Langlade County Entrepreneur Wins HATCH Business Pitch
HATCH is a pitch competition for new business ideas. Who gets to pitch their ideas? Anyone with a good idea for a new business!
The rules are simple. We don’t restrict the type of idea you can submit, but it’s important to remember this is about moving an idea forward. At HATCH presenters have five minutes to pitch in front of judges and a live audience for the chance to win a $2,000 award and be selected as a semi finalist for the HATCH finale. The audience has a chance to evaluate and vote for their favorite idea alongside the judges. Beyond the prize money, this is your chance to get the business idea that has been rattling around in your head, out in front of a supportive community. HATCH events are fun, highly social and inspirational.
The HATCH finale will include all 4 semi-finalists and they will pitch for the grand prize of $10,000 for the most articulated and furthered business idea. There may also be one or two wildcard slots for presenters that have furthered their business idea.
A Langlade County resident made his business pitch for Tapped in Marshfield on Wednesday, July 19, 2017, at a retro-themed classic garage (former home to Hudson’s Classic Grill). Tapped competed against four other business pitches Wednesday night. The winning pitch, Tapped, took home $2,000 to advance their business idea.
Partnerships across the state made this fourth HATCH event a success, bringing together the Marshfield’s Young Professionals, Brightstar Wisconsin Foundation, NEWaukee, and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation.
Local organizers chose to highlight the 12 N Central Ave Building, for the event. This garage themed building provided the perfect backdrop for an event focused on perfecting those napkin ideas. The garage saw a sold out crowd of 100+ people. Audience members had the opportunity to vote for their favorite pitches. In addition, a panel of local judges deliberated on the winning pitch. Jurors were: Brenda Dillenburg – Marshfield Campus Dean, Mid-State Technical College; Mark Nelson – President, Microscopy Innovations LLC; Michael Agarwal – CIO, Prevention Genetics; David Meissner – Retired Business Owner; Karen Olson – Business Development Director, Marshfield Area Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Central Wisconsin SCORE Administrator; and Todd Sobotka – Managing Director at BrightStar Wisconsin Foundation.
The winning pitch, Tapped, offers flavor infused, natural maple syrups. Jeremy Solin and his family own a maple farm where they harvest the maple syrup through traditional tapping methods and then infuse the syrup with flavors including- espresso, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, and red pepper. Tapped is being offered as a substitute to simple syrups and plain maple syrups throughout various coffee shops and bars in Wisconsin. Tapped will move on to compete against winning pitches from Wausau, Wisconsin Rapids, and Stevens Point on Thursday, November 9 at the former Hudson’s Classic Grill (12 North Central Avenue, Marshfield, WI 54449) starting at 6pm to see who will win the grand prize of $10,000 for their business idea.
Other pitches included:
HiveCast | Paul Lemley – Crowdsourced live video
HydraCore Vest | Chad Henne – New version of a weighted vest for fitness and orthopedic rehabilitation
Art Studio On The Go | Carolyn Corcoran – “Art Studio On The Go” is a contained mobile unit offering a place to create, no matter where you are
Cheiks | Elizabeth Olson – Underwear with revolutionary sizing
For more information on other HATCH presentations, click here or to read more from Hub City Times, click here. Visit Tapped Facebook page by clicking here.
Source: HATCH – NEWaukee