Paul Szmal: We're joined in studio by Katie Bronson. She's Deputy Director of Wayne County Economic Development and Planning. We're going to talk about the sixth annual Wayne County Pitch Competition. Good morning and welcome back.
Katie Bronson: Good morning. Thank you for having me today.
Paul Szmal: Before we talk about the pitch, let's just talk about economic activity in Wayne County. This must be a pretty fun time to have your job.
Katie Bronson: Oh, absolutely. We have a lot of great programs at Wayne County Economic Development and Planning. We have the pilot program, we have loan programs, we're working with a lot of new businesses in our community, and one of my favorites is the pitch competition.
Paul Szmal: So let's talk about, first off, if you want to get in, the SCORE workshops where you learn what you need to know. One of those is tomorrow, so people need to get ready to do this.
Katie Bronson: Yes, as a requirement for the pitch competition, you are required to attend one SCORE workshop, and the first one, like you mentioned, is tomorrow at the Mastin Public Library. You can go on to our website at wedcny.com and you can link up to register for that SCORE workshop or the SCORE workshop the following week, which is the next Saturday, September 14th.
Paul Szmal: So anybody who's tried to start a business or anybody in your position knows one of the biggest barriers is the startup funding. So that's what you can get if you make a successful pitch. So tell us a little bit about how this works.
Katie Bronson: The pitch competition is an opportunity for people to explore their business ideas and have experienced judges provide feedback and input on their business. The funding is available for a first prize winner of $20,000, and then we have another prize to help boost a business for $5,000. So it does provide an opportunity for two businesses to get funding, but then we also want to work with the applicants as well if they weren't able to move forward with the pitch on other programs that may be available through us or through our partners.
Paul Szmal: And that's one of the reasons for the SCORE workshop is because very often you have idea people who aren't real great business people and business people who might not be the idea people. So one of the things the SCORE workshops do is help people kind of polish their business plan into an acceptable form and kind of guide them through what you need to do to start a business.
Katie Bronson: The SCORE workshop is a great opportunity, like you said, for people to really take that next step, see what they're able to identify with their business, but also get the feedback of other professionals and make sure that they have a well-rounded business. Because you have to know your product very well, but then you also have to know how to run the business. You know, there's going to be legal issues that you have to address. There's going to be accounting issues you have to address. So making sure you have a well-rounded business plan is going to be very key to not only the pitch competition, but the future of your business.
Paul Szmal: And all kinds of little things you might never think of, like if you have any kind of a food product labeling. There's things that have to be on the label and things that can't be on the label, and a lot of people starting up wouldn't know that.
Katie Bronson: Yes, and SCORE is a great resource because not only do they provide the SCORE workshops that we have every year, but then they also have mentors of experienced professionals, experienced business owners that can help guide you and help, you know, advance your business.
Paul Szmal: So remind us what SCORE is.
Katie Bronson: SCORE, so there's many offices throughout the state. The one that we work closely with is the Greater Rochester SCORE. So they are located in Rochester, but they do a number of workshops throughout the region, and they are a group mainly of retired volunteers who are there to help mentor new businesses. And there's just a wealth of knowledge there. There's people who have also non-profit experience, people who have financial experience, people who have the sort of legal aspect of it, or even just being a business owner for several years. So it's really about that experience that people can really receive some great information from these volunteers.
Paul Szmal: Have you tracked some of the past winners to see how they've done? Have we had some good successful businesses launched out of this pitch?
Katie Bronson: Absolutely. You know, this is our sixth year, and we've had five winners, and they've all been doing great. Last year it was Maintenance Mike, Handyman Service, and he is really just advancing his handyman business. He's doing a great job, and he's just taking those next steps to becoming a new business. We also have Agritrack, and they were also a very good business back in 2020, and they just continue to expand, not only with their business, but staff as well.
Paul Szmal: And like you say, even if you don't win this competition, you're going to come out of it with a refined business plan, and some contacts, and a better idea of where you need to go. So maybe if you don't win it, you can take your plan to a bank, and maybe get financing in a traditional way.
Katie Bronson: You know, one of the things I encourage everyone to do, to contact Wayne County Economic Development and Planning if you're interested in starting a business, expanding your business. Because sometimes you are right, it might not be the pitch competition, or it might not be one of our loan programs. But we do have many resources available where we can work with other people, have them reach out to our partners, and see what other assistance may be available.
Paul Szmal: And I mean, some of these ideas are fantastic. I mean, somebody once said that successful business means figuring out what people want before they know themselves. I mean, you get some of these ideas, and you go, wow, I never thought of that.
Katie Bronson: Absolutely. That is one of my favorite parts of the job, is one, the day where people come in and bring their new business, the excitement they have, the interest and knowledge they have. As well, a lot of them have been doing research for many years on the topic that they are bringing forward. So they are prepared, they are ready, and they have this sort of, you know, amazing attitude to take this next step, and be a business owner. So I, this is one of my favorite times of year, because I really enjoy seeing everybody take that next step. It's a very brave thing to do, and to make sure that they, you know, find ways to make it work.
Paul Szmal: Well, and especially now the business climate's improved. I mean, we come, sometimes we think of the pandemic as being way in the past, but it's not that long. You know, it must not have been a very good time to try to start a business in 2020 or 2021.
Katie Bronson: You know, we have. We've seen ups and downs of people applying for the pitch competition in times where it's been slow. I do see an uptick of people reaching out, being interested, signing up for the SCORE workshops, and I do agree that we'll probably see more people apply this year than we have in other years.
Paul Szmal: Now, you're not going to do the youth pitch this year, so what was driving that decision, and might it come back in the future?
Katie Bronson: Yes, so as we mentioned, this is our sixth annual adult pitch competition, and this year we have held off on doing the student pitch competition in the fall. We have talked with school advisors and teachers and some of the students, and having a student pitch competition in the fall when they're just getting back to school, being busy with trying to get their new schedule ready, and the new students, we reached out to them, and they all agreed that having a pitch competition for students in the spring is a better time of year. So we will be announcing that next year in 2025, and we'll also be adjusting our adult pitch competition for that timeline as well.
Paul Szmal: All right, we'll look forward to talking about that. We should remind everybody, you must be a resident of Wayne County to be a part of this, and also it doesn't have to be a brand new business that hasn't started yet, as long as you've been in business under three years and have revenues under $250,000. So it might be somebody, maybe you've started a business and kind of hit the wall a little bit, and the pitch can help you take it to the next level.
Katie Bronson: Yes, how you define a new business varies from program to program. We identified three years or under as the criteria for this program, because we do believe it's a great opportunity as well for new businesses, as well as businesses who've had a year or two to establish their business to understand what next steps they need. And so this is an opportunity to help them do this.
Paul Szmal: So again, the first of those SCORE workshops is tomorrow, so get cracking. To find out more, the website is wedcny.com. You can call the office at 315-946-5920, or email Katie K. Bronson, that's B-R-O-N-S-O-N at co.wayne.ny.us, the sixth annual pitch. Somebody's going to get some funding and be a very happy business person.
Katie, thanks for coming in. We appreciate it, and congratulations on all the great development that's taking place in Wayne County.
Katie Bronson: Thank you. It's good to see you again.
