Please here below see an opportunity from SEDA.
Herewith more details on the Seda “Pitch & Perfect” application process.
The success of “Pitch & Perfect” last year, with local competitions at Branch and Incubator level, semi-final competitions at Provincial level, and the national finals at the SABIC 2018 conference, prompted a decision to expand further.
Seda has this year partnered with the SA Innovation Summit, to broaden the access to “Pitch & Perfect” also beyond Seda to all SMEs nationwide. SA Innovation Summit is making this possible through an online application process, assisting STP during the semi-final provincial competitions, and hosting the national final competition at the Summit in Cape Town 11-13 September 2019.
All applications for “Pitch & Perfect” pitching competitions this year are via registration through completing the online entry form available off the below website landing page:
https://innovationsummit.co.za/pitch-and-perfect/
The intention of the information on the SA Innovation Summit website and in the Seda social media posts, and press releases…
“enter online, or alternatively visit the nearest Seda branch or relevant incubator,
register as a client and request to be added to the registry for regional sessions”
…is for those SMEs who are unable or unsure how to get online and to fill in the entry form in order to be added to the online competition registry database; so that they can be afforded the opportunity to get assistance in doing so through a Seda branch or incubator.
Registering as a Seda client is optional, but can be of great assistance, since accessing the support that Seda offers can contribute greatly to an improved business case and thus a more effective pitch. Registering as a client can also assist the branches, incubators and provincial offices in selecting relevant attendees for the pitching masterclasses that run in the mornings before the provincial semi-final pitching competitions in the afternoons.
The online entry form is already a pitch in itself, where applicants have the opportunity to give pertinent information about the business case, e.g. business stage, product, team, competitors, market volume and pricing.
Please take a look at the website, and the online entry form, to familiarise yourself with the kind of information required.
The closing date for entries is 25 June 2019, whereafter the online applications will be screened and assessed according to the criteria (Product and Innovation, Market Demand, Revenue / Feasibility, Scalability, Entrepreneurial Personality), and the best applications for each province will be nominated as pitchers for the semi-final competitions in each province.
The first “Pitch & Perfect” pitching masterclass and semi-final competition starts in Mpumalanga on 4 July, and the last one ends in Western Cape on 27 August. Any changes to dates and venues will be communicated in due course.
I hope this information will address some of the questions that some have.