Founder Coopetition

FOUNDER COOPETITION

ACCELERATE YOUR BUSINESS

Gain practical, hands-on support to build a successful funding strategy for your business and compete to to win a $5,000 grant. The Founder Coopetition is purpose-built for rural Colorado founders who need to take their business to the next level with the right funding at the right time.

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WHAT IS A COOPETITION?

Building a business is hard. But this can be even harder in small-town Colorado where access to experienced funding guides and capital networks is often limited. That’s why Startup Colorado created the Founder Coopetition combining cooperative learning with a competition for grant funding. Cooperation:You will join a select group of rural entrepreneurs in shared learning and accountability as you get clear on your funding needs, your best options, and your pitch. Competition:The course culminates in a funding pitch with both peer-review and expert reviewers to determine who receives a $5,000 grant (3 per cohort).

What you’ll gain in 4-weeks

  • Expert funding assessment for your business.
  • Pros & cons of different funding models to best-fit your business.
  • Where and how to access your funding options
  • Direct connections with capital providers in Colorado.
  • A supportive community of fellow small-town entrepreneurs
  • Pitch your funding needs to over 50 Startup Colorado partners

What to expect

Part 1 : Assessment.We start with an assessment of your business to define your funding needs and recommend best-fit options for your business.

Part 2 : Access.You will learn where and how to access your funding options, connect with people who can help, and begin preparing your funding pitch. Part 3 : Action.In the final week, we share your funding pitch with our extensive network of partners to attract the support and attention you need.

Weekly Interactive Learning Zoom cohort discussions covering weekly assignments 1:1 office hours with your Startup Colorado funding guide Private discussion forum to share your work and ask questions

Built For Busy Founders

Are you excited about what you see here, but worried about the time commitment? We can’t help you if we can’t meet you where you are. That’s why the Coopetition is designed to fit into your schedule, not compete with it. Weekly assignments are bite-size to avoid overthinking and to quickly gain feedback. Everything else in the program is opt-in as needed.

UPCOMING COHORTS

Cohort Dates

  • April 24th – May 19th
  • September 7-27, 2023
  • October 26 – November 18, 2023
  • April 25 – May 16, 2024
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FAQs
Thayer Hirsh, founder of Knome, a tech startup in Frisco, Colorado.

"The Coopetition helped me more than any other program before and challenged my assumptions with suggestions that I was able to put into action immediately."

jumpstart your business

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MEET THE FOUNDERS

Mike Davlantes is the founder of ChronoCards in Grand Junction. ChronoCards is B2B SaaS that helps mapping teams better manage their work by providing activity logs, workflow documentation, and reporting tools for industry software. Read More
Mike Davlantes
Sara Jennings, the founder of Orion Labs in Nunn, Colorado, was recently awarded a $5,000 micro-grant after completing the Founder Coopetition. Here's how she's building a robotics research institution in rural Colorado. Read More
Sara jennings