On June 5, nine SEED SPOT ventures pitched their business goals to a packed audience at the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Phoenix with the hopes of winning cash prizes, office space, and other goodies to help continue building their socially focused companies.
SEED SPOT is a Phoenix-based non-profit incubator dedicated to helping companies who are finding ways to make a positive impact in the world. Each cohort goes through an intensive 16-week program that provides them office space, mentorship and networking opportunities to refine and build on their visions to turn it into a profitable business.
The crowd of entrepreneurs, mentors, past SEED SPOT ventures, friends and family kicked off the night by chanting “Show us your dreams!” right before the entrepreneurs took the stage to present their three-minute pitches.
The SEED SPOT team was also on hand to support the ventures’ final night of the program, including Co-founder and CEO Courtney Klein.
“The third cohort has worked incredibly hard over the past four months to validate their business model,” she said. “Demo Day is the public showcase of their progress and a call to action for the community to step up to help them advance their venture even further.”
Klein said that the company remains committed to building a best-in-class program to support social entrepreneurs and hopes Phoenix will serve as a model for the rest of the country because it builds a strong alliance around entrepreneurs who are tackling significant societal problems.
“It takes a community to bring ideas to life and tonight, we hope the community rallies,” Klein said.
As the night came to a close, audience members texted their votes to choose their favorite pitch for the winner of a $5,000 prize. Two other ventures were chosen for a $25,000 prize from the Pakis Center for Business Philanthropy.
Keep reading for the night’s big winners:
Skate After School: Aims to provide unique skateboarding programming to students. Using volunteers and donations, the program helps kids build skateboards and instructs on how to ride them as a way to engage for after-school activity. WINNER: $15,000 from Pakis Center for Business Philanthropy.
Language Leaf: Vocabulary-building app designed for visual learners that utilizes artistic images to help people learn foreign languages through engaging, creative imagination.
Epifinder: Diagnostic engine that consolidates scattered medical information with the goal of helping medical professionals reach a diagnosis more quickly for those with complex diseases. WINNER: Six months of free office space at SEED SPOT.
Aqwastream: Water bottle refilling stations that incorporate a unique way for marketers to reach college students. Aqwastream sells digital ads through the filling station’s embedded screen, while at the same time using a built in video sensor to capture Anonymous Video Analytics (AVA), recording information like gender, time of day and how long the person spent at the station.
Table Top: Online platform that aims to fill empty restaurant seats by encouraging people to dine out. Restaurants offer a minimum of 10 percent of each sale to a charity of the diner’s choice. WINNER: $5,000 audience-voted prize.
Flip’N’Fit: Competitive fitness network that offers disconnected boutique classes with a 25-35% discount. The program allows users to take advantage of several different fitness classes across 30 locations, with several other advantages when compared to a normal membership.
Gave In America: A Craigslist meets Goodwill online selling platform. Users donate their unwanted goods for tax deductions and Gave in America will pick up the donations and place the item on their online catalogue where others can purchase them. Money exchanged goes to charities. WINNER: $10,000 from Pakis Center for Business Philanthropy.
Max on Snax: Helps parents by using a character recognition method for toddlers to teach them healthier eating habits. The Max on Snax brand extends to mobile applications and Max Packs, monthly boxes delivered to homes filled with recipes, crafts and games to reinforce and encourage better nutrition.
Agriscaping: A robust online and mobile tool for the DIY gardner. Users can grow their own vegetables hassle-free with the use custom gardening plans to fit their particular geographic location and gardening calendars among many other services. WINNER: $750 roundtrip airfare and conference registration of their choice.
Applications for SEED SPOT’S fourth class are now open here. Deadline to apply is Aug 15.
For more coverage of past SEED SPOT events click here.
