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 Greetings! This week there's just one message coming out of the Jigsaw Business Weekly: Were it not for the contribution of local entrepreneurship to our economy, this valley would be near to a ghost town. That the entrepreneur next door to you and down the street is making a living, or aiming to make one, avidly pursuing their creative passion is our prime hope for economic stability and future growth.
That's why you must plan to come to "Entrepreneurs Just Do It!," the final round of Jigsaw's business plan competition. The event will provide a dynamic experience of what is going on in local garages, kitchens, storage units, and other exotic locales, providing hope for the next generation of employees as our larger businesses continue to slip away.
Six startup businesses will give formal public presentations about their product or service, their market, their competition, their strategy to beat the competition, their management team - and other pertinent information. A panel of experienced judges will be present to ask questions, make suggestions, and select a "winner." The businesses and their founders are:
1. BuckSnort Beverage - Kainoa Lopez
2. DignifieDesigns - Gini Ballou
3. Drain Smart - Steve Butler
4. GameFaceGear - Doug Niedrich
5. It Takes A Village Foods - Sheila Plowman
6. Killer Instinct - Brian Camilli.
The 18 entrepreneurs who didn't make it to the finals have been invited to showcase their businesses and chat with the public when finalists are not presenting. We don't expect all visitors to be able to attend the complete event; just come and go quietly when you can. Here's the schedule:
9:00-9:10am: Overview and introductions (Jima)
9:10-9:30am: Killer Instinct presentation
9:30-9:50am: GameFaceGear presentation
9:50-10:10am: BuckSnort Beverage presentation
10:10-10:20am: Break
10:20-10:40am: Drain Smart presentation
10:40-11:00am: It Takes A Village Foods presentation
11:00-11:20am: DignifieDesigns presentation
11:20-11:30am: Break
11:30-11:50am: "Funding Your Start Up" (Rebekah Helzel)
11:50am: Panel breaks for decision-making in a separate room. Public circulates and checks out business displays by non-finalist entrepreneurs.
12:50pm: Re-convene to announce the winner of the finalists and present the $1,500 award.
1:00pm: The competition event ends.
6:00-7:00 pm: Mark Solon gives a guest talk, as part of the Library speaker series, called "The Entrepreneurial Life."
The date and location of the event is next Wednesday, November 7, from 9 am-1 pm., at the Ketchum Community Library. After you put it on your calendar, please circulate this email to friends, business people, and entrepreneurs whom you think might be interested. We'd like to have a good turnout to support local entrepreneurs in their dedication, and hope, and hard work.
Until next week...Jima Rice | 
