Five entrepreneurs each had five minutes to pitch their product and service ideas to a panel of judges last week during the second annual Rock County Jumpstart Accelerator Pitch event, according to a report from the Beloit Daily News.
The winners were:
- First place and $3,500: Mikal Cooks, who runs a health and wellness nonprofit focusing on racial disparities affecting Black women, and is looking for an 1,800-to-2,400-square-foot space to house a health and wellness center in Rock County;
- Second place and $2,500: Valenica Riley, who has proposed a virtual reality arcade in Janesville equipped with a restaurant and bar; and
- Third place and $1,500: Joseph Purnell, who started his own business called Can Do Crew that focuses on home repair and remodeling with veterans and formerly incarcerated individuals.
