Tampa moves up in Inc.’s annual Surge Cities List
December 12, 2019
For the second consecutive year, Tampa joins the annual list of the 50 best places in America for starting a business, lands in the top 20
Tampa, Fla., December 12, 2019 – Inc. today announced its second annual Surge Cities list, a guide to the best 50 cities in America for starting a business. For the second consecutive year, Tampa made the list. This year, Tampa ranked #20, climbing four spots from last year’s inaugural ranking.
Inc.’s Surge Cities partner, innovation policy firm Startup Genome, used public data as well as insights from the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in America to compile the city rankings. Startup Genome developed its scoring system based on three traits that determine a surge city: growth, opportunity, and innovation.
“Inc. has long believed in the alchemy of entrepreneurial innovation and community,” Inc. acting editor-in-chief Jon Fine said in a statement. “We’re excited to see, for the second year in a row, how well some smaller cities are competing with—indeed, even besting—the likes of San Francisco, New York, and Boston.”
In addition to the overall No. 20 ranking, Tampa ranked 14th for population growth, 12th for net business creation and 30th for early-stage funding deals.
“It’s very exciting to see that Tampa has moved into the top 20 this year, but I’m not surprised,” said Craig Richard, President and CEO of the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council. “Tampa has a strong tech talent pool, collaborative business environment and dedicated organizations and individuals passionate about growing and supporting our startup ecosystem. Tampa is on the rise in the tech industry and the future is very bright for local tech companies.”
To see the complete list go to: inc.com/surge-cities
Introduced in 2018, the Surge Cities list quickly established itself as one of Inc.’s most anticipated franchises for early-stage business owners. This year’s package includes examples of thriving young companies in cities of all sizes across the U.S. in addition to the backstories of several founders’ journeys to success.
Inc.’s Surge Cities issue (Winter 2019) is available online at inc.com/surge-cities and on newsstands beginning December 12. Join the Surge Cities conversation using #IncSurgeCities.
ABOUT INC.
Inc. is the world’s leading multimedia brand dedicated to the most dynamic players in business: entrepreneurs. Inc.’s award-winning work reaches more than 50 million people across a variety of channels, including print, digital, video, podcasts, newsletters, and social media. Its proprietary Inc. 5000 list, which Inc. has produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion on this prestigious list gives the founders of top businesses the opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com.
ABOUT STARTUP GENOME
With more than 100 clients across five continents in 38 countries to date, Startup Genome is the top research and policy advisory organization for governments committed to accelerating the success of their startup ecosystem. Read more at startupgenome.com.
