Tagged: nxtarrow

Correction: We originally referred to one of NxtArrow's incubator clients as "WorkSmart Solutions" in this story, but as founder Michelle Maria Nicholas notes in a comment below, the name of her firm is "WorkSmart Small Business Support, LLC." The Innovation Trail regrets the error.

One trip around the sun ago, NxtArrow launched in Buffalo.

To recap, this for-profit private business incubator offers free rent and other services for any business willing to move to western New York.

While the venture saw some success in its first year, it also experienced some growing pains.

Jobs: Improving slowly but surely

The Buffalo Niagara region added more than 2,000 jobs in the last 12 months. That may seem hearty, but according to the New York Labor Department, that’s just a 0.4 percent rate of growth.

During April, layoffs in the public sector continued. But those were offset by gains in private business.

According to the Buffalo News:

Buffalo has a new business incubator downtown. nxtARROW officially opened its doors this week, with a business model meant to convince out-of-town clients to move to Buffalo.

Already, three have jumped on board. They’ll receive one free year of rent, legal services, marketing help and other support from established Buffalo businesses.

But there’s a catch.