EnterPRize picks 15 semifinalists in business plan competition
Grupo Guayacán’s 2012 “EnterPRize” business plan competition has selected the top 15 semifinalists, after sifting through a high number of “great ideas and executive summaries received,” the organization announced.
“The selection was tough. We strongly encourage those teams that were not selected as semifinalists to continue your journey as entrepreneurs and to improve your business plans,” competition officials said. “The fact that you were not selected as a semifinalist does not mean you don’t have a good idea. Keep working, do your research, look for qualified team members and mentors, and make it happen.”
The 15 best ideas submitted for this year’s competition, who will go on to the next round are:
Antilles Renewable Energy, LLC is a newly-formed company specializing in research and development for the commercialization of electrochemical technologies suited to meet growing energy needs; BuenMe, Inc., which aims to bridge the gap between patients, health professionals and quality of health services; Criolite, a company dedicated to making frozen nutritional food with creole flavor; Cutting Edge Superconductors, Inc. a company dedicated to building a new generation of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) equipment with a new method of fabricating the required superconducting wires to power its magnetic fields. The company has applied for and is waiting for a patent on its method; and Eco Energy Age, a solar power purchase agreement supplier.
The list also includes: Flavor Merchants Inc., which seeks financing to deliver “quality, innovative foods and Puerto Rican flavors to the world;” Grasslark Vending Machine LLC’s, which is looking to provide U.S. and global retailers a novel method to sell and dispense liquid household cleaning and personal care products; Micro-algae for Food, Feed & Fuel, a venture looking to produce Certified Organic seafood (Tilapia fish and shrimp), animal feed, and algae oil for human consumption as well as for a carbon-neutral bio-fuel based on symbiotic production systems of micro-algae culture and aquaculture; NGEN Energy, a startup dedicated to developing the first viable biorefinery for Puerto Rico. The company reportedly has already secured 300 acres and the government’s support to start the project.
The other five semifinalists are: Nimbus Networks, which “empowers businesses with carrier-class IT infrastructure delivered on-demand securely over the Internet;” PR Tea Co.; the first Puerto Rican company dedicated to manufacturing and selling gourmet tea and coffee blends; Qeta Inc., which is seeking financing to offer a “new way to navigate the Internet via converged mobile devices; Safety Tracker Software, which creates an integrated safety management environment comprising software applications created for environmental, occupational and public safety managers and organizations seeking continuous quality improvement capabilities in safety; Syfri LLC, a technology company dedicated to the development, sale and installation of weather sensors; and, V-CINDAD.COM, which seeks to simplify administrative processes so that the boards of residents can achieve a higher level of communication and organization in their processes.
The next phase of the competition will require each of the semifinalists to submit a business plan. That list is whittled down to five finalists who then move on to participate in advanced oral presentation and financing research workshops.
Three winners are selected from that small group, receiving $25,000, $15,000 and $10,000 in cash, as well as other prizes such as office space, advertising, as well as legal and accounting services that add up to more than $200,000.
