150 submissions for Venture Engine 2015

Venture Engine 2015 closed the Open Call for business plans from Sri Lankan entrepreneurs with a record number of 150 applications being submitted, as start-up companies hope to be the next success story in the lineup of over 20 businesses already funded through the program.

This year’s submissions covered a wide range of sectors including Food Technology and Processing, Ayurvedic and Healthcare, Education, Design, Gaming, Chemical and Fertilisers, IT and Ecommerce, Social Media, Tourism and Hospitality, Bio Tech and Logistics, reinforcing the programs proven strength in providing support to multiple types of businesses and industry segments in the past.

With a well-honed process in place, Venture Engine is moving full speed ahead to the next stages of the competition. The plans will be evaluated by an eminent judging panel comprising representatives from the Lankan Angel Network (LAN), the Indian Angel Network (IAN) and Blue Ocean Ventures (BOV) along with the event sponsors, who carefully assessed each plan’s merits.

Following the evaluation process the top submissions will be called into the next round. The selected teams and individuals will come in for a two minute pitch to the panel followed by a question and answer session. Subsequent to the pitch the top plans will go into the workshop sessions.

“Even though we try to set ourselves some targets for the number of businesses we select for each round, in practice we have always put forward every business that we see merit in, thus creating more opportunities for entrepreneurs to gain from the entire processes of pitching to experienced investors, mentoring and workshops. Even if they do not make it to the finals, our goal is to try and help as many start-ups as possible to gain from the program,” said Blue Ocean Ventures Co-Founder Prajeeth Balasubramanium.

The feedback and exposure that each person gains is designed to empower entrepreneurship in a very practical way, even the simple act of putting down your business plan for the submission process is designed to help focus your thoughts and ideas, he added.

Conceptualised by BOV in collaboration with the IAN, Venture Engine looks to give budding entrepreneurs unrestricted access to big-name investors by providing them with a highly visible platform for their ideas.

Supporting the event for the fourth consecutive year are platinum sponsors Expolanka Holdings Plc and Orion City as well as Silver Sponsor Dialog and Strategic Partner the Lankan Angel Network. The continued backing of these industry heavyweights further solidifies the stature of this event.

For more information on Venture Engine visit www.ventureengine.lk