Business incubator introduces largest cohort and see’s largest applicant turnout

A record number of applicants apply to the Change Labs Incubator

Tuba City, Navajo Nation (AZ) -- As a 15 member cohort starts their training in the Change Labs Business Incubator, they are already standing out as being the largest and most competitive cohort the incubator has welcomed.

“They span across three states of Utah, Arizona and New Mexico,” Holly Patterson said. “All of them operate their business to a clientele that resides on Navajo or Hopi [reservations].”

Patterson, a Change Labs Business Coach, also noted they received applications from all over the country including Montana, Colorado and the West Coast.

“This is the largest applicant pool we’ve ever had,” she said. “We had 53 applicants this year to our incubator program.”

While they couldn’t accept everyone, Patterson said she’s happy to see the nationwide reach of Change Labs.

The cohort is made up of entrepreneurs primarily in the creative arts, retail, and tourism, with about 66 percent of the members being located on the Navajo or Hopi reservation.

“To me, this is a great step towards being sovereign and self-sufficient,” Marie Justice said.

Justice, a Navajo entrepreneur and owner of Ligai Si Anii Tours in Page, AZ, joined the program because she simply wants to see more businesses in her community on the Navajo Nation.

From left to right: Cheyenne Grabiec, Chris Shorty, Clifton Sakizzie, Daniel Tullie. Photography by Wade Adakai

Young but established businesses like Justice’s make up 86 percent of this cohort, with members expressing their eagerness to continue building and strengthening their business foundation.

Other members include Kevin Begay, Navajo, who has a vision to build a bed & breakfast near Sheep Springs, NM capable of hosting traditional activities for communities and youth on the reservation. Jewelry designer and bow maker, Cheyenne Grabiec, is excited to join the cohort to share his art with the world. Edison Yazzie, Navajo, applied to the cohort to build an apprentice program in Window Rock to train and create opportunities for stonemasons.

From left to right: Danielle Ami, Justin Lee, Kevin Begay, Labby Shepard. Photography by Wade Adakai

The training for this cohort will consist of four business modules with a mix of in-person and virtual activity.

“We really honed in on this idea about what it means to learn within a cohort and learn together,” Patterson said, adding the in-person sessions will be creative and hands-on, not a lecture style.

Patterson said it’s about building up the entrepreneur, not just with technical skills but with how they can work on themselves as founders of a business.

For Vanessa Tullie, Navajo, her goal for the program is to open an office on the Navajo Nation for Ahehee' Shidine'e Homecare, a company she built to provide compassionate and high-quality homecare.

While the cohort has just started, the entrepreneurs are seeing how each of their businesses impact the lives of those they serve.

Danielle Dalauw, Hopi, is applying her design and coding skills toward developing a language app for her Hopi community. She sees entrepreneurship as a practical skill that allows her to contribute to her people.

“If I learn how to navigate this process the possibilities are endless!” she writes. “I could develop apps for organizations [on the Hopi Nation].”

From left to right: Laris Manuelito, Marie Justice, Shonie De La Rosa, Vanessa Tullie. Photography by Wade Adakai