The finalists for PitchBlack 2024 have been selected and will take the stage next month at the Reser Center for the Performing Arts in Beaverton.
Ten founders will pitch their ideas at the community celebration Feb. 7. Tickets are on sale and have been selling fast. Less than 100 are still available for the 550-seat venue, said organizer Stephen Green.
The group, which is under the nonprofit fiscal agent Built Oregon, had 206 applications for the event. That level of interest was a surprise even for organizers as was the number of out-of-state applicants (140) and even international applicants (one).
“We’re talking to some funders to do it nationally. There is obviously demand for it,” Green said. He added that the group is also evaluating how to support participants outside of the big event. Since the first event in 2015 there are now 64 alumni.
PitchBlack is a community celebration to showcase ideas and businesses. Green noted that it is an entertainment event and not a classic business pitch event.
“If you bring the ‘What’s the best business hat’ (to vote in this competition), that isn’t this event,” he said. “(This) is the opportunity for a community to show out and reframe what it is to be a Black business. People get in the room and have no idea the breadth of different things Black businesses are doing. Whether they (go on to) make billions, that isn’t what this event is about.”
For this year’s event there are two out-of-state founders pitching, both happen to be from Oakland, California.
The finalists were selected by a committee of seven people. Here’s who is pitching:
- Portland-based auto shop Upland Autowerks.
- Portland-based children’s bookstore Sunrise Books.
- Portland-based Lion Speaks, a media production nonprofit focused on mentorship and emerging BIPOC talent.
- Portland-based Mister OK’s Essentials, which makes small-batch scented candles, personal care items and room sprays and offers workshops to craft individual scented items.
- Portland-based Bloom Agency is a boutique full-service agency for BIPOC creative entrepreneurs.
- Salem-based Flourish Spices & African Food, which offers event catering and workshops.
- Portland-based Pacmodo, is making a consumer product expected to launch soon.
- Portland-based Holla School, a K-3 charter school sponsored by the Reynolds School District that offers culturally responsive education for BIPOC students.
- Oakland-based apparel brand Rockridge.
- Oakland-based The ABC Travel Network which makes The Travel Green Book, a book and app that helps people find Black communities and Black-owned businesses while traveling.
In addition to the pitches on stage, there will also be some founders with tables in the venue lobby to help people make connections.
For the main stage event the audience will vote on their favorite pitches and winners will receive grants, from the funds raised through ticket sales and sponsorships. Major event sponsors are Nike and Jordan Brand, Oregon Community Foundation and software maker Autodesk.
