CHARLOTTE – A group of 20 startups from several industries will get the opportunity to grab investors’ attention at Wednesday’s Seed the South event in Charlotte.

The startups, most of them based in the Queen City, will showcase products and services ranging from pet care to personal finance to augmented reality to indoor farming.

The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Foundation for the Carolinas. The day is broken up into two parts—an investor symposium in the morning and a pitch competition after lunch.

Big names in North Carolina’s venture capital ecosystem will be speaking at the event. The lineup includes Jason Caplain of Bull City Venture Partners, Mac Lackey of Venture South, Lister Delgado of IDEA Fund Partners, Tim McLoughlin of Cofounders Capital, angel investor and University of South Carolina professor Juliana Iarossi, Dr. Shante Williams of RW Capital, Chris Langford of Lowes Ventures, Brandon Shelton of Task Force X Capital, Merrill Mason of Triangle Angel Partners and Tom Ryan of Start100. Business attorneys from Wagner Hicks PLLC, Smith Anderson Law and Spengler & Agans are also in the speaker roster.

Seed the South is a project of Collective Hustle, an invite-only network of founders and investors working together to grow Charlotte’s startup ecosystem—particularly by engaging female and minority entrepreneurs and investors.

Samantha Smith, one of the creators of Collective Hustle and founder of Charlotte startup Vishion, says Seed the South is a unique opportunity for Collective Hustle to bring more exposure to early-stage startups in Charlotte.

“Founders recognize a lack of opportunity to showcase their startups in the Queen City. Charlotte has all of the pieces to create a top-rated ecosystem, the players just needed an opportunity,” Smith says. “We hope Seed the South will be the catalyst to something greater. With our focus on inclusion and diversity, we can elevate our startup community by putting our best foot forward.”

Aligning with Collective Hustle’s mission, the overall theme of the event is focused on diversity and inclusion, with discussions centered around building an all-access startup scene in Charlotte.

According to Smith, out of the 20 startups participating in the Seed the South pitch competition, 65 percent have at least one underrepresented founder.

The participating startups include:

  • Rabbu, a property management firm.
  • Vishion, an app that allows users to search for color palettes and paints.
  • Botsplash, a customer communication and engagement platform.
  • AVO, a platform that helps businesses and organizations connect with customers in augmented reality.
  • Cloosiv, an app that lets users order-ahead from local coffee shops.
  • Skipper, a professional dog-walking service.
  • Lucid Travel, a platform that helps users earn cash-back deals.
  • JouleScout, a customer engagement platform for energy companies.
  • PodKeeper, a communication platform for parents and teachers.
  • Xchange Post, a community rental app where users can share tools and equipment.
  • Leaf Burrito, a patented reusable yard debris bag.
  • Thoughtpost, a subscription-based chat platform for customer engagement.
  • Queen City Farms, a hydroponic technology-powered indoor farming space.
  • Curu, an automated credit-building app.
  • Jam, an employee-to-employee communication platform.
  • Freeman Capital, a wealth management service platform.
  • Honeyfi, a personal finance app for couples.
  • MAZE, an on-demand hair and nail servicing platform.
  • Groove Watersports, a patented vest with waterproof speakers.
  • BX, an app that allows users to rent portable power banks.

Startups on the main stage will compete for a judge-selected “best pitch” award of $1,000, a one-year membership to BIG and $3,000 worth of bookkeeping services from Reconciled. The audience will also select winners for the best main stage pitches and demo presentations.

Smith says Seed the South tickets are nearly sold out. The audience currently consists of 39 percent new and current investors, 41 percent ecosystem leaders and 20 percent startup founders.

Tickets are available on Eventbrite.

https://wraltechwire.com/event/seed-the-south/