Stephen Coles, a longtime resident of Federal Way, recently unveiled his new company, StartUp Northwest.

The company is intended as a “social network and online resource that encourages greater interaction and information sharing among Washington state entrepreneurs.”

“The Seattle start-up scene is vibrant,” said Coles in a news release. “But, if your business is outside of Seattle or the Eastside, is not technology-related, or you are unable to regularly attend any of the numerous local events for entrepreneurs, you probably will end up feeling disconnected from the community.”

StartUp Northwest’s intent is to bring businesses from all over the state together, not just in the Puget Sound.

Outside of the social networking aspect of StartUp Northwest, another aspect of the site is the ability for entrepreneurs to share self-generated articles, articles from other sources, post events, and participate in online groups and forums. Coles feels this is an excellent aspect of his new website because it means knowledge from everyone is able to be shared and disseminated.

“It’s much more valuable to learn from your peers rather than information provided by a single source,” he said. “Through crowdsourcing, one can tap the collective knowledge and experience of the community.”

Another bonus for local entrepreneurs trying to get things off the ground and running are a number of free services provided through StartUp Northwest, chief among them the ability to freely post job openings at their new companies.

“To a startup, every dollar counts,” said Coles, who is also trying to get another company, BaronBuilder.com off the ground.

Learn more

StartUp Northwest can be found online at www.startupnw.com or on Twitter: @StartUpNW.