Startup veteran to lead business incubator

ST. PETERSBURG — Entrepreneur, executive and business mentor Steve Parker has been named a director at the Technology and Entrepreneurship Center (TEC) Garage, an incubator and co-working entrepreneurial center operated by the Tampa Bay Innovation Center.

According to a press release, Parker — whose 36-year career has focused primarily on startups — will provide business assistance to clients, recruit and coordinate a resource network and link clients to funding opportunities, among other tasks.

“We are so pleased to have Steve join TEC Garage to share his experience starting and running successful businesses,” states Tonya Elmore, president and CEO of the Tampa Bay Innovation Center, in the release. “His experience as an entrepreneur and mentor makes him an ideal person to guide our clients.”

According to the release, Parker, as president of his last two Tampa-based companies, created jobs and award-winning operations in the power supply and luminaire lighting markets. He has spent the bulk of his career in the high-tech instrumentation and lighting industry and is a U.S. Coast Guard licensed captain.