The Cannabiz Pitch Competition Series

Heady Vermont presents The Cannabiz Pitch Competition, in which Vermont startups and entrepreneurs pitch their respective businesses to five judges in a ‘shark tank’ style event with a $1,000 cash prize for the winner.

With the overall interest in cannabis growing rapidly and more legal cannabis entrepreneurship in Vermont, Heady Vermont is organizing the first in a series of quarterly cannabis business pitch competitions that will award $1000 to a Vermont startup and/or entrepreneur(s) with a business, product, or service related to the cannabis plant.

The first cannabiz pitch competition will take place on Tuesday, November 14 at Main Street Landing with a reception starting at 6:00 p.m. in the Atrium and the Pitch Competition starting at 7:00 p.m. in the Black Box Theater. The event is being presented and coordinated by Heady Vermont with the sponsorship of Merritt & Merritt, KIND Consulting, and Main Street Landing.

The $1000 prize can be used to directly support any startup costs and fees, including personal expenses, transportation, or rent. The application for participating ganjapreneurs is free and presently available on the Heady Vermont website. A minimum of three, and maximum of five finalists will be selected to pitch to the judges, who will include established local entrepreneurs and investors with knowledge of the cannabis industry.

Heady Vermont co-founder and pitch competition moderator Eli Harrington says that there’s plenty of startup interest and that cannabis is an obvious next industry to succeed in Vermont.

“We had a great response at Hemp Fest from Vermonters of all ages who want to participate in the legal cannabis industry and we want to directly support that kind of creative economic growth and promote the idea of working landscapes in Vermont and Agricultural entrepreneurship. If you look at the recent history of Vermont, there are plenty of economic success stories from the craft beer and specialty food industries, so it’s not a question of if, but what kind of Vermont cannabis companies are successful.”

Already-established businesses must be less than three years old, but otherwise the only limitation placed on participating ganjapreneurs and the businesses, products, and services being pitched are the present Vermont statute(s). It is recommended that any/all CBD products being pitched have accompanying test results and that presenters be willing to disclose the legal origin of their CBD to the judges.

The event and preceding reception are free and open to the public and will include limited exhibitor tables, as well as refreshments.