CrAdLE

Before you apply

• Read the incubation policy first. It sets out the admission criteria and the documents you need.
• Prepare a business plan and a note on the intellectual property or technology your company is built on.
• Check whether your company is registered as a private limited company or LLP, since these are preferred.

How applications work

• Ask the CrAdLE office for the application form, or download it from the website.
• After the first scrutiny, you are asked for a detailed proposal with the business plan and IP details.

How selection works

• A steering committee reviews your business plan on market, financial and technical feasibility, market size and risk.
• The same committee screens applications, and its decision is final.
• The criteria include innovation, proof of concept, scalability, sustainability, team composition and social relevance.

What reviewers look for

• A technology or IP-based solution to a clear problem, with some proof that it works.
• A team with the skills to build the business.
• A plan for how the company will grow, and how it will stand on its own once incubation ends.

CrAdLE, the Centre for Advancing and Launching Enterprises, is a technology business incubator promoted by the Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) in Bhat, Gandhinagar, Gujarat. It was launched in December 2016 to support innovation-led startups in manufacturing, healthcare, renewable energy and food and agri-business. The incubator is supported by the National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India.

How the incubator works

You start by asking for an application form, available from the CrAdLE office or from the website. After an initial scrutiny, you are asked for a detailed proposal. It includes a business plan and details of the intellectual property or technology your company is built on.

A steering committee reviews the business plan. It looks at market feasibility, financial feasibility, technical feasibility, market size and risk. The same committee acts as the screening committee, and its decision is final. CrAdLE can accept or reject any proposal.

Support is time-limited. The incubation policy allows up to 18 months, while the incubation agreement gives twelve months as the maximum period. Both documents allow extensions, decided by CrAdLE. Confirm the period with the office before you sign.

What incubatees get

The core offer is office space. CrAdLE provides fully furnished offices with internet connectivity. Shared resources include a board and meeting space, a conference room, a library and a canteen. Dedicated offices and co-working seats are both available, depending on availability.

Beyond space, CrAdLE offers business plan assistance, mentoring, and access to domain experts from a mentor pool. It also gives IT support and access to professionals in legal, financial, accounting, IP and industry matters. Patent attorneys are engaged to mentor innovators on strategy and filing, so the incubator encourages founders to start IP registration early.

CrAdLE also helps founders reach investors and customers. It runs showcasing events for products and solutions, networking events with investors and industry, and training programmes and seminars for entrepreneurs.

Funding and equity

CrAdLE does not take equity or debt from a startup for its support. Its funding help works through government schemes. The incubator helps founders with fundraising through Gujarat government and Government of India schemes for startups and MSMEs. One example is the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme, promoted by DPIIT, which supports proof of concept, prototype development, market entry and commercialisation. The incubation policy also refers to a convertible debenture or debt route under that central scheme. That route belongs to the scheme, not to CrAdLE, so check the terms with the scheme directly.

Who can apply

Admission is open to companies, proprietorships and LLPs working on new products, processes or services driven by technology or intellectual property. The incubation policy says admission is open to all citizens of Indian nationality. It gives preference to private limited companies and LLPs registered under the Companies Act, 2013. The preferred thrust areas are manufacturing, healthcare, renewable energy, food and agri-business, education and technology.

Charges

CrAdLE charges for space. Co-working seats, half dedicated offices and full dedicated offices are charged on a monthly basis. The incubation policy says these rates are indicative and revised case by case. Charges fall due within the first seven days of each month. Access to other facilities of EDII is charged separately under the institute's regulations.

Startups on the programme

CrAdLE publishes two lists. The active start-ups page shows current incubatees by name, sector and product. The graduated start-ups page shows companies that have completed incubation. The sectors on the lists include manufacturing, healthcare, cleantech, edutech, agri tech, fintech and aggregator platforms.

Who runs it

CrAdLE is promoted by EDII, which was established in 1983 as a not-for-profit institute in education, research, training and institution building. CrAdLE is registered as a Section 8 company under the Companies Act, 2013, with its registered office at EDII. EDII has also been appointed the nodal agency for startups under the Gujarat government's startup scheme.

Location

CrAdLE is based at EDII, Bhat, Gandhinagar district, Gujarat 382428. The incubator's office is at the institute's campus in Bhat.