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Economic Gardening


Fostering the Growth of Companies Throughout the Greater Rochester, NY Region

The GRE Regional Economic Gardening Program is the first of its kind in New York State, and is designed to provide sophisticated, tailor-made technical assistance to local companies poised for growth in the Greater Rochester, NY Region. This pilot program will provide economic gardening assistance at no charge to a select group of 20 second-stage businesses located in the Greater Rochester, NY Region. These second-stage businesses have between 5 and 100 employees and annual revenues from $700,000 to $50 million.

Thank you for the overwhelming response to the GRE Regional Economic Gardening program. The application process is now closed.  Selected companies will be announced by mid-August.

We plan to accept new applications for the GRE Regional Economic Gardening program in early 2013.


Resources to Grow Your Business

Our economic gardening program is an innovative, entrepreneur-centered, economic growth strategy focused on providing tools to grow existing businesses. A team of national experts affiliated with the Edward Lowe Foundation will work with selected companies to develop a plan to further accelerate their business success. Participating companies have access to a free suite of high-end, high-speed technical assistance.

  • Identifying qualified sales leads by sorting contents of extensive databases
  • Mapping geographic areas using GIS software to facilitate targeted marketing efforts
  • Reviewing core strategies related to commodity and/or niche markets
  • Analyzing employee temperament to build strong management teams and recruit new hires that fit the organization's dynamic
  • Examining social media utilization to connect with customers
  • Search engine optimization (SEO) to place websites in front of more customers.

Does My Company Qualify?

To apply, your business must meet the following eligibility criteria:

  • Be a for-profit, privately-held company headquartered and operating in Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming or Yates counties
  • Generate between $700,000 and $50,000,000 in annual revenue
  • Employ at least 5 but no more than 100 employees
  • Maintained principal operations in the 9-county Greater Rochester, NY Region for at least the last two years
  • Demonstrate growth in employment and/or revenue for at least two of the past five years
  • Provide products and/or services to markets outside of the Greater Rochester, NY Region

Note: Retail and restaurant establishments do not qualify for this program. 


How Does it Work?

Once accepted, CEOs are paired with an Economic Gardening team that operates as an extension of the CEO's staff for the duration of the engagement, which is typically two to three weeks. Your team will focus on your business' unique challenges and opportunities and make recommendations that are customized to your situation. It's all about giving you what you need to grow your business…all at no charge to you.

Are You Ready to Grow?

The online application process is simple and straightforward, but you must have this information available:

  • Company and CEO names and contact information
  • Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number, if applicable
  • Legal form, company ownership
  • Company resources, including the number of full-time and part-time employees
  • Financial information dating back to 2007

Have More Questions?

The GRE Regional Economic Gardening Program Technical Reporting Expert is Ana Liss. You may reach Ana by calling (585)530-6217 or emailing her at Ana@rochesterbiz.com

GRE Regional Economic Gardening Program Partners

This program is made possible in part by a grant from Empire State Development and through GRE's partnerships with the following local agencies:

 


Strong Memorial Hospital, consistently recognized in U.S. News and Reports as "One of America's Best Hospitals in the Nation," is widely known for its cardiac care. It operates the only heart transplant program in Western New York and is also nationally recognized for neurosurgery, urology, gynecology, cancer and pediatric specialties. more
Golf Magazine and the National Golf Foundation named Rochester one of the 10 Best Golf Cities in America. (Golf.com, August 2010) more
Based on Forbes' analysis of the most innovative cities in the US, Rochester is ranked 5th for patents per capita.(2010) more
The diversity of our economy as well as the strength of our colleges and universities are some of the reasons Businessweek selected Rochester as one of the Top 20 Best Places to Start Over in 2010. (Nov 2010) more
Kiplinger names Rochester the "Best City in the U.S. for Commuters." (March 2011) more
Bloomberg Businessweek ranks U of R's Simon School of Business the top private U.S. business school for return on investment. (January 2011) more
Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine ranks SUNY Geneseo 2nd in nation in "Best Value" among public colleges for out-of-state students; 7th for in-state students. (January 2011) more
The Finger Lakes Region was named the top lakeside retreat in the world. (source: Shermans Travel, August 2009) more
Business Insider says the Finger Lakes is #16 among "50 trips you have to take in the U.S." more
Brookings Institution ranks Rochester the 46th best metro economy in the world and 3rd best in the U.S.(Jan 2012) more
The New Republic reports Rochester, NY is one of the most innovation-intensive metro areas in the country.(March 2012) more
Rochester ranks in the Top 10 in the nation for volunteer hours per resident. (source: Corporation for National & Community Service, 2009) more
The Strong Museum is ranked as one of the top 10 Children's Museums in the nation by Child Magazine. It is also home to the National Toy Hall of Fame. more
MSN rated Rochester, NY the most livable bargain market in the US. (July 2011) more
Rochester was recognized as one of Ten Underrated Hotbeds of American Innovation. (Source: Fast Company, August 2012) more
The Weather Channel named Rochester, NY one of the safest weather cities in the U.S. (August 2012) more
Business Facilities, a leading site selection magazine, names Rochester, NY one of only seven "Editor's Location Picks" (June 2010) more
Forbes magazine ranked the Rochester, NY area the third-best metropolitan region in the country for raising a family. (June 2010) more
The Daily Beast ranks Rochester 14th in the nation in "near-universal" health care with 91 percent covered by health care policies more
Genesee County was ranked fourth best food processing region in the country, based on metropolitan food processing industry growth. (Business Facilities Magazine, August 2012) more
7% of the world's fresh water supply is right here in the Greater Rochester, NY Region. more
Trulia.com names Rochester, NY one of the "5 Real Estate Markets to Watch in 2012." (Jan 2012) more
Bloomberg Businessweek recognized Rochester as the 15th strongest job market in the country. (June 2010) more
Six Greater Rochester Region schools appear on U.S. News and World Report's rankings of top regional and national universities (September 2011) more
Top-ranked public and private schools, a good economy, and strong employment growth are some of the reasons Kiplinger named Rochester the 5th Best City for Families. (July 2012) more
Bicycling Magazine recently named Rochester, NY one of America's Top 50 Bike-Friendly Cities. (Spring 2010) more
Greater Rochester ranked first in job growth by Business Facilities Magazine, a leading trade publication targeted at site selectors. (July 2011) more
According to Forbes, your take-home pay will go farther in Rochester. Our community's diversified economy and history of sustained low costs make it an affordable location. (Forbes, November 2010) more
BloombergBusinessweek ranked Rochester the 32nd Best City in the U.S. (September 2012) more
Forbes recently ranked Rochester, NY one of America's most innovative cities. (June 2010) more
Rochester's health care costs are among the lowest in the country. Commercial insurance costs are 30% below the national average. more
Richard Florida of The Atlantic Cities ranked Rochester, NY the 13th Brainiest City in America. (Source: The Atlantic Cities, June 2012) more
The Scientist magazine named the University of Rochester one of the best places in the world for scientists to work.(August 2012) more
At $118,900, the median home sales price is 31% more affordable than the national average. Approximately 84.4% of area homes are affordable for our region's median income. National Association of Realtors (Q2, 2011), NAHB Housing Opportunity Index (Q1, 2011) more
The Rochester Region is the best place in the US to purchase a home, according to Forbes.com and Zillow. (May 2011) more
Finger Lakes Region ranked one of the Top Four Riesling Regions in the world. (by Culinary Institute of America's Karen MacNeil, summer 2010) more
Rochester is ranked 12th among the "Most Inventive Cities" in the U.S. (The Daily Beast, 2011) more
Rochester is the 8th best midsize metro college town in the nation. (American Institute for Economic Research, 2010-2011 College Destination Index) more
The Today Show names the Finger Lakes Wine Country as a Top Food Trend for 2012.(Jan 2012) more
The Daily Beast ranked Rochester among the top 10 smartest cities in the U.S. (October 2010) more
Atlantic magazine lists Rochester as one of 35 innovation hubs in the country. (October 2011) more
Greater Rochester ranks 13th among metropolitan regions for the number of patents issued per million residents. (Brookings Institute report "Patenting Prosperity: Invention and Economic Performance in the United States and its Metropolitan Areas" 2013) more
Newsweek and The Daily Beast annually highlight the top public high schools in the U.S., and 11 Greater Rochester high schools consistently make the list. (May 2012) more
Oak Hill Country Club named best private club in US, based on Golf World Magazine reader survey. (source: Golf World Magazine, September 2009) more
Rochester has the 5th best Friday afternoon commute in the country. (Governing Magazine, July 2012) more
We have one of the highest Intellectual Density Quotient rankings of any region in the country.
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