Main Street Skowhegan is accepting applications for its spring Business Lab & Pitch Competition.
The lab is a free, fast-paced, interactive program that features eight classes held over eight weeks, culminating with a pitch contest in which participants compete for $5,000 to start or grow their business.
The program is designed for both aspiring entrepreneurs and current business owners, with weekly classes covering essentials of business strategy, finance and profitability, marketing and sales, business planning, and project implementation, according to a news release from Patric Moore, Main Street Skowhegan’s director of entrepreneurship.
At the end of the program, entrepreneurs will submit a business plan and pitch their ideas to a team of judges for a chance to win the $5,000 grand prize or $1,000 runner up award.
Main Street Skowhegan has hosted three Business Lab & Pitch competitions since the program’s inception. Last fall’s cohort, sponsored by Maine Technology Institute, featured five entrepreneurs, with Lyn Govoni’s nonprofit Lights Up Productions walking away with the $5,000 grand prize, and Bytesum Technologies taking home $1,000 as the runner-up.
Nine entrepreneurs from the last spring’s cohort, sponsored by Skowhegan Savings Bank, competed for $5,000, with Morgan Camp Care winning the prize.
The application deadline is Friday, March 8. The spring cohort will meet weekly from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Wednesdays starting April 10, with the pitch competition scheduled for June 5.
In addition to the spring competition, Main Street Skowhegan will add a youth entrepreneur challenge that will coincide with the June pitch, and a weekend boot camp this fall.
Application information can be found at skowheganentrepreneurship.com.
For more information, contact Moore at [email protected] or 717-348-8449.
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