Well, what a night!
If you haven’t heard of PitchClub (www.pitchclub.biz); Entrepreneurs, investors, and service providers are invited along to meet for some drinks and networking. However, unlike other networking events, PitchClub has a bit of a twist . Firstly, ten entrepreneurs give their 90-second “elevator pitch”, of which each attendee is able to vote for. Once the votes are tallied, the top three “pitchers” go into the “second round”, where they present a five-minute pitch. From there a winner is selected. I thought the idea sounded like a great opportunity and a fun night, so I convinced my father and good friend Andy to come along.
Once we arrived at Digital Harbour where PitchClub was being hosted, we signed in, grabbed some drinks, and started chatting. I noticed on the white board a lack of ten names, and when I spoke to James Tuckerman, founder of Anthill Magazine (www.anthillonline.com), I mentioned I might be interested in filling a spot. One thing lead to another, and during the fifth pitch, I made my way to the front to ask Peter Christo for a spot. He told me that I could go between five and six, and since at the time I had lost count, I had to ask when that was… “Now”. And so it began.
I threw myself up on stage and started my pitch. Since many of my own idea’s were too early to pitch, I decided to pitch my parents business Global Travel Products. The main purpose was to seek interest from any potential investors, and also spread the word of their great business. The pitch went well, and I enjoyed it a lot. Much to my surprise, after the votes were counted, I had come third. Since the fourth-place was so close, the top three became the top four, and four of us did our five minute pitch.
Since my first pitch was completely unprepared, my father and Andy helped me take some notes on what should be mentioned. My pitch ended up extending to over seven minutes, mainly due to a lengthy Q&A. Also, I had to mention the 15%-discount promotion code that we had yet to setup, “PITCHCLUB” (www.globaltravelproducts.com.au).
After the winner was announced, and everyone had a chance to get back to networking, I found myself inundated with enquires from potential suppliers and service providers as well as attendees that simply wanted to say congratulations. My father and I collected quite a few business cards, which will hopefully open up many opportunities for the future.
It was a great night, and I can’t wait for the next one.