The Panel: A Word of Advice From the Judges
The EC’s first ever Panel &Pitch: Consumder Goods Edition, sponsored by Dell for Startups and GPSources, kicked off with a panel from the judges answering a Q&A. Joining host Elliot Markuson from GPSources were Judith Bright, founder of Judith Bright Jewelry, Johanna Blankush, Senior Vice President of Non-Consumables at Dollar General, and Darek Bell, founder and owner of Corsair Distillery.
The judges began the panel by speaking on why Nashville is the best place to start a business. “Nashville has a secret sauce,” says Judith, “If you have a great idea people will genuinely support you.” The judges continued to advise on scaling your business as Johanna Blankush said, “Do your research and understand who the customer is and why your product is different.” Finally, when asked on what to consider when looking for investors, Darek Bell advises to “hold on to as much of your company as you can.”
Time to Pitch!
During this portion of the event, four businesses competed in a pitching contest to be the judge’s choice and the crowd favorite. The contestants had three minutes to pitch their business and two minutes to answer the judges’ questions.
Meet The Businesses!
- Filterjoy: an air filter delivery service that delivers easy to replace air filters right to your door!
- Trace Femcare: a clinically and environmentally safe tampon subscription service that uses farm sourced materials and gives back directly to black indigenous and female farmers who grow the materials needed for the tampons.
- Twisted Sistuhs: owned by veteran women of color, this twist-off wine company produces vegan wine with low-tannin content to prevent wine induced headaches.
- Walker Brothers Kombucha: a premium craft kombucha company producing unpasteurized, open fermented, and consistently carbonated kombucha.
And the Winners are…
- Judge’s Choice ($1K) – Trace Femcare
- Crowd Favorite (3 Month EC coworking membership) – Twisted Sistuhs
