Contact:
Barbara
Pruitt, Kauffman Foundation, (816) 932-1288, bpruitt@kauffman.org
Matt Hantz, M
Booth & Associates, (212) 481-7000, matth@mbooth.com
Promising young companies with a
'startup moment ' can vie for recognition and prizes announced during Global
Entrepreneurship Week
Kansas
City, Mo. (May 26, 2011) – Startup
Open, a competition that recognizes startups with high-growth potential,
has launched its search for the 50 most promising new startups around the world
as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week
(GEW) 2011. The "GEW 50" will be announced on Oct. 15, 2011, with those companies
then competing for the top honors and prizes.
"Economic
growth and job creation is directly tied to young businesses with the potential
to become part of tomorrow 's Fortune 500, so recognizing and rewarding those
most promising startups on the path to success may inspire others to follow
their examples," said Carl Schramm, president and chief executive officer of
the Kauffman Foundation.
Startup
Open is a featured competition of GEW, an initiative founded by the Kauffman
Foundation to spur new ideas, ingenuity and firm creation through local,
national and global activities in more than 100 countries. The competition, now
in its second year, is open to entrepreneurs who have a "startup moment"
between GEW 2010 and GEW 2011 (Nov. 22, 2010 to Nov. 20, 2011). A
startup moment is defined as any action related to launching a new business,
such as incorporating a company; officially opening the doors for business;
completing a first sale; or securing outside funding.
Startup
Open applicants will be judged on concept, growth projections and knowledge of
their industry. A handful of companies winning the top honors
and prizes will be announced on Nov. 14 as GEW 2011 gets underway.
The
Startup Open 2010 grand prize winner received a trip to Richard Branson 's
privately owned Necker
Island. Winner Olivier
Ceberio, founder of Resolute
Marine Energy (RME) in Boston,
Mass., recently returned from his
trip, where he took part in multiple networking sessions with Branson and other
successful entrepreneurs. Additional activities included a sailboat race with Branson
and a trip around the island in the "Necker Belle" catamaran. Ceberio won the
top prize at GEW 2010 for his RME plan to develop wave energy converters that
generate clean energy from ocean waves. The goal of RME is to aid the 1.2 billion people worldwide who lack access
to safe drinking water.
"During my
stay in Necker Island, I had the opportunity to learn from and exchange ideas
with some the brightest and most inspiring entrepreneurs in the world," said
Ceberio. "I am very grateful to the Kauffman Foundation for providing me with
this invaluable experience that will help expand my network as I improve and
grow my business."
Last
year 's second and third places winners received two days of mentoring at Kauffman
Labs for Enterprise Creation, a Kauffman Foundation program. Entrepreneurs Stas
Samarin of PulmoCAD,
LLC in St. Louis and Kahoru Watanabe of Wing Power Inc in Sarasota, Fla., had the
opportunity to hear new ideas and feedback on how to improve their business
models from every angle.
Startup Open
applicants will have until Sept. 15 to submit their startup moment. For more
information on how to enter and the 2010 winners, please visit www.startupopen.com.
# # #
Global Entrepreneurship Week
During one
week each November, thousands of activities around the world inspire millions
to engage in entrepreneurial action while connecting them to potential mentors,
collaborators and investors. In three short years, Global Entrepreneurship Week
has expanded to more than 100 countries—empowering nearly 20 million people
through 95,000 activities. Powered by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the
initiative is supported by dozens of world leaders and a growing network of 24,000
partner organizations. For more information, visit www.unleashingideas.org, and follow @unleashingideas on Twitter.
