The first stage of “Ukraine Is Looking for Startups,” a Ukrainain startup competition, brought together more than 1,000 attendees in Kyiv (Kiev) on December 19-20.
The contest aims to provide 20 best native early-stage companies with an opportunity to meet international investors willing to invest 200,000 to 2 million hryvnias (approximately $8,500 and $85,000 respectively).
The event is an initiative of Californian investor John Von Achen, KPMG and business school Ukraine’s Business Youth.
Von Achen is CEO at OVERFUND Global and the author of over 40 print and audio books on sales and marketing.
Alos supporting the contest are the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) and investment platform StartupNetwork.
The event featured a free intensive training session on “How to prepare and present your project” by Von Achen and Ukraine’s Business Youth.
Von Achen advised on how to check the resilience of an idea, plan project launch, build an effective team, create a business model, attract first clients, when to involve investors and how to get them interested into an idea while its presentation.
KPMG’s Kostyantyn Karpushin elaborated on startup documentation at a pre-launch stage, contracts with investors and the ways to protect the rights on a business idea.
The next stage will feature the presentation of business ideas which the participants will have to prepare by the end of January 2016. The contestants will then attend another training by Von Achen on how to attract investors.
“A new iPhone may be created in Ukraine – this much your nation is progressive and cultivated. However, your main problem is that you are not very good at presenting your projects. I am ready to help Ukrainain startups attract investors from all over the world. We will start working with 1,000 startups to get 20 companies at the end of the program,” Von Achen stated.
Source: AIN.UA, Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (1, 2)
