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SEED SPOT

OUR MISSION: To educate, accelerate, and invest in entrepreneurs who are creating solutions to social

Incubator with locations in Phoenix, AZ and Washington, D.C. Our mission is to educate, accelerate and invest in entrepreneurs creating solutions to social problems.

20/08/2026

When Kathleen Wood Leverenz walks into a room with a CPG founder, she is bringing decades of experience on both sides of the retail table, as a marketer and as a buyer, and that combination makes her one of the most valuable voices a founder can have in their corner.

Kathleen is Mentor in Residence for SEED SPOT's Retail Brand Accelerator, with deep expertise in branding, retail sales, new product development, nutrition, and local food systems. She has built brands that needed to get on the shelf and made the purchasing decisions that determined which ones did, which means she can help a founder see their business the way a buyer sees it before they ever walk into that meeting.

What she has noticed after years in the industry is worth paying attention to: retail is a male-dominated field, yet the buyers making the decisions are largely women. That gap matters, because the founders who reflect the communities those buyers actually serve, women founders and underrepresented founders building products that reflect real lived experiences, are exactly the brands that shelves are missing. Working with those founders at SEED SPOT is not just meaningful to Kathleen. It is the work she believes the industry needs most right now.

Watch the full video to hear why Kathleen believes diverse products built by underrepresented founders are not just good for communities but essential for retail.

Learn more about SEED SPOT's Retail Brand Accelerator: seedspot.org

18/08/2026

SEED SPOT just launched the Emerging Retail Brand Accelerator Midwest — an intensive 8-week accelerator designed specifically for early-stage CPG founders who are generating revenue, ready to move into manufacturing, and serious about getting their product into retail.

Over 8 weeks you will learn directly from retail buyers, established brand founders, and distributors and walk away with the strategy, supply chain knowledge, and pitch skills to get your product on shelves and keep it there. 💪

What you'll learn:
🏷️ Brand Strategy & Positioning
🛒 Retail Selling Environment — straight from buyers and distributors
📦 Supply Chain, Manufacturing & Logistics
👥 Building Your Team for Scale
💰 Budgeting, COGS & Funding Projections
🎤 Live Sales Presentations — pitch directly to real retail stakeholders

Who this is for:
✅ Based in Chicago, NE Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, or Iowa
✅ Generating $25K+ in annual revenue
✅ Currently making your product at home with steady sales
✅ Ready to move into manufacturing and grow your retail presence

Key Dates:
⏰ Priority Deadline: August 31, 2026
📅 Final Deadline: September 28, 2026
📅 Program: October 19 – December 14, 2026 | Hybrid, Chicago-based

Your product belongs on shelves. We will help you get it there. 🙌

🔗 Apply now: seedspot.org/emerging-retail-brand-accelerator-midwest

Questions? Reach out at [email protected] — we would love to hear from you!

14/08/2026

In Part 1, Kavita Shah shared how brands that break through make their products the obvious solution and focus on the consumers who need them most. Part 2 is about what happens next: how founders build a brand that consumers remember and recognize without having to think about it.

Kavita is a VP of Marketing Executive and SEED SPOT mentor for emerging retail brands, advising early-stage CPG founders on brand positioning, consumer connection, and scaling across DTC.

The third principle is owning one clear message. Liquid Death built its entire identity around one idea: Murder Your Thirst. Every touchpoint reinforces it. As a brand grows, there will naturally be more stories to tell, but the founders who break through never let additional messages distract from the one idea they want to own in consumers' minds.

The fourth principle is making the brand instantly recognizable. A distinctive logo is not enough. Graza challenged the traditional olive oil category with a squeezable bottle that made the packaging itself the brand, then carried that same personality across its color palette, illustrations, and tone of voice. Recognition builds familiarity, familiarity builds trust, and trust is what keeps consumers coming back.

Three things to do this week:

🎯Ask five people who have never bought your product what your brand stands for after 10 seconds on your website. Five different answers mean one unclear message.
🎯Lay your website, social media, packaging, and one email side by side. Do they all look and feel like they came from the same brand? If not, pick one distinctive asset and use it consistently everywhere.
🎯Write your brand message in one sentence. If you cannot, that is the first thing worth fixing.

The founders who build the strongest brands do not spend their time trying to sound different. They spend their time making choices that make their brand impossible to confuse with anyone else.

Thank you to Kavita Shah for sharing these principles with SEED SPOT's community of emerging retail founders.

12/08/2026

💰What would $25,000 mean for your nonprofit?

At the conclusion of the UpTide Nonprofit Accelerator, one participant will be awarded a $25,000 prize at a live showcase on the historic 92NY stage in New York City.

UpTide, created by 92nd Street Y Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact in partnership with SEED SPOT, supports U.S.-based nonprofits tackling the "Crisis of Community." Cohort members also receive a $5,000 grant, a 3-year strategic plan, expert mentorship, and lifetime alumni benefits.
Applications close August 31st.

Apply today or tag a nonprofit leader who should know about this. 👉 https://ow.ly/tU4750ZljlF

10/08/2026

Most CPG founders spend their energy trying to prove their product is better. The brands that actually break through spend their energy on something different: making their product the obvious solution to a problem their customers already feel but have not been able to name.

Kavita Shah, VP of Marketing at Boxed Water Is Better and SEED SPOT mentor for emerging retail brands, has seen this pattern across every category. The brands that stand out do not just make different claims. They make different choices, and the two most important ones happen before a founder ever touches their packaging or social media.

The first is positioning. Not what your product does, but what problem it solves in a way no one else has framed it yet. Jolie did not sell a premium showerhead. It sold a solution to the hidden reason your skin and hair are not responding to the expensive products you are already using. That reframe changed everything about how consumers saw the purchase.

The second is focus. The biggest mistake Kavita sees founders make is trying to be relevant to everyone before they have become indispensable to anyone. Live Tinted launched with a clear focus on South Asian women who had been underserved by the beauty industry for decades. That specificity built credibility, loyalty, and word-of-mouth before the brand ever expanded its reach.

Your brand does not need to speak to everyone. It needs to speak so clearly to one specific consumer that they feel like it was made for them, because it was.

Two things to do this week:

👉Talk to five real customers and ask: what problem were you hoping we would solve, what were you using before you found us, and what do you still wish worked better. Your best positioning lives in their answers.
👉Write down the three customer segments you are most tempted to pursue this year. Cross out two of them and ask: if I only had enough budget to win one segment, who would I choose? Build your marketing around that answer.

SEED SPOT is grateful to have Kavita bringing this level of expertise directly to the founders who need it most. Stay tuned for Part 2.

06/08/2026

If your pitch is not landing the way you expected, this one is for you.

👉This month's SEED SPOT newsletter features SEED SPOT's mentor and blog guest, brand strategist and former L'Oréal and Starbucks leader Marianna Burchfield, on what real differentiation requires.
Read the full blog: https://ow.ly/AgFQ50Zwmar

Watch the free workshop on YouTube Connect: https://ow.ly/wZs750Zwmat

Sign up for the SEED SPOT monthly newsletter, and stay in the know.

05/08/2026

On August 27, the marketplace at SEED SPOT's Made for Retail Chicago Pitch Competition puts eight Chicago-built brands directly in front of the community, spanning from small-batch ice cream, clean spirits, non-alcoholic wine, baby gear, oral care, pasta sauce, baking kits, and plant care.

Shop from:
RoseBud Ice Cream — small-batch pints and soft serve out of Glen Ellyn
Inspiro Tequila — additive-free tequila from founder Mara Smith
Babygami — collapsible travel bottles built for parents on the move
Nouvie — non-alcoholic sparkling wine made from Spanish grapes
Tiny Tots Secret Sauce — organic, veggie-packed pasta sauce for picky eaters
TrnscndWellness — fluoride-free, vegan oral care from Talk
BāKIT Box — all-inclusive baking kits for home bakers of every level
Bleume — houseplant fertilizer for growing spaces of any size
Mez - Like chocolate but better
Ruby Fine Hibiscus Tea
Shukrah - The carefree comb and hair tool

Arrive early for the pitch competition, where SEED SPOT and award the top three founders nondilutive grant funding, to fuel their next stage of growth.

Then stay to shop, meet the buyers and the community in the room, and spend the evening with the Chicago founders who are building all of it.

Free and open to the community. RSVP at the link below.
https://luma.com/pdlv83q4

Thursday, August 27 | 6–8 PM CDT | 222 N Canal St, Chicago — enter through Taste 222

Supported by and

03/08/2026

SEED SPOT has launched the Emerging Retail Brand Accelerator Midwest — an intensive 8-week hybrid accelerator for early-stage consumer product founders in the Chicago and Northeast Ohio areas who are generating revenue and ready to grow.

Over eight weeks, founders refine their sales presentations, explore manufacturing options, and learn when to scale fulfillment capabilities and efficiencies, build a standout brand identity, and master financial projections, all with 1:1 mentoring tailored to their specific stage and product.

Who should apply:
Headquartered in Chicago, Cook County, or surrounding Collar counties. or North East Ohio
Generating $25,000 or more in annual revenue and ready to grow
Producing a product at home with steady sales and ready to move into a manufacturing facility
Working with a validated prototype and strong manufacturing practices and ready to grow your sales channels

Priority deadline: August 31, 2026
Program: October 19 – December 14th, 2026

Apply or share with a founder who is ready: https://ow.ly/sbMg50ZuRSt

29/07/2026

Five Chicago brands are about to pitch for their next chapter

SEED SPOT and Archer Capital are bringing the Made for Retail Chicago Pitch Competition to the stage, and the community is invited to be part of it.

After weeks of intensive workshops, coaching, and mentorship, these five CPG Chicago founders will pitch live to a panel of retail buyers, capital providers, and industry judges on August 27:

Joe & Bella
ChiChi Foods
Archway Pet
Ashunta Inc.
XO Marshmallow

The top three walk away with grant funding to fuel their next stage of growth.

What to expect on the night: live pitches from five shelf-ready CPG founders, real-time feedback from retail buyers and Chicago ecosystem leaders, $25,000 in nondilutive grants awarded to the top three founders, a founder marketplace where attendees can shop products from local brands after the competition, and networking with founders, buyers, investors, and the Chicago entrepreneurship community.

Thursday August 27 | 6 to 8 PM CDT | 222 N Canal St, Chicago — enter through Taste 222

Free and open to the community. RSVP to save your spot: https://luma.com/pdlv83q4

Supported by Coleman Foundation and EDLI.

27/07/2026

Tuesday morning in Chicago felt like exactly what this city’s entrepreneurship community is built on: founders, funders, and partners from down the block and across the country, all at one table.

SEED SPOT co-hosted The L(aunch) Stop Breakfast with Midwesthouse, , and technexus to kick off Tech Chicago Week at 20 N Wacker, and the room delivered on everything a Monday morning coffee and connection should be.

To every founder, funder, and partner who showed up: thank you for being part of what makes Chicago special. This community shows up for each other, and that is everything.

Check SEED SPOT’s upcoming Chicago programs at the link in bio and sign up for the monthly newsletter ☝️

Address

San Andrés Chicahuaxtla

71010

Website

http://seedspot.org/, https://youtube.com/@seedspotconnect?feature=shared

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