Courtesy/Maine Venture Fund
The Maine Startup Challenge, whose logo is shown here, is a new annual business-plan competition being launched by the Maine Venture Fund.
August 30, 2022
Maine Venture Fund launches business-plan contest
File Photo / Tim Greenway
Joe Powers, managing director of the Maine Venture Fund, said the upcoming Maine Startup Challenge aims to spark entrepreneurial creative thinking.
Who says business-pitch competitions are only for grown-ups? Maine Venture Fund is launching the first annual Maine Startup Challenge this fall to encourage entrepreneurial thinking for innovators of all ages.
The competition will be held across four tiers: kindergarten through eighth grade; high school; collegiate; and open, for all adults.
Business plans submitted will be judged by a panel of Maine investors and entrepreneurs, with top prizes awarded in each category to help entrepreneurs take their ideas to the next level.
The open-category winner will also have the opportunity to pitch the idea to the Maine Venture Fund board for additional investment, and to the public at an event in late October.
"We're very excited about the potential for this competition to spark creative entrepreneurial thinking in Maine, and we hope that some of these ideas will eventually translate to real business ventures and create wider impact in the state," Joe Powers, managing director of the Maine Venture Fund, told Mainebiz.
Asked what will set Maine Startup Challenge apart from traditional pitch contests, he cited two factors.
First, winners will be chosen based on their written submissions ahead of the culminating event in October, so stage skills are not a requirement.
"Second, there are four age tiers, which allows us to include kids as early as kindergarten, which is a longer-term investment in the ideas and aspirations of the next generation," he said.
Nina Scheepers, investment manager at the Maine Venture Fund, said that organizers are encouraging those with even the earliest-stage ideas to apply.
She said that while it's hard to predict how many applications will come in, the hope is to attract submissions in every tier.
"Entrepreneurs do not have to have incorporated the business or spent lots of time on the idea yet," she added.
Contest organizers will start accepting applications on Sept. 1, and first-time business planners can find templates and educational materials on the contest website. Lesson plans will also be available for educators who want to incorporate the contest into the class curriculum.
Applications are due by Sept. 30, and a showcase event is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 26, at Northeastern University's Roux institute in Portland. The current plan is to hold the event in person, unless that changes due to pandemic restrictions.
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