by Kelly Rogge
An Innovation Summit, a showcase for future entrepreneurs and their ideas, will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 2 at Kansas City Kansas Community College’s Thomas R. Burke Technical Education Center, 6565 State Ave.
Free admission is available for those who want to attend the Expo only. However, those at the Expo only must still register online at www.innovationsummitkc.com. Tickets, which include breakfast and lunch, are available for $10 until Sept. 25. After Sept. 25, tickets will be $15. Students who present a valid ID can attend the Innovation Summit (with meals) for $7.
Those attending the event will have the opportunity to participate in the Pitch Competition. Attendees will each receive $5,000 of Innovation Summit Currency to “invest” in their favorite ideas and will have 90 minutes to tour the room. During this time, they can visit with each pitch person/entrepreneur in order to learn any additional information to make their Innovation Summit Currency investment. This “investment” will serve as their vote in the Pitch Competition. At the end of the event, organizers will count the Innovation Summit Currency for each entrepreneur, which will play a part in determining who moves onto the final round to pitch in front of the judges. Participants are competing for a chance to win a share of $10,000.
In addition, the competition will have a national platform this year to highlight the business or product ideas of those who registered for the Pitch Competition. Over the last week, friends, family and investors from throughout the United States have been able to view videos of the competition’s participants and vote for their favorite business-product idea. This provides a wider viewing audience for the product or service participants are presenting at the competition. Although voting has ended, the public may read about the 23 competitors in the Pitch Competition by visiting https://app2.pitchburner.com/s1/showcase/Innovation-Summit.
“Stephen Key, an award-winning inventor, will be one of our expert judges,” said Alicia Hooks, director of entrepreneurship at KCKCC. “People should attend the Innovation Summit for the learning, the ability to see new innovations and to simply go for the experience.”
Another addition to the Innovation Summit is the MECA Summit Challenge (Most Entrepreneurial City in America). The MECA Challenge is for high school and college age participants who compete in small groups to create the best solutions for real problems small businesses experience. Judges will evaluate the solutions and give awards based on creativity, feasibility and more.
The 2015 Innovation Summit could not occur without the event’s sponsors who are all supporters of entrepreneurs – State Street, Mid-America Manufacturing and Technology Center, the Bank of Blue Valley, MacAnanay, VanCleave and Phillips and the Inventor’s Center of Kansas City.
Coordinating partners include the National Native American Chamber, Leavenworth Community Development Corporation, Heartland Black Chamber of Commerce, Women’s Chamber of Commerce, KCSourcelink, KCK District 500, CEED, the SBDC and SCORE.
To purchase tickets to the 2015 Innovation Summit or for more information, visit the Innovation Summit’s website at www.innovationsummitkc.com.
Kelly Rogge is the public information supervisor at Kansas City Kansas Community College.