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PITCH Hamburg Competition
Terms and Conditions

Competition Overview

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Submission of an application in the Competition constitutes a legally binding agreement between the applicant and PITCH Hamburg according to the terms, conditions, and covenants contained herein. PITCH Hamburg’s Small Business Competition will adhere to the following format:

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  • A 4 week application process to open on Monday, September 25 through October 31, 2023

  • Selected applications for Cohort 1 will be notified at by mid November.

  • Cohort 1 will begin December 2023

  • Pitch Competition to take place in Spring 2024

 

PITCH Hamburg’s Small Business Competition will provide selected applicants with 6 months of the following:

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  • Mentoring from professionals and experts in the community, tailored towards the specific business needs

  • Programming focused on small business development including topics such as (not limited to) business plan creation, funding opportunities, legal expertise

  • Office space at the PITCH Hamburg incubator located at 40 Main Street in the Village of Hamburg (limit of 2 designated workspaces per company)

  • An opportunity to pitch your business at the PITCH Hamburg event in spring 2024

 

Expectations of Selected Applicants for Cohort 1:

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  • Provide monthly business reports to PITCH Hamburg

  • Sign and comply with rules and regulations of Use of Space Agreement with PITCH Hamburg

  • Coordinate and attend monthly meetings with PITCH Hamburg staff and mentors

  • Attend two social networking meetings every month

  • Develop a pitch to be presented at the pitch event in spring 2024

 

Eligibility Requirements

The competition is open to: sole proprietorships and joint ventures either possessing legal entity or not.

  • The contest is open to the public.Open only to legal residents of the United States.The contest is subject to all applicable federal, state and local laws and regulation and is void where prohibited by law.

  • If a business requires the use of intellectual property, entrants should be original creators, inventors, owners, or individuals with the rights to that intellectual property.

  • Entrants with generated revenue or venture capital funding in excess of $500,000 are not eligible to compete.

  • Failure to submit applications or related materials in advance of posted deadlines will result in disqualification from the current year’s event.

  • Judges’ decisions are final and are not subject to review.

  • Participation in the contest constitutes entrant’s full and unconditional agreement to and acceptance if the official rules and decisions of PITCH Hamburg.

 

Ineligible Parties:

The following are ineligible to participate:

  • Residential real property business

  • Investment vehicles that invest in the securities of other entities

  • Gaming and gambling businesses

  • Single-purpose entertainment or event productions (e.g. movies, albums, concerts)

  • Adult entertainment

  • Harmful products (alcohol, tobacco, nicotine products, etc)

  • Traded on a public market

  • Businesses engaged in speculative activities that develop profits from fluctuations in price rather than through normal course of trade, such as wildcatting for oil and dealing in commodities futures,unless those activities are incidental to the regular activities of the business and part of a legitimate risk management strategy to guard against price fluctuations related to the regular activities of the business

  • Business that earns more than half of its annual net revenue from lending activities; unless the business is a non-bank or non-bank holding company Community Development Financial Institutions as defined by the United States Department of the Treasury

  • Business engaged in pyramid sales, where a participant's primary incentive is based on the sales made by an ever-increasing number of participants

  • Business engaged in activities that are prohibited by federal law or applicable law in the jurisdiction where the business is located or conducted. Included in these activities is the production, servicing, or distribution of otherwise legal products that are to be used in connection with an illegal activity, such as selling drug paraphernalia or operating a motel that knowingly permits illegal prostitution;

  • Employees,officers and Directors of PITCH Hamburg, judges participating in the competition and their respective family and household members are not eligible.

 

Location Requirement

Winners will locate operations in the PITCH Hamburg incubator space (40 Main Street in Hamburg) or another location within the Town of Hamburg, New York for minimum of 6 months. 

 

Applicant Types

Small Business – Detail how an independently owned and operated business could be established and thrive in Hamburg, New York,

 

Community Outreach – Explain the services or benefits that could be extended to members of our community in order to fill gaps that are not currently provided by for-profit or government organizations.

 

New venture- A novel idea (or opportunity) for a good or service that would assist small businesses with growth.

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The awards will be as follows:

Winners will be selected by a panel of judges at the PITCH Hamburg Event in Spring 2024.

Winners will receive up to $5000 funding to continue of their development of their business.

 

Other Factors

PITCH Hamburg does not discriminate against any applicant on the basis of race, color, creed, ethnicity, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender expression, military status or marital status.

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PITCH Hamburg reserves the right to modify these Terms and Conditions in its sole discretion. In the event of a modification, all applicants will be notified.

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Other Conditions

Applications can only be submitted once. An individual who submits an application on behalf of a business entity represents and warrants he or she has requisite authority to act on behalf of such entity.

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For purposes hereof, “applicants” includes individuals and business entities. There is no limit to the number of people on an applicant’s team.

All applications must be the original work of the applicant making the submission.

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Existing businesses may propose a new business that would have operations within the WNYEDF Region.

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Partially completed applications will not be accepted.  Applications for the Competition are due by 11:59 P.M. EST on October 31, 2023.

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Applicants risk disqualification if they or someone on their behalf communicates with principals of PITCH Hamburg or the Committee beyond submitting applications and providing further data or information as requested, in an attempt to influence the Competition.

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The decisions of the Committee and PITCH Hamburg are final, including interpretation of these Terms and Conditions.

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PITCH Hamburg, its members, officers, directors, agents and employees shall be held harmless by the applicant in the event of any legal action resulting from the participation by the applicant in the Competition.

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PITCH Hamburg takes no responsibility for agreements between applicants and third parties.

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Entry materials become the property of PITCH Hamburg.

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Applicants who engage in immoral, illegal or other activity that may adversely affect the image of PITCH Hamburg, its affiliates, or other applicants, are ineligible for the Competition.

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All applicants and award recipients must comply with these Terms and Conditions. Any violation of these Terms and Conditions will disqualify an applicant from the Competition, and result in forfeiture of any awards the applicant received in connection with the Competition.

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Applicants may not withdraw their applications after they are submitted.

PITCH Hamburg Board of Directors has the authority to remove any selected applicants or winners from the PITCH program and office space.

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