Applicants sought for Dubuque County entrepreneurship competition

An entrepreneurship competition seeks to match local startups and existing businesses with possible funding sources and mentors.

The Dubuque County Business Competition, organized by The Innovation Lab and supported by Dupaco Community Credit Union, seeks applicants for a competition that will occur Feb. 1 at The Innovation Lab, 210 Jones St., according to a press release.

The release states that each participating entrepreneur will receive $250 in seed funding, with an opportunity to receive additional funding to fuel their business growth.

The competition will start with a funding fair event at 5 p.m. Feb. 1. Finalists will have a booth to display their business information and concepts, and fair attendees will listen to pitches from each business and vote for their favorite concept.

A panel of expert judges also will hear and score pitches. The businesses that receive the top five judges’ scores will be selected to pitch at a live pitch event. The business that generates the most crowd votes also earns a spot in the live pitch event.

Six finalists will take the stage at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 1 to deliver five-minute pitches.

After an evaluation by judges, the top three businesses receive seed funding of $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second place, and $2,750 for third place.

Visit innovationlab.us/dbqbizcomp to apply.