The month of May will be a busy time for local entrepreneurs trying to get a leg up on their competition.
The third annual South Georgian Bay exC!te Business Pitch Competition is gearing up to take place on May 30, with a series of workshops and business planning events taking place throughout the month, culminating in a final showdown that will see South Georgian Bay’s best and brightest business minds compete for cash and mentorship.
“They get feedback, input and contacts. It’s a soft lead into lots of information and knowledge that they may have not otherwise had access to,” said Tim Newton, manager of the South Georgian Bay Business Enterprise Centre.
Newton is hoping both new entrepreneurs and ones who have been in business for years will both take part in the competition.
“If it’s an established business, what we’re hoping for is they’re trying in some way to scale up, expand or diversify the business,” he clarifies.
Two workshops will be taking place in May that may be of interest to business owners both competing and just curious.
The Business Model Canvas and Value Proposition Workshop is taking place May 9 at South Georgian Bay Campus of Georgian College. The three-hour workshop is open to the public. Attendees will work through questions about their business ideas with mentors to better develop their business models.
The MaRS Pitch Prep Workshop is mandatory for all business owners participating in the pitch competition, but is also open to the public. The six-hour workshop is taking place at the Collingwood Public Library on May 16.
“They will take any business from the community and help you to understand the dynamics, content and recipe for creating a pitch deck,” said Newton.
All the events are free to attend.
Newton says the purse for this year’s event is yet to be determined due to budget cuts and some sponsors pulling out, however there will be a cash award, as well as the priceless rewards of mentorship and bragging rights.
“This is a great example of community collaboration to make something greater happen than the value of any one of us being able to do it on our own,” said Newton. “It’s a community effort.”
Past winners include Kai Hulshof of Jentu Technologies Inc., Jessica Wilkins of Naked Designs Custom Furniture and Sven Hansen of Always Bearded Lifestyle.
For more information on the Business Model Canvas and Value Proposition Workshop, click here.
For more information on the Pitch Prep Workshop, click here.
To fill out the application to participate in the exC!te Business Pitch Competition, click here.
Important dates
- May 9 – Business Model Canvas and Value Proposition Workshop
- May 10 – Application for pitch competition due
- May 15 – Deadline to register for Pitch Prep Workshop (mandatory attendance for anyone competing in the pitch competition)
- May 16 – Pitch Prep Workshop
- May 18 – Finalists for pitch competition notified
- May 30 – exC!te Business Pitch Competition finals
