Startups in BC have until tonight at 11 p.m. PST to apply for the BCIC-New Ventures Competition.
Not-for-profit New Ventures BC runs the competition, now in its 17th year. Early-stage BC tech companies can win over $300,000 in cash and prizes to help them scale-up in their trajectory.
Startups will go through four rounds of elimination, and work through challenges such as a feasibility test, condensed venture plan, and a pitch to a panel of jurors. The startups are also encouraged to attend business seminars and networking events throughout the competition. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on September 25.
“Our Top 25 ventures have a drastically improved success rate,” said New Ventures BC program director, Angie Schick. “After going through the competition process, we’ve found that 79 percent of our top ventures were still operational or were acquired five years later, which is well above industry estimates of 50 percent or less. We believe that the competition’s proven formula of business education, supportive mentorship, and feedback from our network has been instrumental in this process.”
The competition is the biggest of its kind in Canada, and puts winners onto the radar of angel investors as businesses to watch. Microdermics, which offers a painless alternative to needles, won the competition last year and recently closed a $1 million seed round.