25 entrepreneurial pitchers, over 100 audience members, three moderators, judges, sponsors, and more will all be at The Creative Coast’s FastPitch 2016, next Friday, March 4. This annual event, nicknamed “Savannah’s Shark Tank,” provides a fast, exciting environment for entrepreneurs to pitch business ideas and gain experience, contacts, coaching and more! Participants will present three-minute pitches for their endeavors that address issues of technological advancement, portion control, happy hour, and everything in between. The competition takes place March 4 at The Creators’ Foundry 415 W. Boundary Street from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tickets for audience members are on sale now and include, lunch, a full day of pitches, networking, and happy hour.

Why a pitch event? With all the participants providing the same deliverables, a short pitch and their one-pagers (brief business information that communicates their underlying fundamentals) and being held to the same criteria, a level of coaching and feedback not possible outside of formal event is provided. With this approach, The Creative Coast is mirroring the Kauffman Foundation’s (a national organization focused on entrepreneurship) strategy of “expanding entrepreneurship education programs and fostering entrepreneurial communities that help entrepreneurs more effectively start and grow their firms.” FastPitch’s competitive nature compliments our other entrepreneurial program offerings (each week we offer 1 Million Cups – an official Kauffman program, and we host Startup Lounge and Geekend as well).

The roughly two-dozen participants are grouped as product-based entrepreneurs (think apps for the forest industry or video gamers as well as vegan restaurants), service-based entrepreneurs (companies to help you with kickstarter, design projects, or a customized educational experience for students), and student-based entrepreneurs (they’re running coding camps, helping you with a holistic lifestyle, or establishing a fashion collection). Says, Emily McLeod, programs manager, at The Creative Coast, “this group of entrepreneurs has already proven energetic and tenacious. I don’t envy the judges the tough job of choosing between them.” There will also be the chance for audience members to vote on their favorite company.