Who suggests business-pitch competitions are only for developed-ups? Maine Undertaking Fund is launching the initially once-a-year Maine Startup Problem this slide to encourage entrepreneurial contemplating for innovators of all ages.
The competitors will be held across four tiers: kindergarten as a result of eighth grade high school collegiate and open up, for all grown ups.
Organization ideas submitted will be judged by a panel of Maine investors and business people, with top prizes awarded in every single category to aid entrepreneurs take their concepts to the up coming degree.
The open-category winner will also have the chance to pitch the notion to the Maine Enterprise Fund board for additional financial commitment, and to the general public at an event in late October.
Courtesy/Maine Undertaking Fund
The Maine Startup Problem, whose symbol is proven here, is a new once-a-year business-plan competitiveness remaining launched by the Maine Venture Fund.
“We are extremely thrilled about the likely for this opposition to spark creative entrepreneurial wondering in Maine, and we hope that some of these tips will sooner or later translate to actual business enterprise ventures and make wider impact in the state,” Joe Powers, handling director of the Maine Venture Fund, explained to Mainebiz.
Questioned what will established Maine Startup Obstacle aside from conventional pitch contests, he cited two variables.
Initial, winners will be preferred primarily based on their published submissions in advance of the culminating occasion in October, so stage techniques are not a prerequisite.
“Next, there are four age tiers, which will allow us to consist of little ones as early as kindergarten, which is a extended-expression financial investment in the strategies and aspirations of the subsequent technology,” he claimed.
Nina Scheepers, financial investment manager at the Maine Undertaking Fund, explained that organizers are encouraging individuals with even the earliest-stage suggestions to utilize.
She mentioned that when it’s really hard to predict how quite a few purposes will come in, the hope is to entice submissions in just about every tier.
“Business owners do not have to have integrated the company or expended plenty of time on the notion nevertheless,” she added.
Contest organizers will begin accepting applications on Sept. 1, and first-time business planners can uncover templates and educational materials on the contest website. Lesson programs will also be readily available for educators who want to integrate the contest into the course curriculum.
Programs are due by Sept. 30, and a showcase function is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 26, at Northeastern University’s Roux institute in Portland. The latest prepare is to keep the event in man or woman, unless of course that modifications owing to pandemic limits.
