Episode 345 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Laura Teicher, Executive Director at FORGE.

Did you know that there are over 7,000 manufacturers in the state of Massachusetts? I certainly didn’t. My gut is that most entrepreneurs think that they need to go overseas for manufacturing versus leveraging local resources.

And, let’s face it, building a startup is hard but when it is a physical product… it is a whole different ballgame. However... FORGE can help.

Spun out of Greentown Labs, FORGE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that helps startups figure out some of hard stuff through the journey from physical prototype to commercialization. The organization works with startups to help them figure out how to establish and scale manufacturing to sourcing from supply chains and suppliers.

FORGE has supported over 800 startups with an amazing high survival rate. So, you are probably thinking… is this an accelerator… or what’s the cost… maybe they are expecting equity from your company… nope. It’s free and their impact is massive as you’ll hear from this interview with Laura.

In this episode of our podcast, we cover:

* The specialized and collaborative nature of the organizations that support the Boston hardtech startup ecosystem.

* Laura’s professional journey including how volunteering helped open doors for her career.

* All the details about FORGE in terms of how companies can get involved and how they help companies at each step along the way.

* The key benefits to manufacturing locally and some of the hidden costs that can arise from offshore manufacturing.

* The Valleys of Death for building physical products.

* And so much more.