“This is the largest size offered by Victoria’s Secret. Most women will not fit into this size.”
Update on Texas Moot Corp Finals here.
What is it like for student teams to pitch a new venture at Texas Moot Corp? To see for myself I sat in on the semi-finals in division III, watching four student groups doing their best for 30 minutes to convince a panel of expert judges that their brilliant new idea should survive to the next level of competition. At stake is real opportunity, as Texas Moot Corp winners have an amazing record of obtaining actual funding dollars as opposed to getting a gold star and a pat on the back.
My focus was the last group on the agenda, Mentionables (photo), who shared with me some of their experiences getting ready for the pitch.
Here are my impressions from that day:
What are the Judges Looking For?
Judges for the session were Pat Mercado, Isaac Barchas, Rudy Garza and Terry Sadowski.
Sadowski is a managing partner at LGE Execs, Inc. He has served as a mentor with student teams, and before the competition he carefully reviews their business plan. “I’m always wary when I hear a team say that no one else does this, or they have no competition.” First and foremost, Sadowski looks for the market opportunity in a pitch. “Many teams fall in love with their technology,” he explained. “It may seem credible, and the problem they are solving is vast, but they spend 75% of their time romanticizing the problem and making hyperbolic statements about their solution. But without a market there is no business.”
