Deadline: June 30, 2015
She Leads Africa is calling all female-led, high-growth start-ups/businesses to enter for its SLAPITCH 2015 Competition. The She Leads Africa business pitch competition provides a platform for the most promising female entrepreneurs in Africa to connect to prominent mentors, business funding and new market opportunities.
The top applicants will be invited to Lagos to pitch their business ideas in front of a panel of notable business personalities for the chance to win more than $55,000.
Eligibility
- Start-ups with at least one woman on the founding team between the ages of 18 and 35.
- Start-ups that have received less than $50,000 in funding.
- Start-ups less than than 3 years old.
- Start-ups focused on the African market or diaspora.
- Start-ups that have already begun operations. Entrepreneurs at the idea stage are not eligible to apply.
- You do not need to be African to apply but you must be doing business on the continent.
- Nonprofits and NGOs are ineligible but businesses with a social mission or CSR programs integrated into their businesses are eligible.
Prizes
- More than $55,000 in cash and in kind.
- Prizes including legal services, tablets and computers & data subscriptions.
- Exclusive meetings with angel investors, prominent venture capitalists and other leading professional mentors and sponsors.
How to Apply
- Complete the online form . (At the bottom of the application page, there are useful tips to help you put together a superb application, please take a look at them).
- Submit a 1 minute pitch video. This video needs to express why your business is unique and interesting. The video does not need to be professional, you can take it on your phone or from your computer.
- Submit a pitch deck. (Upload Pitch Deck here). A pitch deck is a brief presentation, typically created using PowerPoint, Keynote or Prezi, that tells the story of your business in a simple but compelling way. The pitch deck should be able to convince someone that your business is an innovative idea, is serving a legitimate need, and is making great progress.
The Pitch Deck
Your pitch deck should not be longer than 10-15 slides. Your pitch deck should answer the following questions
- Your vision: What do you do? How do you do it? Why do you do it?
- The problem: Tell a personal story that defines the problem that your product solves. What does your product do? Why does the market care?
- The solution: Discuss why your product is the solution and what sets it apart from anything else in the marketplace.
- Your track record: Share growth statistics, including notable client wins, milestones met to date and total number of customers.
- Your business model: Detail how you plan to make money. Keep it simple and be specific.
- The growth plan: Show how you plan to grow by leaps and bounds and how you will position your product for market dominance. Use sales and growth data (real and projected) to show why your startup is like a coiled spring ready to pop.
- Your team: Talk about your top-notch team and why they’re uniquely positioned to address the problem your product solves, while building a large, disruptive business.
- Your investment needs: Expound on what you need in detail. How much money do you want to raise? How exactly will you use it? If you’ve already raised some capital or have notable investors and advisors, explain who invested, what they invested (money, time, advice), why they got on board, and how you’re using their money (or expertise).
Application Support: On May 22,2015 SLA will host a Google Hangout with our co-founders to answer any questions you may have on putting together a successful application. You can RSVP here: Putting Together A Great Pitch Application.
All applicants will be notified of their application status by July 20, 2015.
For more information, visit She Leads Africa. Questions can be sent to [email protected] with “Pitch Competition 2015” in the subject line.
