Startups Ventura County (SVC) Announces 2018 Winners
CAMARILLO, Calif. (PRWEB) April 27, 2018 -- Camarillo Chamber of Commerce, the hosting organization of Startups Ventura County (SVC), formerly known as Startup Weekend Ventura County (SWVC), announces today that SVC 2018 startup competition held on April 20th through 22nd has awarded $20,000 in cash to Food Origins and $5,000 in cash to iCode. Both startups also have each received $5,000 in in-kind awards consisting of professional services and are given the right to use SVC’s cowork space located at Camarillo Airport for free for a period of one year.
“A total of 24 startups applied to compete in SVC 2018,” says Gary Cushing, CEO of Camarillo Chamber of Commerce. “A committee appointed by our CEO Judge Panel selected 16 teams to participate in our two and a half day event. Five teams made it to the final round on Sunday afternoon. They are Aztec Vision Systems, Level Eight Technology, Food Origins, iCode and Rooi Digital. Each team was given 25 minutes, including Q&A, to present their startup idea to a panel of 14 CEO/COOs from Ventura County. After a long deliberation, the panel selected Food Origin as the winner and iCode as the runner-up."
“Startup Ventura County has evolved into a powerful event attracting talented teams well on their way to commercializing a viable product,” comments Chris Meissner, Chair of SVC’s CEO Judge Panel. “Selecting the top 5 teams for the final round was difficult for the judges, but selecting the top two teams was exponentially more difficult. After an hour of deliberation, the 13 judges selected the winners but the process of weighing each team was exhausting. Each team had characteristics that made them contenders and all of the judges expressed a hunger to know the continuing story as the teams continue to mature. After the many hours we spent with them, it was clear to me that all of the judges have become emotionally vested and hope each team succeeds.”
“The competition provided fun and excitement but our mission was much more than that,” adds Martin Shum, organizer of SVC. “Once a year, we asked CEOs and senior executives of significant local companies as well as successful entrepreneurs to come together to mentor and advice entrepreneurs. We believe gaining access to decision makers, domain experts, industry veterans and entrepreneurs who have been there and done that are the ultimate value SVC provides to its participants."
Here are sample quotes from some of the SVC 2018 participants:
“The experience was invaluable, particularly the mentoring sessions. Thanks for organizing the event.” – Dr. Wilson Hago, Founder of Hago Energetics.
“On behalf of the RooiDigital team, we want to extend our thanks for hosting SVC event and including our company . Although we didn't win, the event was a success for our team because of the contacts we made and the advice and guidance we received from the mentors and judges. It was truly an enjoyable event that was productive and exciting.” – Dr. Daniel McLane, Rooi Digital.
“I am grateful for the opportunity. This is the first event we outright won after 3 years day and night work and soul searching. We commented to each other on the way home just how much of this was learning how to craft and share our message so people can get the shared vision.” – Nathan Dorn, Food Origins.
“I want to thank you guys, and the other members of your creative support team for an extremely well executed event. I gained a lot from the experience obtained through each mentoring session, and I’m still trying to figure out how I ended up doing as well as I did… What a great experience!!!” – Mark Mendenhall, iCode.
Startups Ventura County (SVC), formerly known as Startup Weekend Ventura County (SWVC), is an event founded in 2015 by the Camarillo Chamber of Commerce, Dignity Health St. Johns Hospitals, and the County of Ventura. It is supported by public and private organizations from across the county. The mission of Startups Ventura County is to ignite innovations and facilitate the launch of scalable technology startups in Ventura County with a focus on internet of things, health care and agriculture.
For details about Startups Ventura County 2018, please visit: http://startupsventuracounty.com or contact Camarillo Chamber of Commerce (805) 484-4383.
Gary Cushing, Camarillo Chamber of Commerce, +1 (805) 484-4383, [email protected]
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