The city of Elk Grove will host and finance a startup pitch competition in the spring featuring $17,500 in prize money at an in-person event.
Companies based in Sacramento, El Dorado, Placer, San Joaquin, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties are eligible to enter the inaugural Pitch Elk Grove event.
“The Sacramento region is quickly becoming an exceptional place to launch a startup,” said Darrell Doan, economic development director with Elk Grove, in a news release. “Pitch Elk Grove is Elk Grove’s way of supporting the regional startup scene while simultaneously raising our city’s profile as an emerging startup hub.”
Applications are due by Feb. 18, and the application is only accepted online. The city is requiring that all submissions are made on a pitch deck. A virtual pitch deck workshop will be held on Feb. 10 at 4 p.m. hosted by InnoGrove, a coworking space in Elk Grove.
Eligible companies include those working on technology that is scalable and innovative.
The top prize is $10,000, second prize is $5,000 and audience favorite gets $2,500.
The pitch competition will showcase its finalists on March 31.
“Pitch Elk Grove is a fantastic opportunity for founders to practice presenting their companies in front of a live audience,” said Jeff Bennett, CEO of StartupSac, which is organizing the event.
The pitch competition is also an opportunity for the city to show local entrepreneurs its Startup Elk Grove Incentive Program, which launched in 2018 and offers direct cash subsidies to companies based in the city.
The program offers cash grants to companies that will support new jobs or technology opportunities in Elk Grove. The city takes no equity in the companies and the money doesn’t need to be paid back — as long as the companies remain headquartered in Elk Grove. If the company moves out of Elk Grove, or if it gets bought, the grant becomes a loan.
