Youth entrepreneurs got a taste this week of what it is like on Dragon's Den – without the negativity.
At Nottawasaga Futures’ Youth Entrepreneur Business Plan Competition’s Pitch Night,judges were not there to tear down or crush the dreams of the four young entrepreneurs, all under 29 years of age, who came out to pitch their business ideas, hoping to win the top prize of $500 and mentoring support.
They were there to encourage, share information, and ask insightful questions about the young entrepreneurs’ plans.
Pitch Night was held at the Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library, in the Zima Room. Judges were Nottawasaga Futures’ Andy Coté, Tracey Evans – former marketing executive now founder of Dreamwinds Equine Assisted Learning, consultant Jonathan Scott, and Jelmer Stegink, investment accelerator with the Town of Innisfil.
Three of the four young entrepreneurs pitching their plans had their start in Summer Company, a provincial program that provides a grant of up to $3,000 to students between the ages of 15 and 29, allowing them to launch their own businesses and be their own boss over the summer break, instead of pursuing traditional summer jobs.
Anneke te Bokkel founded Lessons in the Loft to teach piano to both children and adults out of the loft of her own home. Her plans include expanding her business – which has already “doubled in six months,” she told the judges, and providing lessons tailored to her clientele.
Jasmine Peddie, 18, was looking for support for her Guilt-free Cupcakes. Totally vegan, containing no eggs, milk or butter, Peddie described her cupcakes as “a twist on a classical treat… an affordable indulgence” – and proved it by providing samples to the judges and audience.
Currently “Angus and Essa’s only vegan cupcake business,” Peddie said her plans include expansion into Stayner, Collingwood, Creemore and Innisfil, and an increase in scale, from her current 1,000 cupcakes a year.
Max Sallows, also a graduate of Summer Company, started a firewood and kindling business, offering bundles of cut, split and well-dried wood to campers and cottagers that pass by his family home on County Road 56.
At the moment, he told judges, he is limited in sales to a maximum of eight wood bundles a day because his business operates on an honour system – although he was recently contacted by a gas station owner, who wanted 1,000 of the wood bundles.
“Sadly, I had to turn him down because I didn’t have 1,000 bundles,” Sallows said. Winning the competition would help him provide better signage and advertising, a more secure sales system, new safety equipment, and expand.
Cole Kirschner, a student at McMaster University, was the fourth entrepreneur, there to pitch Age Rate – a new biotech start-up that will offer clients a way to determine their biological age, as opposed to chronological age.
Using the research of Dr. Guillaume Paré, the company will provide an “accurate and affordable” lab test, using a mouth swab to look for genetic markers that indicate biological age – including heart health – providing a way to check the impact of fitness regimens and diet on health, “without breaking the bank.”
The start-up, he said, is looking at partnerships with nutrition companies, naturopathic doctors, personal trainers and gyms, when it launches on June 1.
“In future, getting your age rate checked will be as common as getting your heart rate checked,” Kirschner said. “Your age is more than just a number.”
The judges listened, questioned, provided advice, and scored each presentation – but the results won’t be announced until May 6, at the South Simcoe Business Excellence Awards being held in Innisfil at the Lakeshore Branch of the Innisfil ideaLAB & Library.
“This is the future of entrepreneurship in South Simcoe, so I think we’re in good shape,” said Nottawasaga Futures CEO Colleen Gouldson. “This is how we nurture new business.”
“A lot of people are trying to start a business by themselves, but we have this entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Stegink, after the pitches were done. An “ecosystem” that includes Nottawasaga Futures, economic development offices, and business mentoring networks.
New and young entrepreneurs need “to know it’s there, and tap into it,” Stegink said, adding that “it’s navigating that ecosystem to make it easier for entrepreneurs to find us” that is one of the goals of the Nottawasaga Futures Youth Entrepreneur Business Plan competition.
