Announcement of YBI honor live-streamed around the world

YOUNGSTOWN

World-class and Youngstown. The two easily belong together, said James Cossler, Youngstown Business Incubator’s chief executive officer, after a No. 1 world ranking was bestowed upon the facility Tuesday.

Last year, YBI was ranked 11th.

The announcement came Tuesday at a global news conference attended by officials from University Business Incubator Index, based in Stockholm. Ali Amin and Dhruv Bhatli, founders of UBI Index, traveled to Youngstown from Stockholm to make the announcement, which was streamed live around the world. YBI was tops in the university-associated business incubators category.

“Youngstown does really well on a number of indicators,” Bhatli said.

UBI Index is an organization that analyzes the performance of business incubators around the world. It helps business incubators become more efficient and competitive through a comprehensive benchmark where more than 300 incubators in more than 60 countries participate.

YBI was ranked high for its economic impact such as job creation from its client startups, along with the high sales revenue of those clients.

YBI also was lauded for having a high proportion of clients who moved on from the incubator and continue to survive and grow.

“We’re ranked No. 1 and very thrilled to be here,” said Barb Ewing, YBI’s chief operating officer.

YBI is a local business incubator that started in 1995. YBI companies employ more than 500 individuals and have produced sales revenues beyond $54 million.

Read more about this coveted honor in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.