When Henderson attorney Trent Richards co-founded the boutique Sagebrush Lawyers firm several years ago, he found himself in a position familiar to many small-business owners who are starting out.
Richards and his business partner, Christopher Carson, were in search of the right physical space for their business.
“Initially, we were doing what would be the office version of couch surfing,” Richards said. “We had some friends who were nice enough to give us some office space, and that’s how we started.”
Not long after that, Richards got wind of a Henderson Chamber of Commerce Foundation program that provides office space for startups and home-based businesses owned by minorities, women or military veterans.
The program offers grants that feature six months of free office space—a value of close to $5,000—inside what used to be known as the Henderson Business Resource Center near Lifeguard Arena in downtown Henderson.
Renovations are happening now at the center, which will be rebranded as Launchpad this spring.
Grants for a new round of applicants for the program will be accepted through January 31, according to Henderson Chamber officials.
Sagebrush still maintains space at the incubator, which has been helpful in efforts to grow the firm, Richards said.
“It’s been very exciting to be in the middle of all the changes on Water Street,” Richards said. “From when we moved in to now, it’s a world away. There are new breweries, restaurants, Lifeguard Arena … other small businesses like ourselves. There’s a revitalization going on.”
Grant recipients will also get a complimentary Henderson Chamber annual membership, a $400 value.
“This is a project by the business community for the business community,” said Scott Muelrath, chamber president and CEO. “You have to be in business for less than two years, so we’re really targeting new businesses. There’s so many people right now taking new career paths and starting new endeavors, which you tend to see a lot during a recession or economic downturn.”
Reggie Burton, founder of a small marketing and public relations firm called RB Group, was a grant recipient in 2020.
One of the firm’s main clients is the Vegas Golden Knights. Burton said the location of the resource center space was perfect for him because it was so close to Lifeguard Arena, which opened in late 2020.
“If VGK was coming over to downtown Henderson back when the arena was being built, I could offer them meeting space at my office,” Burton said. “During those times, we were able to talk about youth hockey or different events they planned to bring to Lifeguard Arena. It was perfect for me.”
Before gaining the downtown space, Burton was running his company out of his home.
“When I received the grant, the program was offering all the things that I was looking to level up with,” he said. “As a small-business owner, I didn’t want to just survive this pandemic, I wanted to thrive. I think I’ve done that and I can say that this program helped.”
In all, about a dozen office suites will be included at the remodeled Launchpad center, Muelrath said.
The suites feature several hundred square feet of space and are meant to house four or five employees.
To qualify for a grant, businesses must be at least 51% minority-owned, woman-owned or veteran-owned.
A minority group member is described as someone who is at least 25% Black, Hispanic, Asian or Native American.
Richards, who served with the U.S. Marines, said having office space on Water Street has been a big plus for his law firm.
“If you’ve lived (in Henderson) for any time at all, you know where Water Street is,” Richards said. “People know where you are. Everyone at the center looks out for each other and is super pleasant and nice. We’re all similar people—mom-and-pop operations with less than 10 employees who are trying to do a thing.”
To commission the program, the Henderson Chamber relied on corporate contributions from companies and organizations like NV Energy, Cox Business, Gordon Law, the Trish Nash Team, Nevada Gold Mines, Nevada State Bank and Wells Fargo.
“The center has been around for 20 years, and it’s the longest-running business resource center in the state,” Muelrath said. “The rebrand is kind of the next chapter. We’re really excited about it.”
For more information about the program, visit hendersonchamber.com/launchpad.