The Business Incubator of Southwest Louisiana has announced the eleven participants selected to compete in the 2024 Southwest Louisiana Business Pitch Contest.

The contest will headline the Alliance/Business Incubator’s National Small Business Week festivities.

“We are pleased with this year’s Business Pitch contestants. It was amazing to review the applications that were submitted with a variety of ideas and business concepts,” said Alliance (Business Incubator of Southwest Louisiana) Senior Vice President of Entrepreneurship and Strategic Initiatives Eric Cormier.

The 2024 Business Pitch contestants and their business name or interests are as follows:

– Elisabeth Perez: Louisiana Small Talk Book

– Benoit Johnson: 3rd Day Farms, LLC –

– Carl Corman: Third Coast Craft

– Tanisa Penland: entertainment complex

– Jessica Broussard: Paint and Fire

– Vicki Holland: online boutique –

– Trent Lavalaus: Player Hater Maker

– Nicholas Veuleman: catering service

– Samuel Taylor: Core Impact

– Mitchell Devillier: Ertia

– Haden Cooley: human resource

The Business Pitch Contest will be held inside the Willis Noland Conference Room on May 2, 2024 at the SEED Center located at 4310 Ryan St. in Lake Charles. The program will start at 5:30 p.m.

Prizes will be awarded for:

– First place winner $5,000

– Second place winner $3,000

– Third place winner $1,500

Judges will score participants based on a 5 minute pitch being:

– Compelling — Does the pitch entice the judges and audience?

– Informative — Does the pitch provide details about the business concept (problem it solves, target market, business model, experience in industry, current needs…etc.)?

– Next steps — If the contestant wins, what will they do next to convert the concept into a business?

– Delivery — Contestant will be graded on the presentation. Poster boards and digital slides can be used. Appropriate attire, eye contact, voice projection and poise will be factored in the individual pitch score.

– In the case of a tie, contestants will be given the opportunity to pitch again with a three minute time limit and judged based on the initial criteria with extra points for tenacity, they have to prove their idea is a winner.

The judges for the Business Pitch Contest are: SSRM/Credit Services owner and Business Incubator of Southwest Louisiana Advisor Stuart Moss, SASOL Human Resources Business Partner Karla Edwards, and Envirosharp CEO and founder and Southwest Louisiana Business Incubator Program Member Trey Vincent.

The public is invited to attend the Business Pitch Contest.

For more information, contact Eric Cormier at 337-433-3632 or ecormier@allianceswla.org.