Entrepreneurs will have the chance to collaborate on business ideas this weekend with the return of Startup Weekend Tuscaloosa.
The 54-hour event, hosted by Pam Hill and the STEM Path to the MBA program, aims to bring together university students and community experts to share ideas and contribute to a more sustainable world.
Entrepreneurs with ideas for companies are encouraged to participate in this three-day event beginning March 27. According to the event’s website, day one involves pitching ideas, voting for favorites and forming or joining teams. Day two involves building a product, team and brand. Day three involves presenting work to a team of judges.
“They come in with just an idea,” Hill said. “You’re not supposed to already have a company. On Friday we’ll have a speaker that’s an inspirational type of speaker. Each student will do a one-minute pitch about their idea. We’ll vote, and the top ones will go forward. People build teams, and with those teams work on and build the idea.”
Judges include people who have started their own company.
“They present to a group of judges,” Hill said. “Prizes are related to their business moving forward.”
Hill said prizes this year include free accounting and legal advice.
This is the second year of Startup Weekend Tuscaloosa. Hill said they looked for an event that involved bringing original ideas that might fit the Tuscaloosa area.
“One thing we really liked was that it was a community event,” she said. “People get experience with students and vice versa.”
Josh Sahib won first place in last year’s event and founded Brewery Buddy, a company designed to assist in the brewing of beer via its website, brewerybuddy.co.
“The easiest way to relate it is ‘Shark Tank’,” he said. “You go in front of judges, and you’ve got maybe five, 10 minutes at the max. Coming out of that fire we really knew we had something.”
Brewery Buddy recently won $24,000 at Alabama Launch Pad, a state-wide competition.
More information on how to participate can be found at tuscaloosa.up.co.
