The fourth edition of the Hawks' Nest business pitch competition took place this week, with over $40,000 collectively invested into local entrepreneurs.
The Dragons' Den-style show was held Wednesday in front of a packed house at the Hanover Civic Theatre.
The panel of investors, the "Hawks," included James Scongack of Bruce Power, Craig Beck from the Beck Auto Group, Peter Reid from Tibbs Management, Ryan Enright of the Cooperators, Bill Windsor of Windsor Hospitality and Amanda Farrell Walsh from Miller Insurance. Each committed to investing a minimum of $5,000 of their own corporate funds, but the amount went beyond that after seeing the pitches from this year's seven local businesses.
"The energy in the room was electric," said one of the event organizers. "The level of professionalism and passion these entrepreneurs brought was inspiring — and the Hawks responded in a big way."
Entrepreneurs that presented included Ryan Harris, owner of Artie Music Official; Devin Hannah, operator of the first official franchise partner of Cleaning Depot PBJ; Kourtney Spang, the founder and owner of The Barking Brew; Melissa Baumgartner, owner of Smile Wellness; Janice Campbell, the founder of PuppyROLO; and the team behind the startup TechCNC.
Wyatt Garren also presented his Defy the Odds Basketball training program in the youth entrepreneur category.
Over the course of the program, finalists also had the chance to receive invaluable mentorship, strategic advice, access to marketing resources, and were welcomed into the Hawks' powerful network of business connections.
The Hawks' Nest is presented by the Saugeen Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) and the Bruce Community Futures Development Corporation (Bruce CFDC).
The competition is designed to support local entrepreneurs and spark innovation throughout Grey County, Bruce County, Minto, Wellington North, and the City of Owen Sound.