While enjoying a typical day of surfing and skateboarding by the ocean, Jessie Frietze-Armenta thought, “We have to protect this - these beautiful places that allow us to do the things we love.” Yet the reality is that sports gear itself is made of incredibly unsustainable materials. That’s when Frietze-Armenta came up with the idea of Shred Cycle, an early-stage startup on a mission to reinvigorate the action sports industry with sustainable solutions.

When Frietze-Armenta started Shred Cycle as a passion project and turned it into a classroom assignment, she could not foresee the company's future success and how that could be achieved as a solo, underrepresented, LGBTQ-owned company without support. In response, Frietze-Armenta joined the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator’s (LACI) Founders Business Accelerator program in April 2022 and the Equity Innovation Program in February 2023.

“Compared to other accelerators, LACI has by far provided the most valuable support, resource, and funding that would have otherwise been challenging to access as an underrepresented founder,” Frietze-Armenta shared.

LACI’s startup programs aim to empower founders–particularly underrepresented founders–to develop, deploy, and scale their cleantech solutions in order to help build an inclusive green economy. Through LACI, Frietze-Armenta improved Shred Cycle’s business model and revenue plan while preparing for investment conversations and onboarding potential pilot partners.


EWDD administers and provides financial support to several incubator and accelerator programs in the City of Los Angeles. These programs contribute to the City's innovation landscape by supporting the creation and growth of start-ups. Learn more about our Incubator and Accelerator Programs.