with the identified market and capital partners.

What are the Key Outcomes?

The Innovation Accelerator is a partner to any enterprise that is poised to take the next big step. It gives you clear and coherent advantages such as:

Follow-on Funding: We work with capital partners to provide follow-on funding to our program graduates. Through the accelerator program, we work with the team on improving their investment-readiness by building strong financial systems, financial models and forecasting, compliance checks, and identifying the need and type of capital. This results in tailored connections at the end of the program.

Market Networks: The Accelerator is focused on helping you grow and access new market opportunities. Through the program, key market partners relevant to your business will be identified and connections will be made to them, as needed.

How is Incubation and Acceleration Different?

Incubation and Accelerator have different approaches: Through Villgro’s Incubation, we mentor and grow a start-up impact enterprise in its nascent stage of development over at least 2 years, if not more. Villgro accepts enterprises round the year for its incubation program but has a limited intake each year.

In the Accelerator program, we work with enterprises who have been operating at least for two years, have tested their business model and are already a known face to their customers. However, they still need to scale up. The Innovation Accelerator is run on a cohort-model through 12 months where support is delivered through in-depth classroom sessions called Learning and Innovation Labs and one-on-one customized strategic support and mentoring. Usually theme or sector-based, this program allows us to support a larger number of entrepreneurs and their business ideas. It culminates in a Showcase which puts entrepreneurs directly in front of investors, potential market and funding partners.

What is the Selection Criteria?

The Villgro Innovation Accelerator is theme- based and launched only in partnership with ecosystem and market partners. Our themes may change depending on the demand but we support models that demonstrate the following:

For- Profit and Market-based models

Your enterprise must be legally incorporated as a for-profit business or a cooperative in the Philippines. We are looking to support high potential market-based models with a clear revenue stream and customer base with potential for growth.

Early- Stage Entrepreneurship

You must have an early-stage business (less than 5 years old), that has created some revenue-generating customers. In some cases, we may also accept enterprises that may be launching a new business vertical but only if they can demonstrate potential for large scale social impact.

Funding

You haven’t received any institutional funding but are looking to do so within the next 12 months.  

Social Impact

The business model can create significant and direct impact on the lives of the poor – creating jobs or significantly improving incomes, or development through the product/service.

Sector or Theme Focus

Villgro Innovation Accelerator programs target a specific sector or theme. 

What Support will you get?

Investment Readiness and Financial Technical Assistance: Good financial management and having a strong handle on your cash-flow is critical for a growing enterprise. Our Finance mentors collaborate with you to build strong financial management processes, identify performance metrics and ensure that good governance practices become embedded in your business. We work with you to build your financial model and projections to understand your cash-flow needs and refine your investment ask and identify external capital needs and use.

Current ProgramS

The Innovation Accelerator – AGRICULTURE

The average age of the Filipino farmer is 57. Small holder farmers and fisher-folk are among the poorest in the Philippines. If we are to address inequality in the country, agriculture and fisheries need to create a path out of poverty. We aim to find the businesses making farming viable and profitable by working throughout the value chain: inputs, farmers, traders, food processors, retailers.

Angat Lahat sa Agribusiness (ALAB) Innovation Accelerator is run in partnership with Go Negosyo and Aboitiz Foundation

WE Rise | Accelerating Women Entrepreneurs

WE Rise is a 10-month accelerator program designed for women entrepreneur to successfully build and grow their businesses and raise capital by providing mentorship, networks and partners, and access to capital.

Villgro Philippines developed this program with Value for Women, and is supported by the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE), Visa Foundation, and USAID.

Read more about the WE Rise program here

ShelterTech accelerator Southeast Asia

ShelterTech accelerator is a program designed to support entrepreneurs who are solving the most pressing issues in shelter through innovative, scalable solutions. Through a dedicated program, enterprises will receive customized support to strengthen and scale their solutions through bespoke business mentorship, one-to-one industry mentors, connections to market partners, and unparalleled investment readiness support. Selected enterprises will also have access to Catalytic Funds to conduct lean experiments through the program. 

Read more about the ShelterTech accelerator here

Good things happen to those who hustle.

Anais Nin

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Once you’re part of the Villgro Philippines network, you are in a powerhouse of a groundbreaking, myth shattering, norm busting ecosystem of peers whose sole purpose is to move heaven and earth to create sustainable social impact.

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