{"id":233095,"date":"2025-07-24T07:30:24","date_gmt":"2025-07-24T11:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=233095"},"modified":"2025-07-24T09:24:44","modified_gmt":"2025-07-24T13:24:44","slug":"veterans-entrepreneurship-program-just-come-and-we-will-change-your-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2025\/07\/veterans-entrepreneurship-program-just-come-and-we-will-change-your-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Veterans\u2019 Entrepreneurship Program: \u2018Just Come and We Will Change Your Life’"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a communications expert who handles emergency medical calls, Michael Brown guides people through some of life\u2019s most frightening and stressful moments.<\/p>\n

And while Brown is versed in handling a crisis, he also recognizes the importance of relaxing, enjoying entertainment, and the value of connecting with friends both old and new.<\/p>\n

He and his wife, Sydney Brown, are the owners of ThirdSpace Arcade Lounge<\/a> on Blake Street in New Haven, a gathering place and community hub for adults, particularly gamers, artists, crafters, musicians and poets.<\/p>\n

ThirdSpace offers live entertainment, including bands and comedy nights; video, board and card games; pool tables, ping-pong, foosball, and an old-school arcade. It also offers a book nook, and a crafting corner for painting and drawing, and an outdoor garden with tomatoes, squash, sunflowers, and morning glories. There is also a party and event-rental space.<\/p>\n

Michael Brown is a combat veteran, and Sydney Brown is a community organizer and has worked with Vision 2034, a city planning project.<\/p>\n

As newer entrepreneurs, the Browns have plenty of questions about how to maximize their success, particularly the party-rental component, which helps pay the mortgage.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always said, \u2018Let\u2019s do it.\u2019 I have a can-do attitude,\u2019\u2019 Brown says. \u201cDo we have apprehension? Every single day! It requires a lot of work, just the two of us. We\u2019re the nuts and bolts of the operation.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Entrepreneurs Interested in Everything from Mobile Bartending to Forensic Accounting<\/strong><\/p>\n

Michael Brown will be participating in the School of Business\u2019 Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans (EBV),<\/a> which begins on Sunday, Aug. 3. This year\u2019s 20-member cohort includes five veterans from Connecticut. Many of the participants are from New England, but the class also includes veterans from Florida and Washington state. The UConn EBV was founded in 2009, and this year it will surpass 300 graduates.<\/p>\n

Nick Martinelli, EBV Program Manager and a U.S. Army veteran, says the EBV program begins with online coursework, followed by a week of in-person teaching on campus led by faculty and industry experts, and then a year of ongoing support and mentorship.<\/p>\n

\"Members
The band Speakeasy in a recent performance at ThirdSpace (contributed photo).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The participants\u2019 businesses, or business proposals, range from a mobile bartending service to forensic accounting to consulting and coaching.<\/p>\n

Through the EBV program, veterans learn to write business plans, raise capital, attract customers, develop a marketing strategy, and create collaborations in their communities. This year\u2019s curriculum will include a new course on artificial intelligence for business, and enhanced courses on marketing strategies and a panel presentation on seeking business loans. Another hallmark of this year is increased mentoring by alumni of the program.<\/p>\n

Veterans attend the EBV at no cost to them and receive a certificate upon completion. This year\u2019s cohort includes representatives from the U.S. Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Army.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe incredible aspect of this program is that everyone we bring in as a guest speaker continues to work with these folks long after the formal program concludes,\u2019\u2019 Martinelli says. \u201cThey believe in our veterans and in our program.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI tell successful applicants, \u2018Just come, and we will change your life,'” Martinelli says.<\/p>\n

The program is under the auspices of the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation<\/a>, which has a tremendous track record of guiding startup businesses to success.<\/p>\n

\u2018Wind Under Your Sails\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brown, 39, served for 3 1\/2 years in the U.S. Army, in the First Infantry, Second Brigade as an artillery specialist, followed by five years in the Army National Guard. A combat veteran, he had two combat deployments, one in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. Brown heard about the EBV program through his uncle, who works at the Veterans\u2019 Administration.<\/p>\n

The Browns began their business several years ago, originally traveling to bars and clubs with their gaming consoles, to help draw customers. Though successful, they were eager to have a permanent business location, and when the Blake Street retail space became available\u2014next door to a pizzeria, no less\u2014they were eager to claim it.<\/p>\n

Sydney Brown says the EBV will offer valuable business insight.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking on our business, we\u2019ve always been learning on the go. We\u2019ll be getting some much-needed guidance about how the business can be run efficiently. Being an entrepreneur, with a brick-and-mortar is a very different ballgame,\u2019\u2019 she says, adding that the couple had always wanted to be entrepreneurs. The rewards are plentiful.<\/p>\n

\"Two
ThirdSpace offers games of all kinds among its many attractions for patrons (contributed photo).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cPeople say, \u2018This is so cool. I\u2019ve been looking for something without loud music and flashing lights,\u2019\u201d she says. \u201cIt allows us to turn down the music, and to talk. We\u2019ve seen reconciliations of friendships that you\u2019re not going to see at Dave & Busters. The reward has come in ways we didn\u2019t imagine.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a great cast of folks who bring their time, talent and come to be safe,\u2019\u2019 Mike Brown says, adding that they do welcome children during family hours on Sundays. \u00a0\u201cWe wanted a place for people 18 and over to relax. We\u2019re a very grounded place. We want people to talk. We want to keep rooted in real-life as much as possible and to take a step back from the digital world for a moment.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Mike Brown says he is eager to start the EBV program.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m excited for EBV and being able to rub shoulders with people who are in the same level of business. I\u2019ve already found some who I would love to collaborate with,\u2019\u2019 he says. \u201cI\u2019m so glad I was selected. To be part of something that betters our business and our path as business owners is inspiring. With EBV, you feel the extra wind under your sails.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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