Four finalists have been selected for a shot at $100,000 in a business pitch competition in November as part of Baton Rouge Entrepreneurship Week, an annual startup business conference known as BREW.
The finalists are Baton Rouge-based companies Block Lawncare, which connects homeowners with employees for landscaping services, and digital currency startup Moxey; New Orleans-based accounting blockchain startup Gilded; and Chattanooga, Tennessee-based Pass it Down Inc., which builds software for museums to have virtual storytelling timelines. The out-of-state company would be required to relocate its headquarters to Louisiana.
More than 40 startups applied for the competition, the first round of which was narrowed to 11 semi-finalists by a panel of judges starting with financial history and experience of the company executives. The semi-finalists pitched to investors on Thursday during a closed-door session at the Louisiana Technology Park organized by Nexus LA.
Entrepreneurs will hone their business plans before the final pitch on Nov. 15, which is open to the public. Each finalist will receive six hours of financial consulting from LaPorte CPAs and Advisors in addition to six hours of legal consulting from Stone Pigman law firm to prepare.
Eligible businesses had less than $250,000 in annual revenue and have raised less than $250,000 from investors, but that doesn't include friends and family support. Startups needed to have a strong management team and a unique product in a potentially high-growth business.
Information is at https://www.celebratebrew.com/highstakes-pitch.
