Investor event expands to include more start-ups and angel investors

In recognition of today s tough investment climate, the Banff Venture Forum, one of the key high-tech investment events in Western Canada, today announced an expansion of its annual event to enable more early stage companies to present to qualified investors on September 5 and 6, 2003 in Banff, AB.

INVESTOR EVENT EXPANDS TO INCLUDE MORE START-UPS AND ANGEL INVESTORS

Calgary, AB (PRWEB) July 31, 2003 -- In recognition of today s tough investment climate, the Banff Venture Forum, one of the key high-tech investment events in Western Canada, today announced an expansion of its annual event to enable more early-stage companies to present to qualified investors on September 5 and 6, 2003 in Banff, AB.

This is a particularly tough year for early-stage high-tech companies seeking investment dollars," says Susan Miller, President of Inno-centre Alberta and chair of the forums steering committee. The Banff Venture Forum attracted 35 Venture Capital (VC) and Angel investors from Canada and the US last year, and we are expecting even more investors this year to review at least 25 company investment presentations. It makes sense to expand to include more early-stage companies and Angel investors, along with the VC-level companies and investors".

Each company accepted into the forum program will have 10 minutes to present to the investor audience, and an opportunity to attend a free, half day workshop on investment presentations prior to the event. The two-day forum also features panel presentations explaining different sources of financing and the usual investment terms offered by Angel and VC investors. Theres an open forum discussion on the Saturday night on the competitiveness of Canadian companies versus their US counterparts, and that evening, the event ends with awards for the best early-stage" and growth stage" companies.

Companies who wish to present must submit their application by August 8, 2003. In order to increase the opportunity to obtain investment, companies are encouraged to attend a half-day workshop held in Edmonton and Calgary on August 12 and 14. These bootcamps" are conducted by experts and include a quick study on how to: craft an effective business plan; deliver a strong investor pitch; target and interact with potential investors; and understand how market conditions affect the investment climate -- all in one afternoon session.

The Banff Venture Forum has also expanded to allow more guests to join the event on Friday, September 5 for dinner with keynote speaker Guy Kawasaki, CEO of Garage Technology Ventures.

The author of seven books including: Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way, Kawasaki is one of the top business leaders and most prominent speakers in the North American high-tech industry.

Former CEO of ACIUS and Fog City Software, as an Apple Fellow he was one of the individuals responsible for the success of the Macintosh computer. Kawasaki is also a columnist for Forbes.com, Macworld and Macuser.

For details on The Banff Venture Forum, or to register, see www.banffventureforum.org.

For more information:
Astrid DesLandes
Accent Communications
Tel (403) 242-6275
accentcomm@shaw.ca

Banff Venture Forum
Suite 1972, 246 Stewart Green, SW. Calgary, Alberta T3H 3C8 Tel: (403) 242.6275 Fax: (403) 686.3617 www.banffventureforum.org