Bangor startup accelerator inaugurates 2025 cohort with 'heavy focus' on funding, high-growth sectors
File Photo / Tim Greenway
Lisa Liberatore, program manager for the Scratchpad Accelerator, was honored on the Mainebiz Next list in 2019.
With four new business startups in its 2025 cohort, the Bangor-based Scratchpad Accelerator program has made some programming tweaks to help participants level up.
The four-month program, which runs from January through April, has added a focus on agriculture, aquaculture, food technology and value-added food industries, according to Lisa Liberatore, who is the program manager for the accelerator.
“We also have a heavy focus on preparing companies to raise funds,” she told Mainebiz. “Our programming emphasizes helping participants develop the tools, strategies and confidence to approach investors and secure the resources they need for their next stage of growth.”
This year’s group includes Nauti Sisters Oysters Farm, P3RD Earth, Singing Pastures and Watermelon Pie, a cooking community and recipe sharing platform.
Members of Scratchpad’s fifth cohort were selected from seven applicants. Two of the four, Sisters Oyster Farm and P3RD Earth, were founded by past Mainebiz 40 Under 40 honorees Alicia Gaiero (2023) and Ariadne Dimoula (2024).
Kachina Miller, founder and CEO of Watermelon Pie, said she looks forward to working with the Scratchpad team over the next few months.
“Based on their tailored approach to coaching and programming, Scratchpad came highly recommended to us by other entrepreneurs who had previously completed the program,” she told Mainebiz. "Our focus for the next few months will be on leveling up our financial acumen and planning, moving our product forward strategically and expanding our network within the food community in Maine.”
Although there are no paid employees, Miller said she works with a chief technology officer, two full-time contracted developers and a handful of others who are part of the team.
Track record
Scratchpad Accelerator, founded in 2015 to help startups navigate the early stages of development, has helped companies raise more than $5 million in equity and achieve growth at scale.
Liberatore was honored on the Mainebiz Next List in 2019. She is the founder of Lisa's Legit Burritos in Gardiner, which will turn 14 later this month, and the former owner of a co-working space in Bangor sold in 2020.
Now known as the Rize CoWorking & Collaboration Space, it has doubled in size and continues to meet growing demand in the region, according to Liberatore.
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