All startups who have launched, planning to launch, probably should launch, dreaming of launching, contemplating to launch, wondering if they should launch, wishing they actually had a startup to launch are invited to THE 3rd Annual Startup Grind Launch Party.
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How it works...
The Startups. We will give 7-10 startup founders the mic for 3-minutes so they can tell the world about the problem they solve, their solution, their secret sauce, the market opportunity, their traction, and their team. There will be investors, so be prepared to answer questions!
Want to be a presenting startup? Email your deck to team.chicago@startupgrind.com
The Investors. In the room, we will have 2-3 special guest judges there to give insights and feedback on each pitch. They will help founders understand what worked, what could be done better and what it takes to land an investment from an investor like them.
Everyone Else. You play a huge role in this. You get to vote on the startup you liked the best and pick the winner.
The Winning Startup. Not only does the winner earn street cred and pride from winning Startup Grind's 2019 Summer Launch, but they will also win some great tools to help their business.
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Who: Founders, Co-founders, Team Members & Startup Enthusiasts
What: Launch Party - Summer 2019
Where: mHUB - 965 West Chicago (easy access by Train, Bus, Bicycle & Car)
When: Thursday, July 18th, 6-8:30 pm
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Want to LAUNCH your business? Email your deck to team.chicago@startupgrind.com (deadline passed)
Cooper Ventures
Investor
The Garage at Northwestern
Executive Director
Cultivation Capital
Venture Partner
Nate is an experienced operator, investor, and advisor in the food/CPG world. He is the founder of L3 Hospitality Group (LYFE Kitchen), Wise Apple, and now is sitting on the other side of the table as an investor. He is a graduate of Kellogg and an alumnus of the Zell fellows program.
Melissa Kaufman is the executive director of The Garage at Northwestern. She is a former Googler, startup veteran, and entrepreneur with a decade of experience at consumer technologies companies in Silicon Valley. Currently, she is a committee member of ChicagoNEXT (the mayor’s technology council), a member of P33 (the Chicago Technology Initiative), and a venture partner at Chicago Ventures. She was named to Chicago Inno’s 50 on Fire in 2017 and Crain’s Tech 50 in 2018. Melissa received her BA in computer science from Dartmouth College.
Graham Peck is an angel and venture capital investor, entrepreneur, and operator. He is a Venture Partner with Cultivation Capital which invests in Seed and Series A Stage Software Technology Companies. He is also a member of a multi-generational family office and operating business which does close tolerance sheet metal component manufacturing for the gas turbine engine industry. For the family office, he leads the angel/venture alternative investing group and serves on the investment committee. Graham is the founding partner of a roll-up group which is actively pursuing acquisitions of several custom software technology development services companies. He is a double major graduate of Franklin University in Business Administration and Marketing.
Co-Director
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Startup Grind Chicago
Co-Director
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