Soda City Startup – November 3-5
October 23, 2017
50 Hour Entrepreneurship Event
Soda City Startup! is a three-day event designed to ignite innovation, entrepreneurship and networking in the region. Participants learn how to nurture new business ideas to fruition and how to bring commercially viable solutions to market.
The event begins Friday, November 3rd with idea pitches from participants or from founders that need help with existing startups. Ideas are voted on, teams formed and then it’s Go! time.
The next day and a half are spent in a frenzy of business building aided by workshops, activities, and coaches with expertise in a variety of domains. The ticket price includes meals and entertainment in a high-energy environment geared to help startup teams Ideate – Validate – Create.
“Start-Up is an exciting time,” said Kasie Whitener, event organizer, business owner, and co-organizer for 1 Million Cups Columbia, an entrepreneurial community. “Focusing all that start up energy on one weekend makes for a highly-impactful circus of creativity and entrepreneurship.”
The first event of this kind in Columbia was organized by the USC/Columbia Technology Incubator in 2014 with an estimated 100 participants who engaged in building new ventures. One of those 2014 startups, Koios, continues to thrive as an emerging technology company.
This year, the event has been reimagined to be even more inclusive, uncover more ideas and encourage more members of our community to participate in this jump-start entrepreneurial experience.
“We really wanted to engage business leaders and community members this time around,” said Dr. Julie Iarossi, steering committee lead and professor of entrepreneurship at the Darla Moore School. “We’ve gotten help from all sectors for this year’s event.”
Including multiple colleges’ faculty and administration, business owners, Chamber of Commerce members, Economic Development officers, and City Council, Soda City Start Up is a cross-section of all things entrepreneur in Columbia. The event is open to the public and tickets are currently on sale. Sponsorships and volunteers are also needed.
When: November 3 (Friday 5p-10p)
November 4 (Saturday 7a-10p) &
November 5 (Sunday 7a-6p), 2017
Where: Darla Moore School of Business Sonoco Pavilion
1014 Greene Street, Columbia, SC
Who: Students, teachers, business owners, startup founders, anyone with an idea for a new product or service or market to serve, or the desire to experience the entrepreneurial process first hand!
Tickets: https://sodacitystartup.eventbrite.com/
Students- $25
Nonstudents- $50
Buddy Pass – signup with a friend, the first ticket is full price and the second is $15/$40
General Admission – attend Initial Pitches (Day 1), seminars (Day 2) and the Final Pitch
Competition (Day 3) – $15
Volunteers email Danielle Massey ([email protected])
Sponsors email Sergio Aparicio ([email protected])
If you would like more information, please contact Elizabeth Darden at (770) 366-7894 or email at [email protected].
