Waterville, ME 6/15/2022 – Dirigo Labs, Maine’s newest accelerator, will be hosting a pitch competition for its cohort companies at Colby College on Tuesday, June 21 from, 5-8 pm. The competition will highlight each company’s product or service and judge pitches based on each company’s pitch delivery, capital strategy, and impact on entrepreneurship in Maine.
Twelve companies will each have 5 minutes to present their company to a panel of judges for a chance to win the $25,000 cash prize sponsored by Skowhegan Savings Bank. “Dirigo Labs’ pitch competition will bring the most promising entrepreneurs together in one event that will display the businesses they are building from the ground up,” states Dirigo Labs Managing Director Susan Ruhlin.
“Leveraging both local and national mentors, Dirigo Labs has continued to empower its startups to refine their pitches, highlight their unique value propositions, and celebrate their contributions to Maine’s entrepreneurial landscape,” elaborates Central Maine Growth Council Director of Planning, Innovation, and Economic Development Garvan Donegan. “We invite the community to attend this competition to meet our cohort companies and commemorate their incredible growth and development.”
“It’s exciting for me as a lender, and the bank, to see what may become of some of these very impressive entrepreneurs,” said Steve Thomas, SVP Senior Commercial Lender. “Skowhegan Savings has been serving Maine business customers for over 150 years; we are personally invested in the state – we want to see the state be successful. I think that the Dirigo Labs program will help develop central Maine, and our foundation looks forward to presenting the winner with that $25,000 check to take their business to the next level.”
Companies who will be participating in the pitch competition include:
BigNerve Inc dba MaineNerve LLC
Alfred, ME
An online community think tank open to anyone, built upon fun idea challenge tournaments, for creative, imaginative people to help solve problems big and small, and get better at innovating. Earn prize money and funding and start new projects together.
Brunswick, ME
An aerospace company reducing the environmental impact of the space industry with their proprietary bio-fueled, hybrid rockets and democratizing access to space with dedicated and frequent suborbital and orbital launches for small satellites.
Waterville, ME
Proprietary genetic testing and colony planning expertise providing clear guidance for the breeding, management, and selection of laboratory animals used in academic and biomedical research.
Canaan, ME
Artisan pizza dough manufacturing using 100% freshly milled grains from Maine with a commitment to providing workforce development training to Mainers with unique needs.
Waterville, ME
A medical device company developing a product for ostomy bag patients using sensor technology to signal capacity limits.
Winthrop, ME
Patent-pending motorized and steerable floating picnic tables found across lakes and ponds in Maine and New England.
Brunswick, ME
Value add manufacturer of the Ocean Harvest Bag®, a bag woven from biodegradable, compostable fiber designed explicitly for the harvest and distribution of shellfish and produce.
Rockland, ME
Luxury, cannabis confections for women by women, made with vegan, gluten-free, and ethically sourced ingredients from the U.S.
Waterville, ME
Software as a service (SaaS) platform using AI to synthesize public technical data into an organized and searchable interface to help users find potential mineral assets, analyze technical reports, and make informed decisions.
Dresden, ME
SaaS platform with patented solutions for businesses to transform static web images into unique, interactive pathways leading to multimedia stories, social sharing, and convenient purchasing options, increasing engagement rates, and revenue while personalizing experiences, ultimately building brand loyalty.
Milford, ME
SaaS platform that improves tenant screening while building renter’s credit scores to help landlords and tenants work together to create closer communities.
Providence, RI & Waterville, ME
SaaS platform that helps diverse youth find a career through rich, personal stories and helps companies drive racial and ethnic diversity in their talent pipelines.
To learn more about Dirigo Labs’ pitch competition and how you can attend in person, please visit https://tinyurl.com/2p82dhzm. For startups and potential mentors interested in learning more about Dirigo Labs, please visit www.dirigolabs.org.
About Dirigo Labs:
Dirigo Labs is a regional startup accelerator based in Waterville, Maine. With a mission to grow the greater Waterville area’s digital economy by supporting entrepreneurs building innovation-based companies, the Dirigo Labs ecosystem brings together people, resources, and organizations to ensure the successful launch of new startups. Dirigo Labs operates under Central Maine Growth Council and is supported by several organizations, academic institutions, and investment firms. To learn more about Dirigo Labs, please visit www.dirigolabs.org.
About Skowhegan SavingsSkowhegan Savings Bank has been dedicated to strengthening Maine’s families, businesses, and communities by providing personalized and competitive banking services to the regions they serve for over 150 years. An independent mutual savings bank based in Skowhegan, our mission is to provide customers with exceptional service in an innovative banking environment that effectively and efficiently puts the financial needs of the customer first. Skowhegan Savings takes pride in not only being a great place to bank but also a great place to work. For more information about Skowhegan Savings, please visit Skowhegan.com or contact our Customer Service line at 800.303.9511.
Waterville, ME 5/31/2022 – Maine Venture Fund is proud to announce a new partnership with Dirigo Labs, a startup accelerator launched by the Central Maine Growth Council, to increase capital investment into companies located in central Maine. Dirigo Labs will provide MVF with “boots on the ground” in the region and develop a channel through which companies can learn about the equity financing options available from MVF. In turn, MVF will participate in Dirigo Labs accelerator programming and work directly with companies to help them understand the fundraising process and identify sources of capital in Maine and beyond, including but not limited to Maine Venture Fund itself.
Dr. Brien Walton, MVF Board Chair, stated, “Partnering with Dirigo Labs follows the MVF Board’s strategic priority of expanding impact across Maine. As a lean team, MVF can be more efficient by working to support existing regional partners rather than recreating those resources. The relationship with Dirigo Labs and the Central Maine Growth Council is a perfect example of this type of partnership, to better connect the state’s resources with dynamic leaders on the front lines of growing central Maine’s economy.”
Susan Ruhlin of Dirigo Labs agreed. “As Maine’s venture capital fund, it made sense to ally with Maine Venture Fund to ensure that participating Dirigo Labs startups have direct access to state funding that seeks to support high growth companies. Maine Venture Fund’s demonstrated success in the state over the past 25 years bolsters the potential for new economic development organizations like Dirigo Labs to gain a foothold and thrive over the next 25 years in better serving the central Maine region.”
MVF is already engaging with several of the companies enrolled in the Dirigo Labs inaugural accelerator class in a range of activities from general fundraising education to capital investment evaluation. MVF expects to leverage the newly announced MVF Microfund program to offer a wider range of equity funding options to the companies at Dirigo Labs and in the wider central Maine region.
About Dirigo Labs:
Dirigo Labs is a regional startup accelerator based in Waterville, Maine. With a mission to grow the greater Waterville area’s digital economy by supporting entrepreneurs building innovation-based companies, the Dirigo Labs ecosystem brings together people, resources, and organizations to ensure the successful launch of new startups. Dirigo Labs operates under Central Maine Growth Council and is supported by several organizations, academic institutions, and investment firms. To learn more about Dirigo Labs, please visit www.dirigolabs.org.
About Maine Venture Fund:
Maine Venture Fund invests in dynamic businesses that have the potential for significant growth and impact in Maine. The Fund has invested over $25 million in Maine companies since 1997, after its creation by an act of the Maine Legislature as a revolving “evergreen” state-sponsored fund. For more information, visit maineventurefund.com.
Last modified: June 15, 2022
