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Venture Support

Kootenay Investment Challenge

Kootenay Investment Challenge

A place-based edition of Spring Activator’s Investor Challenge—building a culture of early-stage angel investing and purpose-driven entrepreneurship in the Kootenay Region.

The Kootenay Investment Challenge is a 10-week online program in the fall of 2022 facilitated by Spring Activator that brings together investment-ready tech entrepreneurs and investors looking to impact the local community.

Did you miss the Pitch Finale? You can watch it now!

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Program Overview

Participants of the entrepreneur cohort will learn the fundamentals of seeking investor funding, build out their data room and develop an investor-ready pitch.

Meanwhile, the investor cohort will learn how to assess a startup’s investment worthiness, conduct proper due diligence and learn the foundations of angel investing. The Challenge will conclude with the investor cohort selecting one Kootenay region entrepreneur to receive an angel investment.

This collaborative initiative between Spring Activator and the Kootenay Association for Science and Technology (KAST) is funded in partnership with the British Columbia Rural Dividend Fund.

Challenge Details

The Kootenay Investment Challenge provides the opportunity for entrepreneurs to learn about funding fundamentals and how to build a data room through the initial Investment Readiness Training (IRT).

Upon completion of the IRT portion of the program, all entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to compete in the first pitch event, where the investor cohort will choose the top 3-4 businesses that will move on to compete in the final pitch event 5 weeks later.

During the 5 weeks prior to the final pitch event, the entrepreneur and investor cohorts will intersect to learn/work collaboratively through the due diligence portion of the program.

Frequently Asked Questions

Session Topics

Investing 101 & Preparing for Pitch Night
Initial Pitch Night
Investment Evaluation Kick-Off
Due Diligence and Regional Investing Trends
Financial Due Diligence
Negotiation & Valuation
Due Diligence Team Presentations
Demo Day: Pitch Finale
Post-Investment & Closing

What You Will Learn

The Foundations of Early-Stage Investing
Financial Due Diligence
Understanding Returns
How to Select Investment Opportunities
Deal Mechanics

Tangible Outcomes

All participating investors will complete the program by having made an angel investment in a Kootenay region tech startup.

Participant Selection Criteria

A seasoned investor curious to learn more about impact investing
An experienced entrepreneur interested in investing
A corporate or new career individual, purpose-driven
Local professionals looking to stay up to date on innovation and learn about investing

Program Cost

A one-time program fee of $1,275 + GST that covers
- All the administration, legal support, and course fee associated with the program and investment vehicle
- First-year membership to the Spring Investing Collective ($500 value)

Early-bird: program fee of $975 + GST (if you register before August 19)
Paid upon registration to the program
Investor alumni can join any future Spring Investor Challenge free of charge (no program fee, only the investment commitment)

Investor Investment Commitment

An investment commitment of:
- $10,000 for accredited investors
- $2,500 for non-accredited investors

Example: An accredited investor would pay a $975 early bird fee and then make a pre-committed investment of $10,000. The total cash participation of that investor will be $10,975

Session Topics

Fundraising Fundamentals, Due Diligence, and Data Rooms
Sales Strategies
Marketing Fundamentals
Honing Your Pitch
Financial Forecasts
Legal (Terms and Captables)

What You Will Learn

Understanding funding fundamentals & how to pitch effectively
How to prepare a solid due diligence (data room) package
How to efficiently share your sales and growth strategy
Preparing for legal terms, deal terms, and valuation

Tangible Outcomes

All businesses will complete the Investment Readiness Training portion of the Challenge with:

An understanding of what a data room is and what information is required
A pitch deck and pitch
Up to two hours of one-on-one coaching related to due diligence and pitching
Participation in a pitch event

Participant Selection Criteria

Local Impact: place-based economic development
Stage: pre-seed to seed stage with indicators of traction
Team: strong team commitment and diversity
Potential for Scale: looking to raise between $100K – $1M on average
Location: your tech venture is based anywhere in the Kootenays or, if you are outside of the Kootenay region, demonstrated ties within the region

Program Cost

The Kootenay Investment Challenge and Investment Readiness Training programs are free to participating entrepreneurs. We only ask that businesses that join are committed to attending sessions, come prepared, and engage with other participant

Session Topics

Entrepreneur Welcome & Orientation
Investing 101 & Preparing for Pitch Night
Initial Pitch Night
Investment Evaluation Kick-Off
Due Diligence and Regional Investing Trends
Financial Due Diligence
Negotiation & Valuation
Due Diligence Team Presentations
Demo Day: Pitch Finale
Post-Investment & Closing

What You Will Learn

Understanding the Investor Mindset
Polishing Up Your Pitch
The Investor Evaluation Process
Deal Mechanics & Understanding Returns

Tangible Outcomes

A built-out data room
Participation in the grand finale pitch event
One entrepreneur will receive an angel investment

Participant Selection Criteria

- Local Impact: place-based economic development
- Stage: pre-seed to seed stage with indicators of traction
- Team: strong team commitment and diversity
- Potential for Scale: looking to raise between $100K – $1M on average
- Location: your tech venture is based anywhere in the Kootenays or, if you are outside of the Kootenay region, demonstrated ties within the region

At the initial pitch event, the investor cohort will select their top 3-4 entrepreneurs to continue in the Challenge and participate in the final pitch five weeks later.

Program Cost

The Kootenay Investment Challenge and Investment Readiness Training programs are free to participating entrepreneurs. We only ask that businesses that join are committed to attending sessions, come prepared, and engage with other participant

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