IDEApitch

IDEApitch is an annual pitch competition that showcases the top companies in The Idea Village’s VILLAGEx* accelerator program. IDEApitch is traditionally the culmination of New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW) which takes place in March each year.

Initially seeded in 2010 by Jim and Penny Coulter and presented as “The Coulter Challenge,” this highly competitive startup showcase offers select VILLAGEx companies a premier platform to publicly launch their startup and compete to win IDEApitch.

Many of the region’s most successful startups have taken part in IDEApitch, including Levelset, Lucid - A Cint Group Company (New Orleans’ first unicorn!), and many others. In 2021 alone, alumni of The Idea Village realized over $1.7 billion in exit value, with many of them rising to public consciousness on the IDEApitch stage.

*VILLAGEx is a four-month, industry agnostic accelerator that equips high-growth startups with the mentors, expertise, and other resources needed to take their venture to scale. Learn more here.


CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2023 IDEAPITCH WINNER: GLASS HALF FULL!

Read more about ALL IDEAPITCH 2023 COMPANIES: Bomb Ass Fro, Glass Half Full, & iCAN Technologies

 

IDEApitch COMPANIES ARE BUILDING VENTURES
IN A RANGE OF INDUSTRIES

 
 

About the IDEApitch 2022 Investment Prize

IDEApitch funding is often structured as an “investment prize,” meaning that it is as a pledge to invest in the participating company’s next open round of financing.  Winning companies receive pledges of varying amounts after participating in the competition. This funding is designed to be “first money committed” to the company’s next open round of financing and is invested at market terms set by outside investors. It is designed to help companies raise a larger round of financing and gives ventures the benefit of starting fundraising with a firm funding commitment at future market terms. 

To “unlock” the 2022 IDEApitch prize, each company needed to raise a total round of 3x the prize amount (including the prize) within 18 months of completing the VILLAGEx program.  Commitments not triggered within 18 months void the pledge made as part of the competition. Additional details can be found here - IDEApitch 2022 Investment Prize Structure - to understand what’s needed to unlock the IDEApitch investment prize.

 

2022: $750K Across Multiple Prizes

At IDEApitch 2022, three VILLAGEx founders pitched in front of a panel of diverse and esteemed judges as part of the nation’s largest pitch investment in the country, with $750,000 in total investment prizes!

The founders of Lucid and Levelset, local startup companies acquired for a combined $1.6 billion in 2021, came together with investors and long-standing local startup champions as a way to “pay it forward” and pledge a collective $750,000 of investment in all three companies. The winning startup, Jamm Around, received a $400,000 commitment, and the two runners-up, Cluey Consumer and Iconic Moments, each received a $175,000 commitment to the company’s next round.

Read PROFILES ON: Jamm Around,
Cluey Consumer, or Iconic Moments.

“This investment not only helps new startups born out of The Idea Village create momentum for further growth and seeking new capital but also earmarks profits from the success of these companies towards an endowment for Idea Village securing the future of innovation in New Orleans.”
— Gayle Benson, Investor
 
 
 

“NOEW 2022 was a special moment for IDEApitch. Founders, investors, and other stakeholders from New Orleans’ first wave of successful startups (many of whom are IDEApitch alumni) came together to make IDEApitch 2022 one of the largest startup pitch competitions in the country. While this year’s competition won’t have big checks on stage, The Idea Village is working on implementing a more expansive funding strategy, with the support of last year’s investors and the state’s new SSBCI program, to institutionalize funding for IDEApitch companies both for this year and for future years. This new funding strategy, once complete, will create a mechanism to offer sustainable investment funding to this year’s winners, as well as make New Orleans a national leader in allocating this type of funding through a pitch and accelerator program.”

- Jon Atkinson, CEO of The Idea Village

 
 

IDEApitch supports the next generation of high-potential entrepreneurs and startups in the Greater New Orleans region.

 

All IDEApitch Companies