Northeast Wisconsin Business Plan Contest is back in 2018

Green Bay, Wis. — Do you have an idea for a great new business or are you growing an existing business in Northeast Wisconsin? Are you interested in obtaining business services at no cost to you toward that effort? Currently, there are more than $7,000-and-counting (check back frequently for updated totals!) of in-kind services available from sponsors for the 2018 Northeast Wisconsin Business Plan Contest.

Register by Sunday, October 7 at https://newbpc2018.startupcompete.co/. To register, businesses must be located in Northeast Wisconsin (broadly defined for this contest as one of the 18 counties in the New North or in Forest County). Registrants will first need to set up a StartUpCompete.co account to register, before proceeding to the “Registration Round – Round 1” to submit 250 words maximum per each of the four categories:

• Product description
• Customer definition (be very specific)
• Market opportunity, size (use numbers and dollars) and sales strategy
• Competition (please do not say that there is none)

If you pass Round 1, you will be invited to participate in Round 2 — the full business plan judging round. You will answer questions to enter your full business plan by Sunday, Nov. 4, 2018. Finally, top entrants from Round 2 will compete for no-cost business services through an in-person pitch presentation on Friday afternoon, Nov. 30, 2018.

Business owner should enter this business plan contest for the following reasons:

• It’s free.You will need to develop a business plan, anyway, for your organization, a financer or for a more lucrative contest (such as www.govsbizplancontest.com).
• You don’t have to be Tolstoy.The initial entry limits you to 250 words each in four categories: product description, customer definition, market description and competition.
• You get feedback from experts. Judges in the contest are experienced in their respective fields and will provide feedback to entrants.
• Was free mentioned? Prizes to those who are selected to pitch include business services that often cost hundreds of dollars per hour.
• You will meet other entrepreneurs like yourself.As much as it may sometimes seem like you’re alone, you’re not! There are others like you, and they often have similar experiences to share. You will meet them on Nov. 30!
• You might meet an investor on Nov. 30.
• What better way to move your good idea off your desk or device and closer to reality?

The 2018 Northeast Wisconsin Business Plan Contest was brought back after a four-year hiatus to

• Increase the number of finalists in the annual GovsBizPlanContest.com
  and www.WisconsinYES.comfrom Northeast Wisconsin
• Increase inclusive entrepreneurial endeavors in Northeast Wisconsin
• Point entrepreneurs toward local and regional no-cost resources for assistance and mentorship within their Northeast Wisconsin communities
• Educate “wantrepreneurs” toward actual entrepreneurship via competition and expert feedback.

Lead sponsors include T2 Accelerator, Laurie Crawford Coaching, Winnebago Seed Fund, UW-Green Bay’s Austin E. Cofrin School of Business and WiSys.

For questions about being an in-kind sponsor of the contest, registration challenges, or finding local resources for business planning assistance, please contact Ryan Kauth at the Austin E. Cofrin School of Business at UW-Green Bay at KauthR@uwgb.edu or 920-465-2004.

The contest website is https://newbpc2018.startupcompete.co/.

About the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is a comprehensive public institution offering undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs to nearly 8,000 students with campus locations in Green Bay, Marinette, Manitowoc and Sheboygan. Established in 1965 on the border of Green Bay, the University and its campuses are centers of cultural enrichment, innovation and learning. The Green Bay campus is home to one of the Midwest’s most prolific performing arts centers, a nationally recognized 4,000-seat student recreation center, an award-winning nine-hole golf course and a five-mile recreational trail and arboretum, which is free and open to the public. This four-campus University transforms lives and communities through student-focused teaching and research, innovative learning opportunities, powerful connections and a problem-solving approach to education. UW-Green Bay’s main campus is centrally located, close to both the Door County resort area and the dynamic economies of Northeast Wisconsin, the Fox Valley region and the I-43 corridor. UW-Green Bay offers in-demand programs in science, engineering and technology; business; health, education and social welfare; and arts, humanities and social sciences. For more information, visit www.uwgb.edu.

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