Heather Gomez, a tribal liaison for the New Mexico Tribal Entrepreneurship Enhancement Program (NMTEEP), has graduated from Embark, a national accelerator program hosted by Founded Outdoors and REI Path Ahead Ventures. Her business, Dulce Base Tipi, is a tipi destination in Northern New Mexico on the Jicarilla Apache Nation reservation. Learn more about the tipi on her Instagram page at @dulcebasetipi.
As part of the program, participating companies received a $10,000 equity-free grant to kickstart their business and founders were connected with a community of peers and mentors to support their growth and development. Learn about the Embark Program here: https://foundedoutdoors.com/embark
See the press release, “Dulce Base Tipi, a destination on the Jicarilla Apache Nation reservation, graduates from 2024 Embark accelerator program,” reposted below.
Dulce Base Tipi, a destination on the Jicarilla Apache Nation reservation, graduates from 2024 Embark accelerator program
DULCE, NEW MEXICO– Heather Gomez of Dulce Base Tipi will join 15 other emerging brands graduating this week from Embark, a national accelerator program hosted by Founded Outdoors and REI Path Ahead Ventures that provides entrepreneurs of color with resources and learning to turn their early-stage ideas into viable business options.
Based in New Mexico, Dulce Base Tipi is a tipi destination on the Jicarilla Apache Nation reservation with a great view of Archuleta Mesa, also known as the Dulce UFO Underground Base. The business – along with all the founders from this year’s Embark program – will be hosted by Path Ahead Ventures for a graduation ceremony on April 19, 2024, in Beaverton, Oregon. The event will include a livestream “pitch fest” from 2-3:30 pm PST (LINK).
“In this third season of Embark, the cohort of founding entrepreneurs has brought a new level of energy, excitement, and ideas to the program. They’ve moved at a rapid pace to build out important operational capabilities and growth strategies and gain early traction with key partners and early customers,” said Enhao Li of Founded Outdoors, which operates the Embark program.
Founded in 2020, Founded Outdoors and REI Path Ahead Ventures’ Embark program connects Black, Indigenous, Latina/o/x, Asian American and Pacific Islander founders to industry and startup experts as they learn best practices and gather valuable feedback on their businesses.
Each participating company receives a $10,000 equity-free grant to kickstart their business. In addition to capital, founders are also connected to a community of peers and mentors to support their continued growth in the industry.
Embark is part of REI Path Ahead Ventures’ multi-year $30 million commitment to partner with founders of color as they start and scale their businesses in the outdoor industry. This is the third annual cohort to complete the Embark program.
“This program has been life-changing, and the $10,000 is going to help expand my tipi business,” said Heather Gomez.
For more information on Dulce Base Tipi, please visit their Instagram page at @dulcebasetipi.
For additional information on Embark, please visit https://foundedoutdoors.com/embark.