Cheered on by an audience of 100+ attendees… seven entrepreneurs in Brooklyn’s 2nd Elevator Pitch Competition won in-kind prizes totalling $150,000+ for the best pitches.

Chosen out of seventy-eight first round submissions, each founder had ninety seconds to pitch their venture to three judges with deep startup pitch experience.

While several founders won… no one lost!

Congratulations to…

First Place

Andrew Glass – Explore NYC Parks

• $10K monthly web hosting credit for 12 months from Softlayer [$120,000 cash value]
• Product Workshop + $500 in market research from Sea/Salt [$1000]
• Startup Power Therapy Package (personal training, martial arts, yoga, shiatsu bodywork, and wellness) from Meridian Touch [$950]
• Five months of co-working at St. Lydia’s Co-working [up to $1,040]
• Founder Innovation Package (Ideation Roadmap, Monetization Blueprint, or Growth Hacking) from Brooklyn Innovation Center [$1500]
• Three co-working and co-learning reservations at LaunchableLabs [up to $350]

Second Place

Cherae Robinson – Tastemakers Africa

• $1,000 monthly web hosting credit for 12 months from Softlayer [$12,000 cash value]
• Product Workshop + $300 in market research from Sea/Salt [$800]
• Founder’s Health Therapy Package (personal training, martial arts, yoga) from Meridian Touch [$650]
• Three months of co-working at St. Lydia’s Co-working [up to $660]
• Founder Innovation Plan (choose two: Ideation Roadmap, Monetization Blueprint, or Growth Hacking) from Brooklyn Innovation Center [$1000]
• Four co-working/co-learning reservations at LaunchableLabs [up to $500]

Third Place

Katie Kirkpatrick – Indolla Blue

• $1,000 monthly web hosting credit for 12 months from Softlayer [$12,000 cash value]
• Product Workshop + $100 in market research from Sea/Salt [$600]
• Founder’s Choice of one therapy session (personal training, martial arts, yoga, or wellness) from Meridian Touch [$200]
• Two months of co-working at St. Lydia’s Co-working [$440]
• Founder Innovation Session (choose one: Ideation Roadmap, Monetization Blueprint, or Growth Hacking) from Brooklyn Innovation Center [$500]
• Two co-working/co-learning reservations at LaunchableLabs [up to $250]

Honorable Mention

• Adam Grealish – Sesh
• Javier Dutan – Sabor POS
• Andi Muskaj – Linute
• Suyog Mody – Driftaway Coffee

All Honorable Mentions receive:

• Two months of Co-working at St. Lydia’s [up to $440]
• One TRX & Keltbell Cross-training Session from Meridian Touch [$50]
• One co-working/co-learning reservation at LaunchableLabs [up to $100]

About the Competition

Everyone who pitched took on the risk and put themselves out there… and that, in large measure, is what being a founder and getting funded is all about.

Brooklyn’s Annual Elevator Pitch Competition is based on the “elevator pitch” concept. It’s an extremely concise presentation of an entrepreneur’s idea, solution to a user’s issue or problem, business model, marketing strategy, and competitive advantage.

The premise being that a good pitch can be made in a couple of minutes, should an entrepreneur meet a potential investor on an elevator and have an opportunity to pitch their idea during a brief ride.