Communications

Photo cutline:  Posing with the East 2 West Venture Competition winners from Pro-fit Performance Club Fitters is (left to right) Ben Harris, Board Member for Invest Nebraska Corporation, Rob Harshbarger, Software Developer, Jim White, Co-Developer, Dan Hoffman, Executive Director of Invest Nebraska Corporation, Greg Johannesen, PGA Teaching Professional/Club Fitter and Co-Developer, and Jason Petersen, Owner of Turbine Interactive and partner with Pro-fit Performance Club Fitting.

East 2 West Venture Competition Winner Announced

(Lincoln – November 18, 2011)  Invest Nebraska Corporation, a state-wide venture development organization, hosted its third annual East-2-West Venture Competition Friday at Talent Plus in Lincoln. Six finalists from around the state competed for the chance to win a $10,000 cash award plus the opportunity for a $50,000 equity investment.

The judges’ panel, composed of business leaders in Nebraska, deliberated for over an hour before announcing the winner as Pro-fit Performance Club Fitting, the most promising venture and winner of the competition.

The winning business was presented by Jim White, Greg Johannesen, Rob Harshbarger, and Jason Petersen of Lincoln.  The company specializes in an innovative patented software program for properly fitting golf clubs.  The team’s goal is to see that their product gets into the hands of professional golfers via a web-based system with tablet and mobile phone capabilities for interaction and a more customized fit, resulting in worldwide appeal.

“Winning is really going to allow us to take this to larger markets,” stated Jim White, partner in the business.  “We know it’s good and have been successful with it.  Converting to web-based is going to allow golf professionals and fitters with limited experience to offer a fitting service at their facility.”

Scott Kleeb of Hastings, the 2010 winner of E2W, served as a judge at Friday’s event.  Kleeb’s company “Energy Pioneer Solutions” (www.energypioneersolutions.com) uses proprietary software to explore conservation that saves users money by shaving peak usage on utilities.

“Winning the 2010 East 2 West Venture Competition was an enormous boost of confidence, but the true value came in Invest Nebraska’s ability to work with and network on behalf of our growing company, said Kleeb.”

Invest Nebraska held three regional competitions earlier this year in Lincoln, Peru, and McCook.  The Venture Competitions are based on the premise and success of McCook’s annual Hormel Family Foundation’s Business Plan Competition that began in 2007.  The foundation has partnered with Invest Nebraska Corporation for their local event since 2009.

More information about regional competitions can be found at www.investnebraska.com.

Invest Nebraska Corporation advises and invests in companies and early stage business ideas in Nebraska. The organization supports and encourages angel investment and entrepreneurship in all areas of Nebraska, and provides networking opportunities for investors, entrepreneurs and service providers from all corners of the state.

(November 4, 2011)  The Hormel Family Foundation, in partnership with Invest Nebraska Corporation, hosted its Fifth Annual Business Plan Competition Friday at McCook Community College. Three McCook entrepreneurs presented their business plan ideas to local judges for the chance to win a $25,000 equity investment.

The winning company, called HomeSpun, is owned by Sarah Risenhoover of McCook.  Her bakery and lunch business currently operates in a location at 402 E B Street, but with the $25,000 investment award, she plans to expand to a larger building to better serve her customers.

Sarah values the quality of ingredients used for her products.  She purchases as many products from local producers as possible and prepares baked items throughout the day to assure that fresh-baked goodies are always available.  After several years of customer input, she has added new items to her menu, such as sugar-free and gluten-free products.

“I submitted a plan in 2008 and was not selected as a finalist, so having three years of experience under my belt gave me more confidence to try again,” said Sarah.  “Don’t be afraid to be determined about your passion.  You never know where it will take you!”

“We had a hard time choosing between all the great plans, but HomeSpun really stood out for me, as I’ve had the experience of her amazing quality products,” stated Cody Dame, winner of the 2007 Hormel Competition and judge for the 2011 competition. “Match that with some forward-thinking in her business plan and it’s a winner all around.

Next on the Invest Nebraska Venture Competition schedule is the East-2-West Nebraska Venture Competition in Lincoln on November 18.  The East-2-West event targets entrepreneurs with ideas for new businesses or plans to expand current businesses and offers a $10,000 cash award plus the opportunity to receive a $50,000 investment equity from Invest Nebraska.  Anyone 18 or over, regardless of current residency, may compete.  The only stipulation is that the proposed for-profit business must be located in Nebraska.

(Peru, NE – October 14, 2011)  Invest Nebraska Corporation hosted its 2011 Southeast Venture Competition Friday at Peru State College. Five Nebraska entrepreneurs/teams competed for the chance to win a $25,000 equity investment.

The winning company was created by Nathan Meyer, a resident of Nebraska City.  His company, VersaFiber, will provide an innovative way to process natural cellulosic fiber bundles from agricultural residues such as corn stalks and husks, wheat straw, rice straw, cotton stalks and switchgrass.  These by-products are inexpensive renewable resources with current limited use.  The fibers that will be produced at VersaFiber will be made by using a process developed at the University of Nebraska.

“This is the first step in finally getting this company off the ground,” said Meyer.  “After planning and developing for two years, it’ll be great to have people and resources for assistance.”

“There was definitely a diverse group of business ideas represented today,” stated Jeff Meese of Invest Nebraska. “All the finalists did a fantastic job with their written business plans as well as their presentations, but overall we felt that VersaFiber had the potential for the greatest impact on Nebraska’s economy.”

A judges’ panel composed of Meese and other regional community and business leaders chose the most promising business plan from the five finalists selected to present from 13 eligible counties in southeast Nebraska.

Next on the Invest Nebraska Venture Competition schedule is the Hormel Business Plan Competition in McCook on November 4 and the East-2-West Nebraska Venture Competition in Lincoln on November 18.  The East-2-West event targets entrepreneurs with ideas for new businesses or plans to expand current businesses and offers a $10,000 cash award plus the opportunity to receive a $50,000 investment equity from Invest Nebraska.  Anyone 18 or over, regardless of current residency, may compete.  The only stipulation is that the proposed for-profit business must be located in Nebraska.