The Center for Space Commerce & Finance (CSCF), in collaboration with BoomStartup and the Heinlein Prize Trust, will sponsor a “shark tank” style startup business competition, as the first in a series of regional events leading up to the 2017 NewSpace Business Plan Competition. Salt Lake City’s Business Model Canvas Competition will be a unique program, held in conjunction with local accelerator, BoomStartup.

The competition will be held from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM on March 8th, at Impact Hub Salt Lake, a high-tech incubator in downtown Salt Lake City. Each business will have 15 minutes to present their business model canvas and answer questions before a panel of judges.

The winner of the Salt Lake City regional event will receive a $2,500 cash prize, courtesy of the Heinlein Prize Trust. The winner will also be guaranteed the opportunity to compete at the national NewSpace Business Plan Competition, to be held at the New Worlds Institute Conference in Austin, TX on November 10-11, 2017.

This competition will use a unique “Business Model Canvas” format for deliverables and contestants are encouraged to read the details of the submission process carefully. The competition is intended to simulate the real world process of entrepreneurs soliciting start up funds from early stage investors and venture capital firms. The judges function as venture capital investors deciding on which business venture they would most likely fund. The quality of the company’s value proposition, the strength of the Business Model Canvas deliverable, and the clarity and persuasiveness of the oral presentation, all influence the judge’s decisions.

All space startup companies in the Salt Lake City area, or anywhere within the Western United States are encouraged to learn about our application process: http://newspacebpc.com/regional-competitions/

Interested investors, media, students, and anyone who would like to be in the audience, are encouraged to RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/BoomStartup/events/237512918/.

To learn more about this and upcoming competitions across the world, sign up for the NewSpace Business Plan Competition newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bF4MBj.

About NewSpace Business Plan Competition 
Originally started as a project of the Space Frontier Foundation in 2006, the NewSpace BPC has awarded over $300,000 in cash prizes to space-enabling startups. Now a product of the Center for Space Commerce and Finance, the NewSpace BPC is expanding its reach, hosting regional competitions and raising investor awareness towards space-related startups. Chosen competitors attend a private, 2-day, Boot Camp session, and make a final pitch to investors at the annual New Worlds Conference where a winner is announced. For more information visit http://www.NewSpaceBPC.com. Subscribe to our updates by clicking here: http://eepurl.com/bF4MBj

About BoomStartup 
BoomStartup is a lean startup accelerator and mentorship-driven seed-stage investment program for technology-based startups, and a founding member of the Global Accelerator Network (GAN). Founded in 2010, BoomStartup is consistently recognized as a nationally ranked accelerator program and has helped raise over $30 million in capital for its companies. BoomStartup’s SpaceTech accelerator is designed to bring new aerospace and space-scalable business startups to market. Get started at http://boomstartup.com/

About the Heinlein Prize Trust 
The Heinlein Prize Trust honors the memory of Robert A. Heinlein, a renowned American author. The purpose of the Heinlein Prize is to encourage and reward progress in commercial space activities that advances Robert and his wife Virginia’s dream of humanity’s future in space. Efforts include: The Heinlein Prize for Accomplishments in Commercial Space Activities, The Microgravity Research Competition, The Heinlein Commercial Space Activity Prize, and The “Flight Into the Future” international contests. Find out more here http://www.heinleinprize.com