Join The Club

Want to join a skyrocketing group of entrepreneurs? Check out the Club E Network, a social networking site and broadband channel that connects entrepreneurs of all ages. With a free membership, entrepreneurs enjoy peer-to-peer support and expert advice as well as access to capital and introductions to successful business owners. The online aspect mirrors the best social networking sites, but there are also real-life chapters that throw real-world get-togethers for locals. The first chapters launched in Arizona: Gilbert, Glendale, Phoenix, Prescott, Scottsdale, Tempe and Tucson. Today, chapters can be found in Austin, Texas; Denver; and Orange County, California, with plans to open additional chapters nationwide. "This is going to be something really special," says co-founder and serial entrepreneur Corey Kossack, author of eBay Millionaire or Bust.

Chance Carpenter, founder of Essential Event Technologies, a digital media production company in Scottsdale, is one entrepreneur who has benefited from the Club E Network. Since starting the business in 2005, Carpenter has built annual sales to approximately $450,000 in part through links he made through the group. "The connections I've made from Club E Network have been really phenomenal," says Carpenter, 47. "They've led to direct revenue in my business. Club E is really about entrepreneurs helping each other."

Club E Network also offers online educational video programming, where members can learn from famed entrepreneurs including Jeff Bezos and Entrepreneur columnist Guy Kawasaki. And if you need the support of an incubator, check out the recently launched eFactory, a development and incubation center for startups. The first is located in Gilbert, Arizona; check out clubefactory.com for more information.