The Six Core Benefits of Soft Landing New York
1. Online workshops on the U.S. business environment
- Doing business in the United States: economy, politics, culture and trade relations
- U.S. immigration law and navigating the U.S. visa landscape
- Business structuring and choice of legal entity in the U.S.
- Intellectual property law and protection
- Value proposition, customer discovery and customer segments
- Market entry, localization of products and services, sales and customer relations
In-person participation in the workshops is available at the Koffman Incubator for interested companies
- Business incentives and grants at the federal and state levels, raising capital in the U.S.
- Banking, finance and accounting, taxes and tax incentives
- Export-import regulations and American customs
- Labor and HR regulations, finding talent & workforce development
2. Customized mentorship assistance
Direct communication with the assigned mentors will provide customized business development support while addressing some pressing questions that are typical for incoming foreign startups:
- When do I need to create a U.S.
company? - How long does U.S. setup take and how
much does it cost? - How do I manage complex legal and
regulatory challenges in the United
States? - When should I look to raise money from
U.S. VCs? - How do I pitch to U.S. investors?
- How do I develop an appropriate sales
and marketing strategy to grow my
business in the U.S. market?
Assigned mentors from the Koffman Incubator provide one-on-one advise to participating companies
- How do I scale my startup into a large company in the U.S.?
- How can I build a brand and communications strategy in the United States?
- How can I partner with state and local government and community colleges to find and develop my U.S. workforce?
3. Student research assistance
The Program links each incoming foreign company with a team of students from the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business and Binghamton University’s Watson College of Engineering and Applied Science. Under the guidance of faculty, assigned mentors, and industry experts the student teams address a variety of specific questions on how to grow the company venture and expand its operations in the U.S. market
The Cornell SC Johnson College of Business will engage teams of graduate and advanced undergraduate students to provide research to the participating companies for the development of their business plans for expansion into the U.S. market. Each team will be guided by a faculty advisor. The Office of External Relations and Engagement at the College of Business will administer the student engagement.
Binghamton University’s Watson College of Engineering and Applied Science will engage graduate engineering students in the form of internships with Watson’s Strategic Partnership for Industrial Resurgence (SPIR) Program. Relevant faculty advisors will be assigned to the student interns.
4. Market exploration bootcamp
in New York City
A three-day bootcamp in New York City is organized for each Program cohort. The bootcamp will include deep-dive seminars and curated one-on-one meetings with industry leaders and experts, representatives of state and federal government organizations, and various organizations that are part of the New York State innovation ecosystem.
Following the market exploration bootcamp in New York City, companies are welcome to visit the Binghamton, NY area, tour the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator and meet with their mentors, student teams, and important stakeholders from the area.
5. Connections
Soft Landing New York provides:
- Networking opportunities with New York businesses, government agencies, business service providers, law firms and banks.
- Opportunities for matchmaking and one-on-one meetings with potential strategic partners (suppliers, distributors, joint venture partners) and customers
- Access to regional and statewide incubators, accelerators and industry experts
6. Discounted facilities
Soft Landing New York is located at the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator in downtown Binghamton (for incoming foreign startups) and the Huron Campus in Endicott, part of the Greater Binghamton area (for incoming scaled-up companies).
The Koffman Southern Tier Incubator
The Koffman Southern Tier Incubator is the only entity in New York State with a Soft Landing Designation from the International Business Innovation Association (InBIA). InBIA is the largest member-based entrepreneurial support network in the world with over 1,200 members—incubators, accelerators, and other entrepreneurship centers—from over 60 countries
37,000 SqFt Facility
33 Offices
10 Laboratories
11 Co-Working Areas
5 Meeting Rooms
Companies enrolled in Soft Landing New York get:
- Six months of free co-working membership;
- Six months of free mentorships; and
Free access to the Incubator’s programming, events and network
The Huron Campus
The 130-acres Huron Campus was the birthplace of IBM in 1911 until they moved out of the area in the late 1980s. Nowadays the campus provides ideal opportunities for advanced manufacturing companies to expand to and grow
The Huron Campus contains manufacturing and office space of various categories, including temperature and humidity-controlled buildings and warehouse facilities. The campus has its own central utility plant, high purity water systems, 2MM/gal per day wastewater treatment facility for treatment or recycling, inter-building material transfer/ handling system, loading/unloading docks to handle hundreds of thousands of tons of material annually, and a commercial rail line going in between the campus in combination with automated material handling.
Binghamton University’s Center for Advanced Microelectronics Manufacturing, BAE Systems (manufacturing drive trains for hybrid busses), Ubiquity Solar Inc., and iM3NY are current tenants of the campus.
Companies enrolled in Soft Landing New York that take space on the Huron Campus may get:
• Six months of free rent and ACAD layout and facilities development support;
• Networking opportunities with other companies, service providers and consultants.
