Aspiring female entrepreneurs pitched their small business idea during Dallas Startup Weekend: Women’s Edition, a weekend-long workshop run by the local startup community.
The 3-day workshop at the Dallas Entrepreneur Center was packed with experts in various fields, as well as eager volunteers, who are all passionate about helping North Texas women get their small businesses off the ground.
How does it work?
Participants had 60 seconds to pitch their awesome business ideas to the crowd. Then the top few were chosen for a 54-hour workshop to help develop the business ideas and prepare for a final pitch Sunday evening.
Not only would finalists get the awesome opportunity to develop their business with some of the smartest startup minds in Dallas, but the top three business ideas would be awarded some amazing prizes. For example, the first place receives thousands of dollars worth of cloud services, 3-months of coworking space, media coverage, and the rare chance to pitch their business in front of potential investors or advisors.
With so much at stake, female entrepreneurs hit the stage Friday evening to make their case for their business.
The Lucky Finalists
Four business ideas were chosen to get 54-hours worth of brainstorming and business development.
Sandpiper: An app that lets users apply for an apartment and pay the deposit online without having to go to the complex to fiddle with all that paperwork.
PetKids: An online solution that gives first-time pet owners access to vital information relating to taking care of their pets.
Whutz Cookin?: This ‘Uber for food’ lets you order home-cooked meals from other people and you can also sell your own home-cooked meals to other people.
Balancr: An app that lets parents positively control the amount of screen time children get.
Attendees were divided into teams to help prep each business for Sunday’s pitch. I decided to join the Balancr team and set to work helping them grow their business.
As one of the original team members at Allcal, I knew a thing or two about starting a business. Plus, our app is a key resource for many small business who need a cheap way to schedule employees, manage projects, and organize clients.
Related Post: Get Your Small Business on Allcal
It was a long weekend, but packed with interesting conversations and tips for creating a business from scratch.
The Results
Even though all of the business ideas won great praise from the judges and the crowd, one stood out above them all – Balancr!
The awesome pitch resulted in amazing feedback from judges, bragging rights, and a great base for Balancr’s team to take the business to the next level.
What’s Next?
The Dallas-Fort Worth startup community has plenty more opportunities for people who want to launch a business, learn more about entrepreneurship, or just support local businesses in their community.
UP Dallas will host North Dallas Startup Weekend July 17-19 at the NoD coworking space.
For more information about the event and how to get involved, go to the UP Dallas website.
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