1. Center of the University of Florida campus

University of Florida is a diverse community home to just about 50,000 students. In 2006, the Milken institute ranked UF as the number 1 ranked public university for transferring research discoveries to the marketplace. With one of the leading startup programs in the nation, the UF Office of Technology Licensing has helped more than 160 biomedical and technological startups evolve into large-scale companies. The university offers many tools to help these new companies get started and numbers prove that investors are making money off the businesses in Gainesville. Clients of UF TechConnect have collected over $500 million in private investment and have created over 500 high-tech jobs in the past seven years. The campus also hosts a startup job fair every year for interested students.

 

2. State of the art working environment

The Florida Innovation Hub incubator is a 48,000 square-foot facility provided by University of Florida that fosters collaboration and provides inexpensive, state-of-the-art office space. It is an elite community; startup companies need to apply and be selected for admission.  Since the innovation hub opened, startup companies created 760 jobs and $50 million in investment. Part of UF's innovation square, the Florida Innovation Hub is located about halfway between Downtown Gainesville and the UF campus.

 

3. Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator

The Sid Martin Incubator works with biotech startups in areas including life sciences, biomedical research, medicine and chemical sciences. This incubator helps their companies stay on track, gives business advice, provides a business plan, and much more.  Started in 1995 by University of Florida and now reaching about 40,000 square feet, Sid Martin is located in Progress Park, which is about 20 minutes northwest of the UF campus. Over 28 biotechnology startups like Celunol (bought out by BP Biofuels) and Oragenics Inc. graduated from Sid Martin to become self-sufficient companies.

 

4. Cross-collaboration between startups

The incubators in Gainesville allow for cross-collaboration between the neighboring companies.Gainesville is home to more technology incubators per capita than any other city in the U.S. In many other cities, start-ups fail because they don't know what they are doing when it comes to running a business and have no help. In Gainesville, help is all around and failing is not an option. The incubators are full of people who have experience with start-ups. They collaborate with the new businesses so the same mistakes are not made.

See More: Co-Working Startup Spaces in Gainesville

 

5. Lower cost of living

The cost of living and owning a business in Gainesville is much less than something in Miami or Orlando. The cost of living index here is 96, and there is a 17% increase when headed down to Miami. Ranked number 8 "Happiest Cities," by Gallup, Gainesville's average home price is only $190,043 compared to the national average of $272,900. A great place to start would be to look for apartments near UF or UF off campus housing and be close to the startup community.

See More: Gainesville Houses For Rent

 

6. Plethora of talent that is easily available

College students are very willing to learn while constantly looking for jobs and good experience to put on their resume. Not only are University of Florida students hard workers, but they are also not as salary driven as older, more experienced workers might be. Next Generation Consulting, a marketing research firm, cited Gainesville among its 10 Hotspots for Young Professionals to Live & Work. Startups could pay students and budding professionals a lot less while giving them an amazing learning experience and maybe even a future career. Overall, more than 39 percent of Gainesville residents hold at least a bachelor's degree, which is 15 percent higher than the national average.

 

7. Gainesville invites startups

With the help of University of Florida, Forbes recently ranked Gainesville as the “Best Place for Business and Careers” in the state of Florida. Gainesville has been included in Forbes Magazine rankings for "The Smartest Cities in America" and "Best Small Places: Educations Attainment." The city is constantly growing and thriving in creative entrepreneurship. The Gainesville area Chamber of Commerce has a membership of more than 1,400 business representing 70,000 employees. UP Gainesville is a service completely led by volunteers that supports entrepreneurs and connects them to the community.  Every year, they hold a startup weekend at UF’s Innovation Square.

 

8. Florida tax friendly laws

Because Gainesville it located in Florida, non-corporate businesses started here do not have a personal income tax, franchise tax or privilege tax. For the most part, neither your business's income nor its net worth will be subject to state taxation.

 

9. Proven success stories

Companies including Paracosm, a 3D scanning software, Parisleaf, a branding and digital agency, AxoGen, a leader in peripheral nerve repair and regeneration, and RoomSync, a national online roommate-matching software, have started right here in Gainesville. The environment is full of success stories that are still here and operating and Gainesville or have moved on to larger cities.

See more: Why Startups Prefer to Rent Office Space in Gainesville

 

10. Small town feel

Gainesville is perfect for startups because it is a small town that centers around a large university. Though the town isn't the largest in Florida, the university gives it access to hundreds of different industries. Gainesville was also ranked #1 in commute time in Florida by the U.S. Census Bureau. Unlike many big cities, small businesses are huge in Gainesville and very few monopolies cast a shadow over the population. Between the University of Florida and the rest of the town, Gainesville is constant hub of people and events providing for the perfect place to begin a company.