BASE 2.0 is a hands-on, in-person, 10-week program designed to help Estes Valley entrepreneurs create stronger, more sustainable businesses.

The BASE Program is a hands-on, in-person series of workshops, available for any business who has an economic impact on the Estes Valley. The program consists of eleven half-day workshops focused on improving and growing the participants’ business.

This is a “theory light – application heavy” program designed with three key objectives:

• To provide tools and techniques for improving the participant’s company by aligning their business model with the realities of a changing business environment. These tools and techniques will be applied either in the class session or as “homework” to be finished before the next session.

• To build a cohort that can help one another during and after the program.

• To help each leader improve their ability to “intercept the future” of business in Estes Valley.

The 2005/2026 program will be facilitated by Kevin Benes, a graduate of the original BASE program. Kevin brings a practical, entrepreneurial, and Estes-focused approach to BASE 2.0. His goal is to help local businesses set clear goals, build meaningful relationships, and tackle the unique challenges of running a business in a seasonal mountain town.

BASE 2.0 is a 10-session commitment. Each session begins with a morning Community Coffee Roundtable followed by a strategic working period and guest presentations. The afternoon portion of each session includes working time to build Operating Plan components, work through issues, run thought experiments as a group, and discuss best practices and learnings. Each week, participants will deliver 5-minute presentations aligned to the operating plan.

Over the 10-sessions, participants will deep-dive into topics including: Focus, Tools & Time; Mission, Vision & Exit strategy; Goals, Deadlines & Milestones; Core Activities & Key People; Financial Foundations; Marketing that Matters; Local Ecosystem & Strategic Connections; Finance II – Forecasting & Capital Planning; and Strategy & Growth Planning. The last session will pull all of this together to finalize an Operating Plan and Pitch Presentation, held in May.

 

Please note:

To participate in BASE 2.0, you must have a basic understanding of key accounting terms (e.g., revenue, expenses, profit/loss, balance sheet, cash flow) and be able to provide your business’s financial records.

If you need extra support in this area, we have you covered! BASE 2.0 is offering a basics in Business Financials at the end of 2025 to help you meet this requirement for the full BASE program.