On Wednesday, August 12, you'll want to be at Bridgeport Brewpub to see the first ever So you Think You can Pitch competition.
Five companies have been selected to lay it all on the line and see how they fair in getting the imaginary $$$ of investment from the judges and from the audience.
This will be an opportunity for companies to learn from, and be questioned by, experienced entrepreneurs/investors. The winner of the competion will get an automatic berth in the first round of OEN's Seed Oregon PubTalk.
"So you Think you can Pitch" Competing Companies:
Aokala solves problems faced by businesses wanting to sell their products and services with a recurring fee or usage based model. The Aokala team has decades of experience creating and marketing technology products. We are applying our experience to offer a start of the art Internet cloud based subscription and usage billing platform that automates billing for our customers and gives them a foundation upon which to grown their businesses.
Contact: Gregory Kim, CEO; gkim@aokala.com; 503-761-8215
Cassoni Golf’s detachable pull cart enhances the quality of golf by speeding the pace of play. It increases through-put while it decreases wear & tear on the fairways – a win-win for both the golfer and the course owner. With an accessory, it becomes a detachable shopping cart for lifestyle communities where personal golf cars are a mode of transportation.
Contact: Lou Butenschoen, CEO; lbutenschoen@cassonigolf.com; 503-292-4304
Coupor
Facilitate the integration of paper and digital coupons for the consumer, retailer and manufacturer. Creating a standard for redemption and settlement that allows the retailer and manufacturer to build efficiencies while receiving real-time information about their consumer's impression, intent and redemption activities.
Contact: Daryl Galant, CEO; d.galant@comcast.net; 503-317-2955
The Green Microgym utilizes cardio equipment that produces electricity that can be returned to the grid in combination with solar power and energy conservation to create "Green" fitness centers. Our first location opened in August, 2008 (Portland). Our mission is to operate fitness centers that create more energy than they use in order to promote healthy people, a healthy planet, and vibrant communities.
Contact: Adam Boesel, President; adam@thegreenmicrogym.com; 503-317-2955
Shishkaboom is a comics publishing company, built on the online crowdsourced model. In other words, we’re like Threadless for comic books. We exist to publish great comics by providing the community (and sales channel) for independent creators to find their audience and comics fans to discover new works.
Contact: Chris King, Chief Creative Officer; chris@shishkabook.com; 503-545-8582
Judges:
Ray King – www.aboutus.org
Ray has worked at four startups and enjoys the technical and business challenges that go along with birthing totally new ideas. In high school he and a friend launched “The Computer Workshop” to train students on the use of Apple II’s and IBM PCs. This company was featured on EyeWitness news and the New York Times. Several years later, while in college at M.I.T, he wrote project management software for his father’s architectural firm. This project turned into a company, Semaphore, Inc. and in 1990 had risen to be rated #1 among all of the competitors in the space (by ARCHITECTURE Magazine). By 2000, the company had over 2,500 clients, 100 employees and was acquired by Deltek.
Cheryl Krane - Fluffco, Inc
Ms. Krane currently is a portfolio advisor to Irving J Levin and his investment vehicle, Fluffco LLC. She has structured and managed equity and debt investments in private companies for Fluffco since 2002. Prior to working with Irving Levin she founded and raised $4.5mm in angel capital for Poppybox Gardens, a start-up gardening retailer. Prior to that she was a consultant to the venture industry and worked as a venture capitalist for ten years at BancBoston Venturues. She also worked in marketing for two high technology companies. She has held numerous board seats and currently sits on the board of Arxx, Pacific Interpreters, Vigilan, Cielo, and Rodin. She received a B.S. / B.A. from Boston University and a M.S. from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Robert Ward – Capybara Ventures
After 14 years as an entrepreneur in Silicon Valley, Bob returned to his native Portland in 2003 to co-found Capybara Ventures. Bob brings to the fund hands-on expertise in the areas of team building, fund raising, research and development, productization, and financial management. Bob continues to maintain deep relationships with the Bay Area business and venture communities.
Bob was founder and CEO of Acclivity Photonics, an optics-based technology company serving the telecommunications sector. Acclivity's line of micro lenses significantly reduce the footprint and cost of fiber optic components. Bob guided the company through two rounds of venture financing, assembled and managed a world-class technical and business team, and continues to chair the board. Bob was also an early contributor at LightPath Technologies (NASDAQ: LPTH), where he served as director of marketing and director of operations.
Bob's involvement in the local business community includes Angel Oregon (chair), the Oregon Forum (chair elect), Portland Angel Network, Oregon Entrepreneurs Network, Portland Venture Group, Venture Northwest, and the Portland State University Science and Industry Advisory Council. Bob and Eric launched the Oregon Angel Fund in 2007 in collaboration with the Oregon Entrepreneurs Network. Bob earned his Masters degree in Engineering Management from Stanford University and holds undergraduate degrees in Economics and Physics from Bowdoin College.
as I told in another article, this kind of contests are very useful and important, however, I wonder if they really work for a TV show, because the special factor that could make it good for TV is the reactions of the jury and their discussions that sometimes are mean with participants, but it's TV and that's the way it works,.