The entrepreneurship@UBC Seed Accelerator fund is a cornerstone of entrepreneurship@UBC.  A unique partnership between the BC Innovation Council, UBC alumni and the university, the Seed Accelerator is a venture fund owned and operated by UBC for the purpose of investing in the next generation of student entrepreneurs. 

The Seed Accelerator is capitalized with donations from alumni with matching contributions from BC Innovation Council.  The Seed Accelerator seeks out very early stage business opportunities founded by UBC students faculty, staff or alumni who have graduated within the last three years.

 To kick off the first round of investments, the “entrepreneurship@UBC Seed Accelerator Competition” will be held in fall 2011.   The process for the competition will be as follows:

• Start up companies submit their business plans in a specified format.
• The written submissions are evaluated and ranked according to interest in making an investment.
• The top submissions will be interviewed by members of the Investment Committee or their designate, and the top 3 to 5 companies will be invited to be finalists. 
• The competition culminates in a competition event where, in front of an audience, each of the finalist companies pitch their idea to the Investment Committee.  The Investment Committee makes one or more investment proposals. 

Please note that following the competition we will publish separate guidelines for on-going applications.

Important Dates

• Submission deadline:  September 9, 2011
• Finalists Announced: September 30th, 2011
• Final Event: October 20th (location and date to be confirmed –stay tuned) 

Eligibility Requirements

The entrepreneurship@UBC Seed Accelerator Competition is open to start up companies that are affiliated with UBC based on the following criteria:

• Ideal candidate companies will be in early stages
• One or more of the principals of the company must be either a UBC student, recent graduate (past 3 years), faculty or staff member

Submission Requirements

Companies are asked to submit an application that addresses the 4 major categories of questions below.  The submission should be MS PowerPoint (not to exceed 20 slides), plus appendices (e.g. financial models in Excel).    Applications should be emailed to info@entrepreneurship.ubc.ca

Market Pain – what is the problem you are solving?

1. Describe the market for your product.  In your response, please consider including:

• The market need for your product/service
• The size of the market, market segments and market trends
• Your target customer, and how your product/service is of value to them
• Barriers to entry to the market

Solution – what is your solution for the market problem?

2. Describe the product or service your company is providing.

3. Describe the current stage of product development. In your response, please consider including:

• Upcoming milestones in your product development lifecycle
• Any reliance on other products/services

4. Describe the intended distribution channels for your company’s offering.  In your response, please consider including:

• How you plan to sell to your customers
• How you plan to market to your customers
• A description of any partnerships you intend to form or have formed already

5. Describe the competition in the market place for your company’s offerings. In your response, please consider including:

• What differentiates your offering from your competitors
• What advantages do your competitors offer
• What barriers exist to others who want to compete with your offering.

6. Describe any intellectual property or other innovation associated with your product.

People – who are you and why should we invest in you?

7. Describe the management team and related business skills/experience.  Attach resumes as appendices if desired.

Money – how much money do you need and how much can you make?

8. Describe the current and projected financial position of your venture.  Your response should include the following and be supported by pro forma financial statements in an appendix.

• The revenue model and why it will work in the market place
• Funds raised to date, and spent to date
• Financial requirements going forward
• Planned fund raising
• Significant assumptions that have been made and risks that have been identified

Appendices may only include the following:

• Resumes
• Pro-forma Financial Statements

Evaluation and Investment

Submissions will be judged by the Investment Committee based on the credibility of the overall business plan as represented in the submission, and the likeliness of the investment to payback.

Investments may range in size from $25K to $100K.  The Investment Committee may chose to propose investments to more than one company.  Terms around investment proposals may vary depending on the deal.  Companies are not obligated to accept proposals from the Investment Committee.  Cash prizes will also be awarded to top submissions.