Venture Fest '19 

It’s October and time for Venture Fest ‘19. We are dedicating this October newsletter to the Venture Fest. Venture Fest has been designed for HV entrepreneurs and investors, and the broader entrepreneur ecosystem including services providers, educators, students, and others interested in entrepreneurship. 

If you have not already registered, please take a look at the exciting program below. We hope you will decide to join us in two weeks on October 17 at SUNY New Paltz. Please Register Now.

Venture Fest ‘19 on October 17 at SUNY New Paltz

Kickoff

12:30 - 1:00  Registration and Networking

1:00 - 1:45    

• Welcome: Kristin Backhaus, Dean, SUNY New Paltz School of Business
• Keynote Speaker: Kenneth Pasternak, Executive Chairman, KABR, Pasternak Family Foundation
• Sponsor Message: Noa Simons, Executive Director, Upstate Capital
• Sponsor Message: David Dell, Managing Director, Schwartz Heslin Group.

Entrepreneur Panel - Crossing the Chasm to High Growth

Hear insights from HV entrepreneurs who have moved from pre-seed to seed to Series A funding and beyond, and lessons learned along the way to rapid growth including board management, growing the team, scaling operations, strategic partnerships, and customer/revenue growth 

1:45 - 2:30      Startup Founder panelists 

• Frank Borchetta, Founder and President, Repairogen
• Chelsea Briganti, Co-Founder and CEO, Loliware
• Brad Smith, Founder and CEO, Simplecast
• Dan Sommer, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, 10XImpact
• Moderated by Johnny LeHane, Founding Managing Member, HV Startup Fund

Breakout Sessions (2:30-4:30) 

Tech Topics

• Blockchain for Business: Kirk Ritchey, Founder / Advisor, Enterprise Systems Group
• Rapid App Development: Dan Stone, Principal. Senior Creative Technologist, Moonfarmer
• Prototype Manufacturing Innovation: Andrew Clearwater, VP of Sales, Fala Technologies and Daniel Freedman, Dean of the School of Science & Engineering, SUNY New Paltz, HV Additive Manufacturing Center

Business topics

• Design Thinking for Entrepreneurs: Jana La Sorte, Founder/Creative Director, Ambassadora
• Professionalizing Your Team: Andi Gray, President, Strategy Leaders, and Eddie Monroy, Director of Consulting, Strategy Leaders 
• Meet the Mentors: opportunity for HV entrepreneurs to meet a number of HV mentors 

• Leon Greene, HV Startup Fund, Fund Manager / Investor
• Wayne Miller, HV Startup Fund, Investor
• Luke Stangel, HV Startup Fund, Key Influencer
• Jeff Werner, HV Startup Fund, Investor
• Johnny LeHane, HV Startup Fund, Fund Manager / Investor
• Sandy Wollman, Westchester Angels, Manager / Investor
• Ajax Green, Coherence Collaborative, Founder / Principal
• Scott Tillitt, BEAHIVE, Founder
• Cynthia Marsh-Croll, WEDC, Program Director (MHV)
• Lauree Ostrofsky, Simply Leap, Author / Coach / Founder
• Rita Capek, Amplify Westchester / 37 Angels, Founder / Principle / Investor
• Rose Rubin, SCORE, Mentor / Ulster County Chair
• Richard Joyce, SCORE, Mentor
• Gerald Habib, SCORE, Mentor
• Donald Urmston, SUNY Orange, Associate Professor of Business Management
• Chris Napolitano, SUNY New Paltz, Lecturer, School of Business
• Don Delaney, Second Wind Ventures, Founder & CEO
• Noa Simons, Upstate Capital, Executive Director
• Mike Caslin, GCSEN Foundation, Founder and CEO
• Danny Potocki, Accel7, Founder and CEO

Investor topic - The Angel Investing Experience

A panel of HV and NYS angel investors discussing why they invest in startups, their investment criteria, challenges faced, and even how they let some big winners getaway

• Moderated by Johnny LeHane, Founding Managing Member, HV Startup Fund 
• Jeff Werner, HV Startup Fund
• March Gallagher, HV Startup Fund
• Sandy Wollman, Westchester Angels
• Kate Cartini, Chloe Capital
• Dick Frederick, Eastern NY Angels (ENYA)
• Lindsay Stencel, Launch NY

Pitch Fest

Sponsor Message: Mike Caslin, GCSEN Regional Resilience Accelerator

4:30 - 5:15 Pitch Fest: HV pre-seed and early seed round entrepreneurs with 2-minute pitches to investors with awards for the top three (1st $2000, 2nd $1000, 3rd $500)

• SportsHi (home of High School Sports), Founder: Alexander Miles
• Izana (empowering women with innovative clothing), Founder: Isabel Castillo 
• Cohoots (renting seasonal wardrobes for children), Co-founders: Eliza Edge, Stephanie Erwin
• Lessonbee (an awesome health education experience), Founder: Reva McPollom
• United Aircraft Technologies, Founders: Evaguel Rhysing, Daryian Rhysing
• FabForeDev (mobile experiences for discerning players), Founder: Marty Rottman

5:15 - 6:30 Grand Finale

Oktoberfest Networking

German food: Schnitzel, German Cucumber Salad, and Potato Salad, Bavarian Soft Pretzel, Grilled Bratwurst, Red Cabbage with Apples, Potato Pancakes, Apple Strudel and more!

Local (and German) beer, local wine, cider, soft drinks

Music by Alpine Squeeze

HV Food & Beverage Startup Showcase - HV food & beverage startups showcasing their products 

Screamin' Onionz - an amazingly versatile condiment that's Kinda Like Onionz In Hot Sauce

HV Harvest - helping to bring our customers the best food from the Hudson Valley

Raw Amour - the only certified organic, certified low glycemic chocolate in the marketplace

Toma Bloody Mary Mixers - elevate your brunch with Toma, award-winning Bloody Mary mix

Sponsors

 Thank you to our Venture Fest Sponsors

Presenting Sponsor: The Pasternak Family Foundation

If you would like to sponsor Venture Fest ‘19 please contact Tony DiMarco at dimarcoa@newpaltz.edu