Celebrating Emerging Rochester Entrepreneurs
Second Cohort of CO.STARTERS Graduates To Showcase Ideas at the Collider Cup
Rochester 501(c)3 nonprofit Collider Foundation is excited to announce that we are hosting our second Collider Cup pitch event, which was designed to celebrate our CO.STARTERS graduates, give them the opportunity to share their unique business ideas with the Rochester community, and compete for a cash prize, provided by CO.STARTERS sponsor, Minnwest Bank.
Our 13 CO.STARTERS participants have spent the past 10 weeks completing an intensive training program through the CO.STARTERS curriculum, which Collider is proud to have facilitated for a second time this year. This program cost $150 per participant, which included the curriculum, facilitation through Rochester-based certified CO.STARTERS Core facilitators, and access to a community of support. Our CO.STARTERS participants have worked hard within the program to fine tune their business ideas and determine next steps they need to take to move forward.
The Collider Cup will take place on Tuesday, April 18th at Collider’s space in the Minnesota BioBusiness Center from 5:30-7:30pm. A brief press conference will precede the event from 5:00-5:15pm. This event will serve as a business pitch competition as well as a community celebration for these emerging entrepreneurs in Rochester. A panel of judges will determine the winner of the pitch competition and the public will be asked to vote for their favorite idea. All ticket proceeds will be awarded to the “crowd favorite” winner.
Collider Foundation believes that the support, education, and growth of our entrepreneurial ecosystem is a pathway to a more prosperous and inclusive future for the Rochester community. We as an organization aim to identify and assist local innovators in overcoming barriers to success by empowering an impactful, inclusive, and entrepreneur-first ecosystem. We are excited to have had the opportunity to fulfill our mission through CO.STARTERS and offer assistance to 13 entrepreneurs through this cohort.
CO.STARTERS at Collider is supported by Minnwest Bank, Think Mutual Bank, Fredrikson & Byron, Mayo Clinic, the Otto Bremer Trust, the Southeast Minnesota Initiative Foundation, Red Wing Ignite, Atlas Insurance Brokers, and Launch Minnesota.
For additional information contact Amanda Leightner at amanda@collider.mn or call (507) 722-0306
