Six B.C. companies selected for investment finale

Feb 24, 2021 | 9:43 AM Pete McIntyre

Accelerate Okanagan has announced the top six companies selected to pitch at the 2021 OKGN Angel Summit Finale for their chance at $145,000 investment.

Over the last six weeks, the OKGN Angel Summit investor group has been busy evaluating companies and narrowing down the entrepreneurs who will pitch live at the public finale on March 18. The 29 investors have reviewed, evaluated, and performed due diligence with over 40 applicants and found their finalists.

“We know one of the biggest challenges facing entrepreneurs is access to growth capital. One of our goals with the virtual format was to ease accessibility for those entrepreneurs looking to raise money,” Programs Manager, Jenna Stasuk said. “We are thrilled to see companies from all around B.C. and from a variety of sectors make it to this stage in the summit.”

This year’s finale has entrepreneurs pitching from Vancouver, Kelowna, Nelson and Salmon Arm. In addition to their chance at the investment, each finalist will get an exclusive one-on-one meeting with Canadian business icon and OKGN Angel Summit keynote speaker Arlene Dickinson.

The Summit’s Finale is the culmination of a 10-week program that seeks to educate new angel investors and entrepreneurs on the investment process, while also working to improve access to capital for growing businesses in the B.C. startup ecosystem. It’s not just about one winner, it’s about training companies and investors, making it easier for them to invest and to get investment.

Here are this year’s finalists:

Beyond Aerospace Ltd. www.beyondaerospace.com Founder: Mike Ball Sector: Aerospace Location: Kelowna
ENJINE www.enjine.com/ Founder: Jin Choi Sector: Fintech Location: Kelowna
Live It www.liveit.earth Co-Founder: Melissa Welsh Co-Founder: Mike Irvine Sector: Edtech Location: Nelson
RocketPlan Technologies Inc. www.rocketplantech.com/ Founder: Joe Tolzmann Sector: SaaS Location: Vancouver
Streamline Athletes www.streamlineathletes.com Founder: Brett Montrose Sector: SaaS Location: Vancouver
Techbrew Robotics www.techbrewrobotics.com Founder: Mike Boudreau Sector: Agritech Location: Salmon Arm

The finale will be hosted on Remo, a virtual networking platform that allows for attendees to move around the venue, gather with friends in small groups, and chat one-on-one with other guests.

For tickets, more information, and a complete list of the participating companies, visit www.okgnangelsummit.com.