Business & Tech

Northborough Man Pitches His Idea for $10,000 in Seed Money

A Northborough person is a finalist in a battle of the entrepreneurs.

Information courtesy of UMass Lowell

A product that charges your mobile device as you walk; a bicycle-sharing program that uses a mobile phone to locate and unlock the bicycles; a service that provides service dogs to veterans suffering from PTSD and brain injuries; organic cough drops that not only soothe, they attack the illness causing the sore throat; an online networking platform for women entrepreneurs with home-based businesses; a program promoting literacy by bringing storytelling and books to children in public places like playgrounds, farmer’s markets, even food banks; and a service that offers customers discounts in exchange for referrals on Facebook and Twitter.

Those are just some of the ideas that will be pitched to a panel of high-profile entrepreneurs in a competition this week for $10,000 in seed money at the Merrimack Valley Sandbox Winners Showdown Pitch Contest, which includes finalist Peter Alberti.

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Alberti pitches “Tell My Circle,” which is described as an affordable mobile/web customer referral system designed to allow customers of business clients to get an immediate discount at point of sale for posting referrals on Facebook and/or Twitter.

The finalists compete on Thursday, Oct. 18, at UMass Lowell, with a judge panel that includes:  

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·     Tom First, co-founder of Nantucket Nectars;

·     Bill O’Donnell, chief architect of travel-booking website and app-developer Kayak.com;

·     Jack Clancy, CEO of Enterprise Bank;

·     Desh Deshpande, the entrepreneur behind A123 Systems, Cascade Communications and Sycamore Networks who serves as co-chairman of President Obama’s National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship;

·     Julia Silverio, founder of Julia’s Travel and Silverio Insurance;

·     Ira Jackson, former executive vice president of BankBoston.

A fan-favorite vote will also be taken, through which audience members can text their votes for the pitches that should advance to the final round during Thursday night’s competition.

Finalists in the contest come from Andover, Beverly, Boston, Chelmsford, Lawrence, Lexington, Lowell, Methuen, Northborough and Plymouth. They represent college students, stay-at-home moms, industry veterans and community organizers. The finalists were selected from more than 150 entrepreneurs through five preliminary pitch contests held around the region and involving more than 30 community partners, from local government to organizations to UMass Lowell.

Visit Northborough Patch for updates on the winners.


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