The Northwest Entrepreneur Competition (NEC) is a decade long consortium competition of business plans from seven regional higher education institutions – Whitworth University, Eastern Washington University, University of Idaho, Community Colleges of Spokane, Gonzaga University and Washington State University. It is the second largest business plan competition in Washington State and sees between 70-100 student team submissions annually. Over 25 judges from the community participate with multiple sponsors who value and support entrepreneurship in the Spokane community.
The Northwest Entrepreneur Competition seeks to:
- Provide students and their teams with constructive feedback and encouragement to proceed with building a sustainable enterprise based on their submitted business plan.
- Be a competitive and compelling launch pad for student teams who wish to continue on the regional and national business plan circuit.
- Create businesses that will directly benefit the Inland Northwest region through increased economic impact and employment opportunities.
This year’s competition will be held at Whitworth University on Thursday, April 13.
There are several ways to get involved with the NEC:
- Compete – If you are a high school or college student, start a team or enter an idea to compete in the competition.
- Support – If you are a community member with an entrepreneurial spirit, join a student team to support their idea in the competition.
- Judge – If you are an industry/business expert or seasoned entrepreneur, join the competition as a judge and help provide critical feedback and support to student teams as they move through the process. Contact the NEC’s Director, Sinead Voorhees, if you wish to participate as a judge for the competition.
- Sponsor – If you are a business that values entrepreneurship and wants to support the next generation of business owners and economic development in our region, support the competition through sponsorship.
- Encourage – If you are a parent, high school teacher or college professor, encourage your students to participate in the competition and entrepreneurial classes at school.
- Attend – Join us and listen to student presentations.
For more information about the competition and deadlines for application, visit the NEC website.
