Twins Begin Second Annual Entrepreneur Accelerator Program

MINNEAPOLIS – During the early days of COVID-19 lockdowns, the Minnesota Twins Business Development Office looked for ways to grow the Twins brand beyond baseball. Last year, they launched the Minnesota Twins Accelerator by TechStars program to not only grow their brand but find new revenue streams from outside the game itself. 

Chris Iles, Senior Director of Brand Experience and Innovation for the Twins, spoke about the program and what it offers for participants. 

“We're looking to push the Minnesota Twins brand beyond baseball, and we see tech and venture as one way we can do that,” said Iles. “It is our mechanism for investing in tech startups. Throughout the course of a three-year partnership with TechStars, the Minnesota Twins will invest in 30-plus tech startups with the help of our friends at TechStars.” 

The Minnesota Twins Accelerator by Techstars began its second class of participants this week as the program runs from now until February 15, 2023. This year’s class features 10 different entrepreneurs, seven from across the United States, one from the United Kingdom, another from Nigeria and one more international entrepreneur. The majority of the participants are also from historically-marginalized groups of people. 

Expanding the Twins brand beyond baseball with a cohort such as this is one of the most unique things the franchise is doing off the diamond. Only one other MLB team has experimented with a venture like this before, the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2015. 

Iles shared that when MLB and all other major American sports were shut down in the spring of 2020 due to the pandemic it allowed time for the front office staff to look into the venture the Dodgers had done before to bring forth what the Twins are doing now. 

“COVID lockdowns gave us a chance to step back and really spend some time thinking about our business. We went through a pretty extensive brand-evolution exercise with the help of a local agency called Zeus Jones here. One of the ideas to percolate out of that was this accelerator and brought us to where we are now,” said Iles.

While the program focuses on helping entrepreneurs get off their feet, it has also added to the fan experience at Target Field in ways Twins fans may not have noticed this last season. 

One of the participants in last year’s class was AWSM Sauce, a sauce company focused on creating zero-waste sauces. Their products were served at all concession stands in the Delta 360 Sky Legends Club this season. 

Along with providing a new platform for entrepreneurs to discover their craft, the Twins front office sees this program as an additional revenue stream for the organization. While the revenue stream is something the Twins will not see a return on for at least half a decade, It could, hypothetically, be revenue placed toward player salary, as Iles explained. 

“It's a long-term play we won't see returns on this for six to 10 years. I liken it to when a major-league player or when a player gets drafted and you're not going to see them in the major leagues for six years. Realistically, that's the same timeline we're dealing with these companies. So yes, in theory, this could go to player payroll but we're a ways away from seeing the returns on this particular program,” said Iles. 

With ten new entrepreneur programs making their way to network in the Twin Cities and develop their ideas into a full business. They will also be working toward a chance to become a part of the fan experience at Target Field for the 2023 season. 

A demo day will be hosted for the end of the program on Wednesday, February 15, 2023, at the Filmore just down the street on the north end of Target Field.