Celebrating 18 years of amazing elevator pitches!
About the Elevator Pitch Competition (EPC)
Sponsored by:
Special prizes awarded by:
The Grove City College Elevator Pitch Competition, established in 2007, affords all students the opportunity to pitch their new venture ideas to a panel of judges, offering cash prizes in two categories – Commercial Enterprise and Social Enterprise. The competition is open to students from all majors. For team ventures, all members must be present, and one student will deliver the pitch. If registering as a team, only one student from the team should complete the official “GCC Elevator Pitch Application Form,” but each teammate and his/her contact information should be listed. It is free to enter the competition.
The “elevator” pitch is a frequently used term, which literally means “tell me about your new venture within the time it would take to ride up an elevator.” The goal of the Elevator Pitch Competition is to teach students to communicate effectively and allow their charisma and positive characteristics to shine through in just a short pitch. The Elevator Pitch Competition demonstrates the networking and presentation skills essential to any entrepreneur or business professional. Please note that ideas may be at any stage of development from creation of concepts or ideas to an established venture.
Who Should Participate?
- The Grove City College Elevator Pitch Competition is currently open only to Grove City College students.
- GCC students interested in enhancing their presentation skills
- GCC students who want to explore the idea of starting a new venture
- GCC students planning to possibly prepare/vet your idea for VentureLab and/or the Wolverine Venture Battle
Why Participate?
- This is your chance to showcase your talents and passion for changing the world through entrepreneurship + innovation.
- It’s an opportunity to present your commercial or social idea in a positive atmosphere.
- Why not receive recognition for the merits of the presentation of your idea with the possibility of cash awards?
How will the 2024 Elevator Pitch Competition go down?
Timeline 2024
September 20: Registration Closes
October 4: Video Submission Deadline
October 25: Finalists Announced
November 13: Final Round
Commercial Enterprise Prizes:
1st Place-$500
2nd Place-$400
3rd Place-$300
Social Enterprise Prizes:
1st Place-$500
2nd Place-$400
3rd Place-$300
BONUS: FAN FAVORITE PRIZE–$100
(audience votes)
Grove City Foundation Social Impact Prize–$500*
*awarded to one social enterprise team
Hudson Financial Advisors Prize–$1000*
*awarded to one team chosen by Hudson Financial Advisors, Inc.
ROUND 1
Registration
To register, students are required to complete the online form by clicking on the button below. Once registered, students should starting working to create and record their elevator pitch as ALL REGISTRANTS WILL ADVANCE TO ROUND 2! Please read the EPC User’s Guide in it’s entirety, as failure to comply with the rules in the guide will result in disqualification.
Information Required:
- Name of your venture
- Is it social or commercial?
- Individual/Team Member(s) Information
- Short idea description (1-2 sentences)
REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED!
ROUND 2
Video Submission
In a video recording that is no longer than two minutes, deliver your pitch to the Elevator Pitch Review Panel. The EPC Review Panel will choose the TOP SCORING TEAMS to compete in ROUND 3 (FINALS) based on the judging rubrics (above).
Feedback will be provided to the finalists in order to guide them as to how they should proceed to strengthen their pitch in the final round.
Information to consider and include in your pitch:
• What is the problem? Tell a story! Paint a picture!
• What is your solution?
• What is your organization’s name, and who are you?
• Why you?
• What is it like/similar to?
• How is it different from the competition?
• How are you going to make money? (Social = become sustainable)
• How can you expand in the future?
The submission deadline has passed!
ROUND 3—FINALS
Final Presentations; Wednesday, November 13
Join us as the Finalists pitch their Commercial or Social Enterprise idea in a live final presentation. Audience members can vote for the FAN FAVORITE! EVERYONE is invited to attend.
Check out competitions from years past!
See who won, watch the pitches, and get the intel you need to win this year!
2024 Reviewers
Interested in being a part of the Elevator Pitch Competition? We are looking for Reviewers to watch student pitch videos and help determine which students will advance to Round 3—Finals! There is no need to come to campus. The process is easy and entirely remote and can be done from the comfort of your own home or office. This is your opportunity to get involved! Won’t you join us?
Reviewer registration is now closed.
Reviewers who registered can expect to receive their assignments by Oct. 9 via email.
Deadline to complete and submit reviews: October 23, 2024
Many thanks to all of the Reviewers who watched and evaluated the student pitches in Round 2!
Chadwyck Cobb
Keith Reagan
Lara Wozniak
Autumn Patterson
Heather Dickison
Chris Borders
Lesley Winfield
Brett Yusiewicz
Melissa Jacobs
Alan E Mesches
Patricia Premick
Brian Mezey
Lauren Marts
Liam Morris
Craig Creaturo
Dean Faklis
James Will
Dan Creston
Frances Baldwin
Sondra Fisher
Allyson Sveda
Thomas Smith
Collin Foster
Brad Dearborn
Eric Herstine
Drew McCandless
Steven Guo
Glenn Grossman
Alissa Sgro
Kristy Gales
Michael Smelko
Lou Palumbo
Ashley Johns
Sandra Frederick
Michael Hemmerlin
Kayla Armstrong
Stephanie Slezak
Mitchell McFeely
Heidi McDowell
Brian Dutton
Matthew Lee
Steve Wickman
Steve Solman
Sheila Weatherly
Lindy Hitzel
Carlee Webb
Sharon LeJeune
Michael Pentz
Daniel Thompson
Ruth Entwistle
Stephen Wong
Curt Given
Bob Keller
Michelle Gerwick
Darcie Herron
James Woehlke
Charles (Bob) Scott
Steve DeCaspers
Brian Coy
Haley Kahle (Nerlich)
Mark Brody
Jack Thomas
Benjamin Demers
Beth Lepore
Robin Parsons
Elisabeth O’Brien
Barbara Shultz
Steven Roman
Marjorie Loresch
Jeff Bucklew
Max Polec
Tiffany Rice
Christopher Tobias
Ann Thomas
Cameron Suorsa
2024 Judges
SOCIAL + COMMERCIAL ENTERPRISE JUDGES
Don Tharp
Hudson Financial Advisors, Inc.
Chris Camp
Fun Fore All
Lori Brinker
Merrill Lynch
Mitch McFeely
NexTier Bank
Dan Sumner
Westinghouse
SOCIAL IMPACT PRIZE - $500
Dorene Powell
President, The Grove City Foundation
Hudson Financial Advisors Prize - $1000
Don Tharp
Hudson Financial Advisors, Inc.