Aspiring entrepreneurs continue to raise the bar

The 21st Startup weekend held in New Zealand took place in Auckland last weekend, proving that there is no shortage of aspiring entrepreneurs in New Zealand who continue to raise the bar on what can be achieved in just 54 hours. Eighty-two would-be entrepreneurs including a couple of high school students came together at the new GridAKL space at Wynard Quarter. Twenty-seven ideas were pitched and after a weekend of interviewing customers, developing business models and building prototypes, the 12 teams pitched to judges Candace Kinser, CEO of NZ Technology Industry Association, Nick Churchouse, Venture Manager at CreativeHQ, Rod Snodgrass, Head of Telecom Digital Ventures and Victoria Crone, Managing Director of Xero. 

The run for first prize was tight but Trusty Tenants, an independent provider of tenant verification came over the line first.“They had me at hello and demonstrated that it can be done,” said Nick Churchouse.

The Runners-up, myfoodlife.co, the ultimate source of food products for people with alternative food requirements, touched on something incredibly relevant according to judge Rod Snodgrass. 

“I was amazed by all the great stuff and thought that the standard was even higher than last time.“ He also awarded Writers Reveal, an online platform that helps creative writers self-promote, the prize for the most disruptive business model and potential to go global.  

Candace Kinser also acknowledged Couchstand, which provides sports fans the opportunity to become part of the crowd through a multi-experience platform, as a company that stood out; identifying an incredible niche space in an export market with a great business model and great design. 

Victoria Crone acknowledged that HazHat, an intelligent safety management solution making the workplace safer with smart hard hats, is solving a critical problem with an innovative solution. 

The winning team won three months part time residence at GridAKL, $10,000 of free advertising from TradeMe, Lowndes Jordan startup law pack, free one-year “medium” Xero account, USD200 Amazon Web Services voucher, three months Gold subscription to Audible (including 4 audiobooks) from Microsoft, plus space at BizDojo Auckland, ecentre (Albany), The Bio Commerce Centre (Palmerston North), CreativeHQ (Wellington), and Upstart (Dunedin).

Global Startup weekend facilitator and mentor Rowan Yeoman says “the energy and enthusiasm for startup weekend in New Zealand, with high demand for tickets and sold out events, flows into the broader startup ecosystem. People that have participated in Startup Weekend are more capable and experienced, better networked and ultimately more likely to succeed.

“Startup weekends have continued to develop incredible momentum and support in New Zealand, with New Zealand having the most per capita events in the world. The next Auckland Startup weekend will be held in November.” said Alan Froggatt, National Director of Startup Weekend New Zealand.