The three finalists have been selected for the St@rt-Up Challenge 2000 e-Business Plan Competition, sponsored by Prince Edward Island Business Development and local area businesses.
The three finalists and their team members include: Ronnie Gillis and Steven Gaudet for their submission to create an online business-to-business trading portal; Jessica Simmonds and Graeme MacLaine for their submission to create an online information destination dedicated to the makeup and beauty industry; and Christian Corrigan for his submission to provide an online box office service enabling consumers to purchase tickets to PEI entertainment venues.
During IT Week, the three finalists will be required to present their fully developed business ideas to the judging panel during a live pitch session. At this event, the entrepreneurs will have ten minutes to sell their ideas as well as field questions from the judges. All three finalists will receive great prizes, to be awarded during the IT Week Gala Dinner on May 9th, 2000.
In Phase 1 of the competition, organizers requested Islanders with creative ideas for business start-ups within the information technology sector to submit summaries of their new ventures. The three finalists were chosen from these submissions by a panel of professionals from the PEI IT industry. These finalists will now be teamed with mentors from the IT community to assist them in developing more comprehensive business plans.
The Start-up Challenge competition is being held in conjunction with IT Week, scheduled from May 4 - 14, 2000. IT Week is an initiative of the Information Technologies Association of PEI.
Funding for St@rt-Up Challenge 2000 is provided by Prince Edward Island Business Development (PEIBD), the lead business development corporation for the province. Through its New Business Development Division, PEIBD assists knowledge-based companies in developing and advancing sound business development initiatives. Additional support is provided by event sponsors, including: Island Tel, Stewart McKelvey Stirling Scales, Island Services Network, Baker Consulting, IBM, MicroAge and PriceWaterhouse Coopers.
For more information, including the complete prize package, participating sponsors and the judging panel, visit the official Start-up Challenge website at www.peistartupchallenge.com.