‘Startup Weekend changed my life’: 3-day competition returns with potential $150K investment prize
March 29, 2024 | Taylor Wilmore
COLUMBIA, Missouri — Organizers of Missouri Startup Weekend — a team-based competition that takes a glimmer of a startup idea to a fleshed-out business in three days — are upping the ante in an attempt to give Show-Me State entrepreneurs a platform to spark success.
Sarah Hill, Healium, and Jabbok Schlacks, EquipmentShare, judge 2023 Missouri Startup Weekend pitches; photo courtesy of Missouri Startup Weekend
“Aspiring founders can find people who can help them build out their ideas over the weekend, with the goal of actually launching a company,” said Brett Calhoun, co-chair of Missouri Startup Weekend and general partner at Redbud VC, which organizes and hosts the event. “There’s no other event in Missouri that has that effect on entrepreneurship right now.”
Set for April 5-7 at EquipmentShare headquarters in Columbia, participants are expected to pitch new startup ideas and form teams around the top picks. Throughout the weekend they will develop their concepts through team activities. On Sunday, teams race to the finish with a final pitch for a chance to win $15,000 in non-dilutive funding.
Click here to register for Missouri Startup Weekend.
“Missouri Startup Weekend really helps educate them further on how to build a company, getting them in touch with the right people, resources, and capital,” said Calhoun. “So, if you actually want to build a business, putting all your effort in the event and winning it is a pretty substantial thing.”
Click here to check out the schedule for the April Missouri Startup Weekend event.
Early-stage wins
The best pitch winner also will receive potential investment up to $150,000 from Redbud VC, six months of office space, legal entity formation by Transitions Law Group, and branding support from Heist Collective.
“The judging criteria is a mix of showing all the work that you’ve done over the weekend in terms of what you built, have you talked to customers, did you actually get some sales, and how is your storytelling ability?” said Calhoun.
Chrystal Graves, Liquid Hair Institute, pitches during the 2023 Missouri Startup Weekend competition; photo courtesy of Missouri Startup Weekend
A college student from Mizzou who previously joined in Missouri Startup Weekend raised $1 million for the resulting startup. Chrystal Graves, the 2023 weekend winner launched her own tech business. Organizers want to continue the ripple effect of success for entrepreneurs just getting started.
“Startup Weekend changed my life,” said Chrystal Graves, founder and CEO of Liquid Hair Institute, an online community providing training for salon owners. “It showed me what was possible and helped me build a strong foundation and community to create and scale my tech company.”
Missouri Startup Weekend at EquipmentShare headquarters in Columbia in 2023; photo courtesy of Missouri Startup Weekend
Mentors on deck
The Missouri Startup Weekend team doesn’t want anyone to feel unqualified for the competition, acknowledging that this event is a stepping stone for young entrepreneurs, with a component of collaboration to ease any fears they might have about starting their own business and pitching.
“Startup weekend has the potential to be the first step in a transformational journey for an entrepreneur,” said Willy Schlacks, co-founder of EquipmentShare and Missouri Startup Weekend mentor. “I’m delighted to help, alongside so many others.”
Participants new to the startup world have the opportunity to take advantage of the expertise of qualified mentors to give them guidance and advice on their business concepts, and to form connections for future support.
“It’s the long-term network effect,” said Saskia Cairnes, founder of Heist Collective. “These mentors have genuine connections that they can hook up to some of our young entrepreneurs.”
“It’s almost a scouting call to a lot of them who are at the other end of their career, and they’re ready now to give back to that next generation,” she added.
Featured Business
Taylor Wilmore
Taylor Wilmore, hailing from Lee’s Summit, is a dedicated reporter and a recent graduate of the University of Missouri, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Journalism. Taylor channels her deep-seated passion for writing and storytelling to create compelling narratives that shed light on the diverse residents of Kansas City.
Prior to her role at Startland News, Taylor made valuable contributions as a reporter for the Columbia Missourian newspaper, where she covered a wide range of community news and higher education stories.
2024 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
LaunchKC awards $300K: Six new startups enter the winners’ circle with KC investments
Editor’s note: Startland News’ coverage of Global Entrepreneurship Week-Kansas City is made possible by the support of Husch Blackwell. Emerging entrepreneurs don’t need Silicon Valley to launch or scale their startups, said Holly Andra Small, leader of one of six companies announced Tuesday as $50,000 winners in LaunchKC’s grants competition. “We were so excited,” said…
Digital Health KC earns $2M federal grant, doubled by matching funds from Kauffman Foundation
Three weeks after Kansas City’s designation as a U.S. “Tech Hub,” the region has earned “tremendous funding to jumpstart KC’s digital health cluster,” said Maria Meyers, informally announcing a $2 million federal grant — matched by an award from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The Build to Scale grant was awarded to the University of…
Pitch competition at GEW Topeka puts $38K on the line for women, entrepreneurs of color
Startland News’ Startup Road Trip series explores innovative and uncommon ideas finding success in rural America and Midwestern startup hubs outside the Kansas City metro. TOPEKA — Building an equitable business community in Shawnee County is critical to economic development in and around the state’s capital city, said Glenda Washington. A pitch competition slated for…
KC lawmakers backing legislation to boost re-entry for veterans becoming entrepreneurs
Veterans who return to the workforce as entrepreneurs face unique challenges when exiting full-time military life, said Brian Newton. A bipartisan push by two members of Kansas City’s delegation to the U.S. House could ease the transition for veterans-turned-small business owners. “My father was a career Marine and I served for a decade myself, with…