Cork's entrepreneurs to vie for €150k investment prize

TIME is running out to be in with a chance of winning €150,000  as part of Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) national competition.

 Local Enterprise Offices in Cork City, South Cork, and Cork North and West are inviting applications from anyone aged 18-35 in three different categories – ‘Best Business Idea’,  ‘Best Start-Up Business’ and ‘Best Established Business’, ahead of the closing date of this Friday, September 29th.

Now in its fourth year, the IBYE competition in Cork has unearthed a wealth of young entrepreneurs.

Through the competition, each LEO in Cork will award up to six investments to three category winners and three runners-up for their region. The local winners in the ‘Best Start-Up Business’ and ‘Best Established Business’ categories will receive investments of €15,000 each and runner-up in each will each receive €5,000. The ‘Best Business Idea’ winner will receive an investment of €7,000 and the runner-up will receive €3,000 investment.

A new addition to this year’s competition will see all entrants invited to Cork’s IBYE Enterprise Day on October 11th where they will meet with their LEO, receive full information on competition, refine their value proposition, participate in a pitching masterclass, and network with other applicants.

Following the Enterprise Day, applicants must submit a video and can also make improvements to their application form up until October 20th.

Applicants will then be whittled down to 15 finalists from each LEO, who will participate in an intensive Business Boot Camp in Cork on November 17th and 18th . Here participants will receive mentoring and supports from experts to help them to fine tune their business further. The next phase of the competition will see the selection of three winners per LEO at the Cork County Final in December. These county winners will progress to Regional Finals early next year, and hopefully advance to the national IBYE finals in March 2018.

See www.IBYE.ie for entry forms.