WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Cape Fear Community College is the place to be Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023 for people who want to see what it’s like for entrepreneurs to swim with the ‘sharks’.
They’ll hear investment pitches in a fast-paced, pressure-filled environment similar to the ABC show Shark Tank.
In fact, organizers are calling it “Shark Tank at the Shore”.
The event is coordinated by Tracey and Girard Newkirk, founders of the business development service Genesis Block in Wilmington.
They stopped by Good Morning Carolina to speak with co-host Donna Gregory.
The Thursday event is a type of graduation for the ‘Wits Begin Incubator’, an 8-week cohort for aspiring entrepreneurs.
“The whole point of our ‘Wits Begin’ incubator is to prepare companies to have a sustainable business model,” Girard Newkirk explained.
“For 4
minutes they get to pitch their company to three judges, to the entire community, and they get to judge them based on the sustainability of their business model.”
The name “Wits Begin” is a play on words from the phrase “wits end”, where many aspiring entrepreneurs find themselves after struggling through the trial and error of a start-up.
“We’re going to help you sit down and go through 8 weeks of pulling together a solid business model, giving you one model you will pitch to the audience, but also will be a model that you’re going to try in trial for the next 90 days,” Tracey Newkirk added.
The first Shark Tank at the Shore was in 2021.
Since then, Genesis Block has learned that new business owners need technical assistance, funding and access to capital.
The Shark Tank at the Shore helps the businesses get access to customers, since it’s basically the owners’ first foray into marketing and hopefully launching their new business model.
The five businesses who will swim in this week’s Shark Tank include a food truck, a tea company, a sustainable brand company and a retail store.
The Newkirks say the winner gets a $1500 cash prize and access to marketing and other supplemental support.
The event runs from 6 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. Thursday, August 17, 2023 at Union Station on the campus of Cape Fear Community College, 502 N. Front Street in Wilmington, NC.
There’s no charge for admission to the general public.
For more information or to register to attend, visit here .