LONDON, ON - Venture London, the city’s premier business competition, announced the winners of more than $75,000 in cash and business acceleration prizes at its awards presentation on April 4, at the Best Western Lamplighter Inn. Now in its fourth year, the competition was created to support and encourage new London-based businesses that have proven growth potential, marketability, profitability, viability and impact on the London economy.
The winner in the Existing Business Category (under two years), taking the grand prize of $40,000 in cash and business acceleration prizes, is Race Roster.Race Roster is a company that has developed a cloud based, customized registration platform to address the need for a cost effective and easy to use technology solution for Race Directors.Race Roster is owned by Alex Vander Hoeven, Brandon Laan, Chantelle Laan, Robert Pluss, and Chanron Yin.
In the Planned Business Category, winning the grand prize of $30,000 in cash and prizes is VS Controls, founded by Jim Ische.VS Controls is an energy conservation company that has developed a controller which regulates the speed of pool pump motors and reduces energy consumption.The remaining finalists – AMI, IT Architecture Management Institute, ATMOS Marketing Group Inc., Gold Dental Lab and PalmPass – each received $500 honorariums, a $500 gift certificate from Lovers AtWork Office Furniture and a video web commercial from In2Communications.
Past Venture London winner, Tonya Constant, co-founder of the Ant Firm, was guest speaker at the event which attracted over 250 local entrepreneurs and business professionals.
We found the Venture London experience to be an extremely worthwhile endeavor as it forced us to look critically at our business plan and zero in on what needed tweaking”, said Constant.
Fifty-one business plans were submitted to this year's Venture London competition.The 2012 applicants represent a broad range of businesses from fields including manufacturing, industrial services, financial services, retail operations and medical devices.
The competition celebrates London’s entrepreneurial culture and recognizes the important role that independent businesses play in our economy”, says Nancy Kopriva, Venture London Steering Committee Chair.“Congratulations to this year’s finalists and winners, they’re certainly assets to the local business community”.
For additional information, please contact 2102 Venture London Chair:
Nancy Kopriva
Director, Communications and Engagement
Small Business Centre
519-659-2882 ext. 234
nkopriva@sbcentre.ca
About Venture London Business Competition:
The four-month, two-round Venture London business competition helps entrepreneurs and new businesses in London develop their business ideas into sound business plans.Supported by workshops and shaped by feedback from the founding partners, entrepreneurs are exposed to a business development process that reinforces the notion that a solid business foundation is necessary to commercialize a great idea.
Venture London was founded in 2008 by The London Economic Development Corporation, The Small Business Centre, The Stiller Centre and TechAlliance.2012 Gold sponsors include, Lovers AtWork, Libro Financial Group, In2Communications, Lashbrook Marketing & Public Relations, and Regus.
For more information about Venture London, please visit-www.venturelondon.ca
About the 2012 Venture London Winners and Finalists:
Planned Business Category:
WINNER 2012 - VS Controls: VS Controls (Variable Speed Controls) is an energy conservation company that has developed a controller which regulates the speed of pool pump motors and reduces energy consumption for residential and commercial clients. VS Controls has developed a solution to the challenge of safely and efficiently reducing the speed of single-phase motors. The device operates at 3 speeds which are set to coincide with the “time of use” hydro meters. Use of the VS Controls product can reduce energy consumption up to 68%.
PalmPass: PalmPass is an e-commerce application that allows users to access transit tickets and bus passes from their mobile devices. The non-invasive nature of the system makes PalmPass a cost effective solution for transit systems looking to reduce operating costs. PalmPass makes transit easy, convenient and secure. PalmPass will modernize transit ticketing and establish itself in the market as a leader in mobile payments.
Gold Dental Lab Inc.: Gold Dental Lab is a commercial dental lab that provides full services and products for Dentists and Denturists in London and surrounding area. Drawing on the owner’s 7 years of experience as a Denturist and several years managing a denture lab, Gold Dental will be one of the first in London to offer a Denturist and an experienced Dental Technician onsite. Located in in the city’s downtown core, Gold Dental is uniquely positioned to meet the growing demand for local dental services.
Existing Business Category:
WINNER 2012 - Race Roster: Race Roster is a customized registration platform designed to address the need for a cost effective and easy to use technology solution for Race Directors. Because Race Roster operates entirely in the cloud, event organizers no longer have to invest in technical infrastructure to manage events. Race Roster keeps track of all stakeholder activities and lets Race Directors monitor participant sign-ups, donation and event revenue all in one dashboard. Using social media and affiliate marketing Race Roster also assists Race Directors to boost registrations and increase revenue.
ATMOS Marketing Group Inc.: ATMOS Marketing is an online marketing firm that specializes in sales and lead generation. By using traffic sources like Search Engine Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Social Media along with sales-focused web sites, ATMOS is able to generate new business for their clients while maintaining a healthy return on investment.
IT Architecture Management Institute: IT Architecture Management Institute (AMI) is an organization focused on the education, research, publication, training and certification for IT Architecture Management. AMI’s establishment of the AMBOK TM Guide and supporting materials will assist IT architects and managers and will increase the understanding of and adherence to the IT Architecture Management concept. The different architectural specializations such as systems, software, and infrastructure to name a few, can benefit from AMI’s knowledge, including processes, models and frameworks. This will build a consistent IT architecture understanding and implementation of IT projects.
