Kalamazoo Forward Ventures brings its inaugural $100K student pitch competition to WMU
KALAMAZOO, Mich.—A new initiative will ignite innovation and encourage entrepreneurship among Western Michigan University students. Cultivate 269, launched by Kalamazoo Forward Ventures, is a new pitch competition for student entrepreneurs. The inaugural effort will give Broncos the opportunity to win their share of $100,000 in prizes to get their big ideas off the ground.
“Kalamazoo is a city of promise: a promise to create real pathways to opportunity,” says Dwayne Powell Jr., chief operating officer and main street managing partner of Kalamazoo Forward Ventures. “With five Kalamazoo Forward Ventures founders shaped at Western Michigan University, Cultivate 269 is launching to prove that when students choose entrepreneurship, Kalamazoo is not a stepping stone; it is a launchpad for building world-class companies.”
“We are excited and proud to partner with alumni who are investing in the next generation of Bronco entrepreneurs,” says Jeff Breneman, WMU’s vice president for government relations and external partnerships.
“Cultivate 269 reflects Western’s focus on building human capital in a way that strengthens individuals and fuels Michigan’s economic vitality,” Breneman adds. “For us, a degree is a pursuit of purpose where students are empowered to learn and where an experience-driven education leads to a meaningful career. This pitch competition is a clear expression of that commitment.”
Cultivate 269 will blend academic rigor with real-world investment, encouraging the next generation of founders to turn their entrepreneurial dreams into reality with the potential for professional development and training as well as funding.
“At Kalamazoo Forward Ventures, we aren’t just writing a check; we’re placing a $100,000 bet on the untapped brilliance walking the halls of Western Michigan University,” says Marcel Fable Price, director of community and strategic engagement at Kalamazoo Forward Ventures. “We’re stepping up with this investment because we believe in the architects of the future currently sitting in WMU classrooms, and we believe in the world-class faculty coaching them into greatness.”
Applications, which can be submitted through the Cultivate 269 website, are open to all current Western students and will be accepted through Friday, Feb. 27. Concepts will be posted online where the public can view them and vote for their favorite.
“Cultivate 269 is designed to be an annual lightning rod for innovation,” Fable says. “We want to see ideas from every corner of campus: from the painters in the Richmond Center and the historians in Friedmann Hall to the business architects and the environmentalists. If we invest in local talent now, others will join this journey.”
Nine finalists will be announced Friday, March 20—five chosen by a committee of industry experts and four by public vote results. The finalists will receive professional coaching and a professionally designed pitch deck from A:LAB, a Michigan-based business consulting firm, to fine-tune and package their ideas.
The Cultivate 269 competition will culminate with a pitch night at the WMU Student Center on Friday, April 10. This high-energy celebration of innovation and community will include live presentations from the finalists, who each will get six minutes to pitch their scalable, for-profit concept to a committee of expert judges.
The stakes are high: The judges’ favorite pitch will earn a $75,000 investment, while the public vote winner will receive $25,000. The funding is non-dilutive, meaning students will retain full ownership of their business.
“Some might look at the $100,000 prize and think it’s too bold, too loud or ‘too much’ for a college campus,” says Fable. “We’re here to make some healthy noise and prove them wrong. We dream in abundance because we know the truth: Kalamazoo can, will and does inspire the world.”
Find more information on the pitch competition on the Cultivate 269 webpage.
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