Six local community banks will sponsor a live elevator pitch competition at the fourteenth annual Awards Banquet for the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation's Collegiate Entrepreneurship Initiative. Representatives from each bank will also serve as judges at the annual event planned for April 26th at the Log Cabin in Holyoke, MA. The banks are: Berkshire Bank, Country Bank for Savings, KeyBank, PeoplesBank, United Bank and Westfield Bank.
An elevator pitch is an overview of an idea for a new business. The name reflects the fact that an elevator pitch can be delivered in the time span of an elevator ride (students have 90 seconds to pitch). The term is used when an entrepreneur pitches an idea to a venture capitalist to receive funding. The Grinspoon event will feature a student representative from each of the participating local colleges: American International College, Bay Path College, Elms College, Greenfield Community College, Hampshire College, Holyoke Community College, Mt. Holyoke College, Smith College, Springfield College, Springfield Technical Community College, University of Massachusetts, Western New England University and Westfield State University.
The judges will pick the top three students who will receive cash awards with the winner receiving $1000.00. The Live Elevator Pitch competition is always one of the highlights of the evening. Other features of the Awards Banquet include: business exhibits featuring 86 students (representing 62 unique businesses and business concepts) each of whom has won a Grinspoon Entrepreneurial Spirit Award; keynote speaker Gayle Rud Smith, President of Middlebridge Marketing and an alum of Holyoke Community College; and the Grinspoon, Garvey & Young Alumni Award winner - Phil Scarfi, founder of Pioneer Mobile Applications.
The Entrepreneurship Initiative is one of several initiatives supported by the philanthropy of Longmeadow, MA resident and businessman, Harold Grinspoon. For more information about Harold Grinspoon Foundation initiatives, visit www.hgf.org.
Schedule for the Evening:
5:00-6:20 - Business Exhibits by Grinspoon Entrepreneurial Spirit Award Winners
6:45- 7:15 - Live Elevator Pitch Contest
7:45 - Keynote Speaker, Gayle Rud Smith, President of Middlebridge Marketing
8:20 Awards Ceremony, Announcement of Best Exhibitors, Announcement of Live Elevator Pitch Competition winners