New Santa Cruz Accelerator: Click2Bricks

During COVID, we saw many brick-and-mortar stores quickly learn to go online, or face extinction. GetVirtual was instrumental in helping our community businesses. Now there is a reverse path from online to physical storefront: Click2Bricks.

“This program is different,” explains Brandon Napoli, Director of Santa Cruz SBDC. “We focus on offering a comprehensive approach to digital commerce; one rooted in the more traditional principles of business design, wholesale operations, customer service/experience, and back-office operations.”

What is Clicks2Bricks?

As a pilot program of the Santa Cruz SBDC, Clicks2Bricks (C2B) is an eCommerce Incubator. The goal is to help to aspiring and existing merchants break into eCommerce and achieve foundational knowledge in Digital Commerce as well as produce a top-quality website (and equally high-functioning back-office) in just 3 months. 

Curriculum

Each cohort will experience 11 weeks of training. Each week is a module focusing on the critical aspects of success in eCommerce. We start with business planning via Lean Canvas and market research and work with the Entrepreneur side-by-side (in-person and via Zoom) through branding, market fit, product development (if needed), web design, digital merchandising, wholesale/third-party marketplace strategies, inventory management, fulfillment, marketing, and ongoing optimization-- just to name a few. Additionally, each cohort will function as a form of peer-to-peer support during the program but also long after. Cost to client will be $29-$150/mo based on needed functionality (for Shopify & related apps).