Workshop will guide startups ‘making the pitch’ for investors

WEST CHESTER >> “The Art of the Pitch” will be the focus of a Dec. 11 Angel Venture Fair Workshop being presented by the Edwin Cottrell Entrepreneurial Leadership Center at West Chester University and the Chester County Economic Development Council’s Ideas x Innovation Network (i2n).

The event is designed for entrepreneurs and startup company founders who may be exploring angel funding, aspiring entrepreneurs, investors and those interested in supporting Chester County’s entrepreneurial community. It will be held from 8 to 11:30 a.m. at the West Chester University Graduate Center, 1160 McDermott Dr., West Chester.

“By hosting this workshop in Chester County, we think we can help startups better connect to regional resources,” said Monica Zimmerman, professor of management at West Chester University and executive director of the exec director of the Edwin Cottrell Entrepreneurial Leadership Center.

Attendees at the event will learn how to prepare a company for investment, how to craft a pitch and how to prepare for the annual Angel Venture Fair, to be held in Philadelphia in May 2019.

Moderated by Marc Kramer, executive director Private Investors Forum, Angel Venture Fair, the Dec. 11 event will be the second Angel Venture Fair workshop hosted in Chester County, according to Zimmerman.

“We hosted this workshop in January for the 2018 Angel

Venture Fair. It was so well received; the room wasn’t large enough to accommodate it. As a result, we decided to do it on an annual basis,” Zimmerman added.

One focus of the Cottrell Center, according to Zimmerman, is to create funding pathways for Chester County emerging growth companies.

“Being an educational institution, it’s important to assure companies and entrepreneurs are knowledgeable about angel capital. This event fits in that area,” she said.

The half-day workshop will include two panel discussions: Preparing to Pitch — Legal, Financial, and Business Considerations; and an Investor Panel — Making the Pitch to Investors.

This year’s workshop, according to Zimmerman, will also feature a two early stage companies making sample pitches.

“They aren’t asking for money, but sharing a pitch. We have a panel of investors who will be on hand to give feedback,” she said, adding that the segment is informational for both entrepreneurs and potential investors — to let each group know what to expect — whether they are giving or

hearing a pitch.

The workshop is designed to not only educate entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs, “but also to give those companies the knowledge they need to apply to present at the Angel Venture Fair,” Zimmerman added. “There are some common mistakes that early stage companies make when they present to potential investors. The feedback we give can help them can help them avoid making the mistakes.”

A bonus session, which follows the main workshop, will be “Meet Ben and i2N,” an information session about Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern PA and the Ideas x

Innovation Network (i2n).

Ideas x Innovation Network supports emerging growth businesses by leveraging the assets of academic institutions and the organization’s partners to create a network of physical and virtual resources.

For more than 30 years, Ben Franklin Technology Partners has been the leading seed stage capital provider for the region’s technology sectors, investing over $175 million in more than 1,750 regional technology companies.

Registration for the Dec. 11 Angel Venture Fair Workshop remains open, but Zimmerman said registration is limited to 75 participants.

For more information or to register visit https://www. eventbrite.com/e/angel-venture-fair-workshop-art-ofthe-pitch-tickets-522375439 00?aff=ebdssbdestsearch

The Edwin Cottrell Entrepreneurship Leadership Center fosters entrepreneurship across West Chester University and throughout Chester County by preparing students to contribute to the entrepreneurship ecosystem, providing access to a network of entrepreneurship resources and enhancing the startup and growth of new ventures.

The Angel Venture Fair, to be held in Philadelphia in May 2019, brings together of angel investors and entrepreneurs and has showcased more than 500 companies in the last 20 years.

• For more information about the Edwin Cottrell Entrepreneurship Leadership Center at West Chester University visit https:// www.wcupa.edu/businesspublicManagement/CottrellCenter.

• For more information about the Ideas x Innovation Network visit www. i2npa.org.

• For more information about Ben Franklin Technology Partners visit https://www.sep.benfranklin.org.

SUBMITTED PHOTOS Entrepreneurs and investors can find out more about “The Art of the Pitch” during a Dec. 11 Angel Venture Fair Workshop. Presented by the Edwin Cottrell Entrepreneurial Leadership Center at West Chester University and the Chester County Economic Development Council’s Ideas x Innovation Network (i2n), the event will be held at West Chester University. It is the second Angel Fair workshop for the university. In this photo, Marc Kramer, executive director, Private Investors Forum, addresses attendees at the inaugural January workshop. Kramer will moderate the December event as well.

Entrepreneurs and investors can find out more about “The Art of the Pitch” during a Dec. 11 Angel Venture Fair Workshop at West Chester University. It is the second Angel Fair workshop for the university. This photo shows some of the 75 attendees at the inaugural January workshop.