Lakewood is looking for a few entrepreneurs to join its business community through its third annual
Ideation Challenge. Interested parties submitted business plans for consideration through last week.
"If people qualify we invite them to give a quick elevator pitch,” says Mike Belsito, director of Ideation for
Startup Lakewood and co-founder of
e-Funeral.
Four finalists will give a two-minute elevator pitch in front of an audience and a panel of judges at a Startup U event on August 27. Two winners will be announced at the September Startup U event.
The theme of this year’s challenge is “access,” as in access to resources often out of reach to new entrepreneurs. The winners of the challenge will receive a lunch meeting with Lakewood mayor and entrepreneur Michael Summers; a half hour meeting with investor Christopher Celeste; an elevator pitch session with Belsito,
SociaGram co-founder Ryan O’Donnell and
DecisionDesk co-founder John Knific; a scholarship to a nine-week
Bad Girl Ventures course; and other useful tools to get their businesses started.
While only one of the winners must be a Lakewood resident, the hope is that both winning businesses will set up shop in the city. “We hope that some of these businesses get started in Lakewood, but it’s all about helping people,” says Belsito. “The goal of the competition is to help people take the next step with their ideas for new products or businesses.”
Source: Mike Belsito
Writer: Karin Connelly