FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, November 15th

Winners of the StartUp Cup Business Model Competition Have Been Announced

Richard Conniff, Heidi Diamond, Alice Fenton & Santa Clara County StartUp Cup First Place winner, Open Medicine Institute founder, Andreas Kogelnik

San Jose, CA – The top three winning business models have been announced from over 50 applicants who first submitted their business model ideas to Santa Clara County StartUp Cup Business Model Competition in April.

The first place winner is Open Medicine Institute. The Open Medicine Institute (OMI) is a new model for re-designing healthcare and research by combining social networking, information technology, genomics/biotechnology and clinical medicine. OMI is building a sharable database and aligned biobank infrastructure with incentives to help engage patients and healthcare providers, lower costs in medicine, improve the quality of clinical practice, and accelerate research and clinical trials.

The second place winner is Zooni Leathers. Zooni Leathers is the manufacturer of the world’s finest custom motorcycle racing leather suits. Their products are of good quality, have a lifetime warranty, and have been crash tested several times. As a result, they have established their business reputation of making world-class leather suits among their customers and the motorcyle industry.

The third place winner is Camp Fashionista. Camp Fasionista is a unique fashion design school for children and young adults that provides classes in sewing, pattern making, and fashion illustration, allowing budding designers to take their first steps into the exciting world of fashion design.

This was the first year for the Santa Clara County StartUp Cup, part of a growing global network of StartUp Cup Business Model Competitions.

 “It has been a pleasure to see the dedication and determination these entrepreneurs have shown in this process as they have worked with the advice of the judges and coaches to make their business model the very best it could be.”

Alice Fenton, Organizer, Santa Clara County StartUp Cup Business Model Competition

The StartUp Cup Business Model Competition process was born in Silicon Valley and proven in Tulsa, Oklahoma over the past six years. The competition has been fine-tuned based upon feedback from participating entrepreneurs, judges, coaches, entrepreneurial services providers, and community leaders.

For more information about the Santa Clara County StartUp Cup Business Model Competition and resource information, visit www.scc.startupcup.com).

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

Alice Fenton

408.307.6281

 afenton.2000@gmail.com

By Sean Griffin

CEO and Founder, Startup Cup

The following is a guest commentary for CNBC.com.

An entrepreneurial ecosystem has sprouted in what some would say is a most unexpected community. It has all the elements of a large city effort, including support for technology startups as well as the 98 percent of startups that are not technology-based.

Partnerships have been forged to include entrepreneurs and investors, government and private enterprise, professional and academic, and national and global programs. Short-term weekend programs and long-term multi-month programs, accelerator space and increased funding options have emerged. All of these efforts are focused on catering to entrepreneurs of varying degrees of experience in starting a new business, as well as those in various stages of business growth.

When we consider all of these efforts, thoughts of Boston, New York City, Chicago, Silicon Valley, or Liverpool come to mind. But Tulsa, Oklahoma is where this entrepreneurial ecosystem has grown, in much the same way any entrepreneurial endeavor grows, one step at a time, one program at a time.

Birth of An Idea

Tulsa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem development started as a casual conversation with our former Mayor at a local gathering place. As the conversation became more serious this was followed by an airplane trip to the Kauffman Foundation in 2006, and since then the idea has grown into a full blown entrepreneurial movement.

(More: The World’s Most Promising New Companies)

Our initial goal was to include as many people in the community as possible and showcase the opportunity to grow entrepreneurs and startups in Tulsa. We invited key players involved in economic development to rally around Entrepreneurship Week USA, at the time a new Kauffman Foundation program. This program is now known as Global Entrepreneurship Week.

We wanted to create a regional program that would inspire a new level of entrepreneurship and startup activity. We knew it would be critical to include everyone in the mix and were very deliberate to engage entrepreneurial service providers, higher education, and “raw” entrepreneurs in the process. With the focus on increasing the quality and quantity of new startups, the Tulsa Entrepreneurial Spirit Award business model competition was launched.

A Little Messy

Growing Tulsa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem has been more than a little messy, and like any startup it has also gone through its own growing pains. We had to stay focused, remain open to experimentation, be persistent, and work to showcase what was possible. Not everyone was on board. Proponents even challenged the approach and target audience. The debate was lively and allowed us to question every step and decision along the way. With mess comes the ability to evaluate and reorganize, and like we encourage any entrepreneur – test, learn, adapt.

Serving A Need

In conjunction with the Kauffman Foundation efforts, the entrepreneur and civic leaders of Tulsa have guided the City to inspire and foster an increase in the number of start-ups. Since introducing Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) and the Tulsa

Entrepreneurial Spirit Award Business Model Competition, now the Tulsa Community College StartUp Cup, the entrepreneurial landscape of Tulsa has emerged nationally as a recognized leader at fostering entrepreneurs.

As a result of the ongoing efforts to grow GEW in Tulsa, an entrepreneurial ecosystem has emerged, driving fresh economic growth and making the region and the state more competitive on a national level. Programs that have grown in Tulsa since 2006 include: TCC StartUp Cup, The Tulsey Awards, Startup Weekend Tulsa, TCC Launch Your Entrepreneurial Journey, Fab Lab Tulsa, The Forge, The Innovation Institute, OSU Entrepreneurial Bootcamp, OU Launchpad, SeedStep Angels, TEDxTulsa, Ignite Tulsa, and Tulsa Web Devs.

Onward and Upward

Like any growing startup we have to remain focused on the future. We are continually evolving Tulsa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem to meet the needs of our entrepreneurs where they are at in their business lifecycle. Creating a culture and environment where entrepreneurs are encouraged to take risks and innovate is critical. We work diligently to increase the number of people who participate in the entrepreneurial experience. We want to open entrepreneurship to everyone and anyone who has ever said, “I want to start my own company.”

(More: 11 Notable Entrepreneurs Teaching the Next Generation)

An ecosystem evolves because programs evolve. Many of our entrepreneurial programs have come and gone over the years, but the ones with staying power have evolved over time. An example of experimentation during Tulsa Global Entrepreneurship Week 2012, Startup Weekend Tulsa has partnered with the Tulsa Fire Department in an effort to engage people in emergency services with the desire to start their own business, but don’t have the right tools or mentoring to get their company off the ground. From this experiment we will take lessons learned and apply them to our ongoing efforts to encourage increased entrepreneurial and startup activity.

Tulsa – An Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in the Most Unlikely of Places

Tulsa has come a long way since those early days of entrepreneurial ecosystem building. Since 2006, more than twenty-three entrepreneurial programs and service centers have developed, supporting a diversity of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial efforts. The Tulsa Entrepreneurial Spirit Award has morphed into the StartUp Cup Business Model Competition and is now being replicated in communities around the world. Many StartUp Cups are announcing their winners during Global Entrepreneurship Week 2012. The TCC StartUp Cup, powered by the Lobeck Taylor Family Foundation, is a featured event of Global Entrepreneurship Week USA 2012, and new mentorship driven programming is already in development for launch in 2013.

Tulsa isn’t the only model for growing an entrepreneurial ecosystem, but it is a model communities around the world can emulate as a way to grow a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem. From a single program to an entire ecosystem, each is built just like a business, step-by-step. The first step is to have the idea, then take action. The next step is yours.

Sean Griffin is CEO and Founder of StartUp Cup, and serves as Chair of Entrepreneurial Initiatives for the City of Tulsa. 

By Khalida Sarwari

ksarwari@community-newspapers.com

Andy Kogelnik dreams of building a health care institute that combines genomics, bioinformatics and social networking.

He is well on his way to doing that at the inaugural Santa Clara County StartUp Cup, a West Valley College-sponsored competition open to entrepreneurs who want to take an idea to market or grow an existing new business. Kogelnik’s company, Open Medicine Institute, is only a year and a half old, but he has hopes of someday reaching tens of thousands of people.

“StartUp Cup seemed like a great opportunity to solidify what we were doing from a business sense,” he said. “It was a way of getting our model road-tested and validated from experts from the business side and see how viable of a model it was.”

The competition began in April with a pool of 25 business ideas with the potential for the greatest success. Out of that number, 12 were chosen to advance to the second round in September. Now, of the remaining seven, three will be chosen as winners in the third and final round on Nov. 1.

Entrepreneurs advance based on how good their pitch is in each round. The first pitch was seven minutes long, the second five minutes and the final pitch will be two minutes. Each time, the judges–a panel of eight to 10 seasoned professionals–ask the entrepreneurs questions and give them suggestions on how they can make their business model a success.

Throughout the process, the judges and coaches see whether the entrepreneurs

have taken the feedback they were given and integrated it into their business model.

In between pitches, the entrepreneurs receive coaching advice from expert mentors on understanding customer development, bootstrap funding techniques, team development and revenue generation. They also give the entrepreneurs tips on how to improve their plan as well as pitching techniques.

Some of the judges in the competition are Dan Gordon, owner of Gordon Biersch Brewery; Bruce Knopf, the county’s director of asset and economic development; and Kris Stadelman, director of Nova.

“Through the seven-month process, the entrepreneurs are rewarded for testing assumptions they make in the beginning,” said organizer Alice Fenton. “They’re encouraged by the judges and coaches to take their idea to market.”

At the conclusion of the competition, the judges will select the top three business models, which will be announced on Nov. 15 at an awards celebration during Global Entrepreneurship Week. The winners of StartUp Cup will receive targeted coaching time focused on their business model needs; the first place winner will receive 20 hours, second place, 15 hours and third place, 10 hours.

The event will be held at West Valley College, where the coaching sessions have been held. StartUp’s founder Sean Griffin is expected to attend the ceremony.

“We target the underserved majority, the people who have an idea for a business and don’t have an opportunity to pursue it because they haven’t had a venue to pursue it,” Fenton said. “Not only is it helping entrepreneurs, but it’s also helping businesses in the community.”

The other six businesses offer a wide range of products and services.

• Vintage Electric, started by West Valley College student Andrew Davidge, provides high-performance electric bikes for everyday commuter and recreational use.

• Betty’s Butterflies Day Care is a bilingual, multicultural day care that employs the Healthy Roots program and Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move program, focused on raising healthy children.

• Peekaboo Creations is a company that offers fun, safe and stylish children’s products, specializing in sleeping napmats.

• Santa Clara Play Time is an indoor play space designed for children to be active and creative while developing the skills to share, negotiate and resolve conflict.

• Camp Fashionista is a unique fashion design school for children and young adults.

• ZOONI Leathers is a manufacturer of custom motorcycle racing leather suits.

For more information about the Santa Clara County StartUp Cup Business Model competition, visit www.scc.StartUpCup.com.

Santa Clara County, CA – The Top 7 business models have been selected from the previous round of 12 Semifinalist contestants to move on to the final round of the Santa Clara County StartUp Cup Business Model Competition. Participants will continue to receive invaluable business advice and insights from coaches and judges through the remainder of the competition.

The Top 7 Finalists are: Betty’s Butterflies Day Care, Camp Fashionista, Open Medicine Institute, Peekaboo Creations, S.C. Play Time, Vintage Electric, and ZOONI Leathers.

”We are proud to be a sponsor of the SCC StartUp Cup Business Model Competition. I am especially delighted to see Andrew Davidge, Vintage Electric, a graduate of the West Valley College Entrepreneur Academy and a current student, as one of the Top 7 finalists who are creating new jobs in our valley”, said Bradley Davis, President, West Valley College.

West Valley College has stepped up as a Sponsor of the SCC StartUp Cup Competition by hosting the coaching sessions in their facilities. Their generosity has provided an excellent environment for the interactions between coaches and entrepreneurs to take place.

The Top 7 Finalists will work with select business coaches who will provide resources and expertise to help hone their business model and pitching techniques. The entrepreneurs will present their refined business models and give a two-minute pitch to the judges on November 1, 2012.

The first, second, and third place winners will be announced on November 15, 2012 at an Awards Ceremony during Global Entrepreneurship Week. While there will be no monetary awards given to the winners, the value received during the process is in excess of $70,000 worth of knowledge and expertise from the judges and coaches. The Santa Clara County StartUp Cup winners will receive targeted coaching time focusing on their business model needs; first place 20 hours, second place 15 hours, and third place 10 hours.

Santa Clara County StartUp Cup Judges Announce Top 7 Finalists

Santa Clara County, CA – The Top 7 business models have been selected from the previous round of 12 Semifinalist contestants to move on to the final round of the Santa Clara County StartUp Cup Business Model Competition. Participants will continue to receive invaluable business advice and insights from coaches and judges through the remainder of the competition.

The Top 7 Finalists are: Betty’s Butterflies Day Care, Camp Fashionista, Open Medicine Institute, Peekaboo Creations, S.C. Play Time, Vintage Electric, and ZOONI Leathers.

”We are proud to be a sponsor of the SCC StartUp Cup Business Model Competition. I am especially delighted to see Andrew Davidge, Vintage Electric, a graduate of the West Valley College Entrepreneur Academy and a current student, as one of the Top 7 finalists who are creating new jobs in our valley”, said Bradley Davis, President, West Valley College.

West Valley College has stepped up as a Sponsor of the SCC StartUp Cup Competition by hosting the coaching sessions in their facilities. Their generosity has provided an excellent environment for the interactions between coaches and entrepreneurs to take place.

The Top 7 Finalists will work with select business coaches who will provide resources and expertise to help hone their business model and pitching techniques. The entrepreneurs will present their refined business models and give a two-minute pitch to the judges on November 1, 2012.

About Startup Cup

StartUp Cup is a global network of locally driven business model competitions open to any type of business idea. StartUp Cup can be replicated in any community and is a proven model to create viable businesses, grow jobs, and enhance entrepreneurial ecosystems. For information visit StartUpCup.com.

Is Doubt Holding You Back?

By Sean Griffin
Thursday, August 30th, 2012

Doubt can have a very powerful negative influence on one’s ability to achieve personal and business goals. When we find ourselves doubting our abilities we can be stopped from reaching for our full potential, from living our dreams, or from going for what we want to create in our lives. All of us have doubts about what we can do, who we can be, what we can achieve. The difference is that those who achieve what they want in life have figured out how to overcome their doubts.

Doubt is an obstacle to achieving your personal & business goals

•Doubt creates barriers that prevent us from moving forward with an action that can improve our lives.
•Doubt blocks that which inspires us to be more creative and to think differently.
•Doubt prevents us from developing new ideas and solutions to business or personal challenges.
•Doubt increases when influenced by people who have let doubts run their lives.
•Doubt can keep you from acting on that in which you believe.
•Doubt is a sure fire way to prevent your dreams and desires from becoming a reality.

If you say to yourself, “I can’t do this,” or “I’m not really able to be successful in this venture,” the outcome of what you believe will come true. Instead, say to yourself, “I can do it!,” and “I can do anything I set my mind to do!”

Overcoming doubt

•Consciously stop negative thinking and focus your mind on creating and believing in what you want to achieve.
•Disregard and avoid negative people along with any of their advice.
•Focus your attention on people who are interested in your success and will give you positive and constructive encouragement.
•Block out doubt and replace it with, “I can do it!”
•Surround yourself with positive successful people.
•Connect with motivated positive people, which will give you the opportunity to increase your learning and experience traits that produce results.

The more you want to be successful and the more you believe in yourself, the more likely you are to overcome your tendency to doubt your ability to succeed.

“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any one thing.”

–Abraham Lincoln–

In the end no one can overcome your doubts for you. Only you can do it. Never give up! When you take the steps to consciously face your doubts head on and work to replace them with what is possible, you will be on your way to achieving your hopes and dreams for the future.

Global Entrepreneurship Week announced StartUp Cup as a featured event during its annual celebration of entrepreneurship. Three local StartUp Cup efforts, Tulsa, Okla., Santa Clara County, CA, and Cairo, Egypt will be highlighted.

“Startups are an essential element to any entrepreneurial ecosystem—they bring ideas to life, creating jobs and expanding economies around the world,” said Jonathan Ortmans, President of Global Entrepreneurship Week. “The StartUp Cup enables any community or country to not only uncover promising new firms, but to help cultivate the entrepreneurs behind them.”

All three local StartUp Cups will conclude their business model competitions during Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) – November 12-18, 2012.

“We are thrilled to be highlighted by Global Entrepreneurship Week and honored to be a featured event,” said Sean Griffin, CEO and Founder of StartUp Cup. “The StartUp Cup award celebration is the culmination of multiple months of the business model competition and has been specifically designed to support enhancing local Global Entrepreneurship Week celebrations.”

On November 13, 2012, after participating in an intensive seven-month competitive business building process, the winners of the Tulsa Community College StartUp Cup, sponsored by the Lobeck Taylor Family Foundation, will be announced during TulsaGEW.

The objective of the Cairo StartUp Cup is to facilitate the establishment of at least 100 new startup companies that have the potential to create jobs in Egypt. The winning Cairo StartUp Cup teams will be recognized based on real business results, and will be announced during Global Entrepreneurship Week on November 15, 2012.

Santa Clara County StartUp Cup will host their business model competition celebration on November 15, 2012 where the first, second and third place winners will be announced.

About Startup Cup
StartUp Cup is an international grassroots, locally driven, business model competition open to anyone with any type of business idea. Entrepreneurs receive coaching and mentoring from local seasoned entrepreneurs and business leaders throughout the competition. This proven model to build businesses and create jobs can be replicated in any community. For more information visit startupcup.com.