Small Business Incubators at Finlandia

The Jutila Center at Finlandia University doesn’t just serve as the school of art and design on campus.

It also houses many small local businesses, and now it has room for more.

Finlandia held a dedication for 20 new business incubator suites in the center earlier today.

Finlandia’s president, the Western U.P. Planning and Development Region and others were on hand for the occasion.

The U.S. Economic Development Administration came back to build the new suites on the 6th and 7th floors after already building several others on the first 5 floors.

The group spend nearly $3 million in all.

WUPPDR Executive Director Kim Stoker says the federal EDA doesn’t often come back into a project after leaving it.

But they did this time, and he says it’s because they saw it as having tremendous potential.

Finlandia President Dr. Philip Johnson believes the center serves as an intersection for design students and business owners, and he’s excited about the additional opportunities the new suites present to both groups.

After the ceremony, they gave tours of the renovated floors.