The home of the Saint Louis Cardinals, Anheuser Busch, The Arch and
Nelly has a long history of success. Despite the Nelly vs. Chingy Beef, Saint Louis is still here and has initiatives helping entrepreneurs start businesses.
Historically speaking, the Gateway to the West was the fastest growing cities west of the Mississippi in the 1800s. At one time it was one of the top 10 cities in the United States and now its trying to get back to its former glory. Saint Louis traditionally has been a manufacturing city and an agricultural city with companies such as Monsanto. With the growth in technology the city has seen more and more technology companies popup like Shoes.com, Answers.com, Juggle.com, Savvis, Express Scripts and World Wide Technology.
There have been many other great companies that have been founded in Saint Louis such as Anheuser-Busch, Paneara, Enterprise Rent a Car, Build a Bear, and what is now Boeing--McDonnell Douglas.
Several leading universities are located in this historic city and because of this Saint Louis has access to an array of talent. The lower cost of living, midwest work ethic and the the lower cost of doing business makes it a perfect place for startups and businesses.
Saint Louis currently has some groups that are investing in startups. Groups such as StartLouis meet up regularly and downtownTREX provides multiple resources as well
as some options for funding. The City has been the launching pad for ambitious ventures since Lewis and Clark utilized the resources of Saint Louis to begin their historic journey, entrepreneurs can do the same today.