IDEApitch at NOEW Scales to Invest $750K in Local Startups

Exited Founders and Their Investors Pledge to Pay it Forward, Investing in the Next Generation and Sustaining the Infrastructure that Supported Them

NEW ORLEANS – The Founders of Lucid and Levelset, local startup companies acquired for a combined $1.6B in 2021, have come together with local investors and long-standing local startup champions to pledge $750,000 of investment in three leading companies from The Idea Village’s VILLAGEx 2022 accelerator program. 
The three finalist startups will compete against each other for the top prize on Friday, March 25 at 3:00 p.m. as part of the IDEApitch investment competition–the culmination of New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW).  

This pledge makes IDEApitch one of the largest pitch competitions in the country.  The winning startup will receive a $400k commitment to the company’s next round, with each runner up receiving $175k.  Attendance at IDEApitch is free and open to the public along with over 50 other events during NOEW, March 21st- 25th: https://www.noew.org/agenda.  

The three IDEApitch finalists drawn from New Orleans and the surrounding region include Jamm Around, a network management platform for music creators, Cluey Consumer, a data driven platform that empowers socially conscious consumers, and Iconic Moments, an NFT marketplace for museums and other cultural institutions.

Investors coming together to fund this investment include: Patrick Comer, Scott Wolfe, Gayle Benson, Cathy and Walter Isaacson, Amith Nagarajan, Michael Gollner and Faith Savage, and Dr. John Ellstrot.  Comer and Wolfe are IDEApitch alumni and helped conceive the idea to “pay it forward” by aligning investment capital with The Idea Village and IDEApitch. 

“If you built a portfolio of the 40+ companies that have participated in IDEApitch over the last 10 years, you would have invested in some incredibly successful companies,” said Patrick Comer, Chairman of the Board of CINT Group and founder and former-CEO of Lucid. “This commitment is about both ‘adding a 0’ to what startups and founders can expect in New Orleans and demonstrating that investing in New Orleans is a good investment.”

The IDEApitch investment prize is structured as a pledge to invest in the company’s next open round of financing on the same terms agreed to by the founders with other investors in the round. The three companies participating in IDEApitch will need to raise a total round of 3x the prize amount including the prize within 18 months to trigger the IDEApitch investment prize.

“The IDEApitch investment prize structure puts founders in the driver's seat to raise a substantial round of capital that will launch and scale their business,” said Jon Atkinson, CEO of The Idea Village. “It is also about encouraging others to participate in the success of these companies, making it easier for a diverse mix of entrepreneurs to access capital and participate in the resulting upside, and meaningfully moving the needle on the number of companies raising at least $1,000,000 out of the New Orleans startup community each year.”  

This landmark investment, which the group intends to continue to build on in future years, “represents fuel on the fire for New Orleans startups and a transition to the next phase for New Orleans as a hub for innovation,” said Michael Gollner Managing Partner of Operating Capital Partners, LLP and early investor and long-standing Director in Levelset.  “Value created from local companies over the last ten years is now being reinvested in a new and increasingly diverse range of startups, turbocharging a new generation of high-growth companies.”

Ten percent (10%) of the gain on the investment is pledged as a donation to create an operating endowment for The Idea Village, helping to institutionalize the critical role that The Idea Village plays in building the local startup pipeline and supporting startups at their earliest stages.  

“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,” said Gayle Benson. “ I am so proud to join this list of other dedicated investors and entrepreneurial leaders in identifying the best and brightest and giving them a platform from which to grow and build companies right here in New Orleans.”

IDEApitch is the culmination of the pipeline of programs that The Idea Village offers, all of which aim to provide the resources needed to launch and scale high-growth companies. The diversity of businesses and entrepreneurs highlighted in this year’s IDEApitch reflects the underlying intentionality of these efforts and represents a critical opportunity for the future of the New Orleans startup community. 

“New Orleans needs to prove that it can repeat the process and to demonstrate that it can be a place where lots of startups and innovative companies can thrive,” said Scott Wolfe, Founder and former CEO of Levelset. “This is an investment, not just in the next generation of companies themselves, but in scaling the infrastructure to support them and making it more sustainable.”

IDEApitch takes place Friday, March 25 from 3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.  on the final day of New Orleans Entrepreneur Week at The Ace Hotel, 600 Carondelet Street, New Orleans, LA. Register here to be in the audience for IDEApitch and attend the NOEW Wrap-Up Party that directly follows IDEApitch.  bit.ly/NOEW2022. 

+++

About New Orleans Entrepreneur Week

NOEW is the premier event celebrating the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation in all its forms across the great city of New Orleans. With events, panels, summits, and parties taking place throughout the week, NOEW 2022 runs Monday, March 21 – Friday, March 25. All events are free and open to the public. NOEW 2022 takes place at some of New Orleans coolest and most interesting venues, including the Ace Hotel, Gallier Hall, Hotel Peter & Paul, and Hotel St. Vincent.

NOEW is for startup founders, industry leaders, forward-thinking investors and business-minded creatives who are committed to imagining and building an exceptional future for New Orleans.   https://www.noew.org/agenda

About The Idea Village

The Idea Village's core belief is that entrepreneurship is an agent of social and economic change. As an early champion of entrepreneurship in New Orleans, the organization has played an integral role in catalyzing the city's entrepreneurial movement. In addition to supporting nearly 15,000 entrepreneurs, The Idea Village has successfully elevated New Orleans's reputation as a hub of innovation, entrepreneurship, and business. By serving as a catalyst and developing programs that provide direct support and education to founders and early-stage companies, The Idea Village helps entrepreneurs build innovative and industry-leading companies that generate revenue and jobs and help create a more vibrant, inclusive and resilient local economy. www.ideavillage.org