Northern Maine Development Commission has worked collaboratively with the Maine Center for Entrepreneurship and Sunrise County Economic Council to bring the business accelerator program TopGun to both Aroostook and Washington County.
Robert Clark. executive director of NMDC said, “Thanks to a generous investment through the SBA, Northern Maine Development Commission is proud to partner with Southern Aroostook Development Corporation and Sunrise County Economic Development Council to help connect rural entrepreneurs in Houlton and Machias to statewide business coaching and a chance at a $25,000 grand prize through the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs Top Gun program. This program is a welcomed visitor to the region as historically, Top Gun has been a once-in-a decade opportunity for businesses in the region to gain skills and coaching to help their businesses scale up.”
The TopGun program was last run in Aroostook County in 2012 and has never run in Washington County.
The 15-week intensive program provides hands-on mentorship, business projections, and mentorship to prepare businesses for a regional pitch competition. This year’s pitch competitions will be held in Houlton and Calais. The winners of each competition will move on to the statewide competition where businesses hope to bring home the grand prize, a monetary award. This program is all about building a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem for startups and innovative business owners and getting them the skills they need to scale or grow more than it is for the monetary award. Businesses informational sessions are planned for Aroostook County Businesses to learn more about the program at 12–2:30 p.m. at Ignite Presque Isle.
Registration for the informational sessions is recommended but not required. Aroostook County informational session – November 17: https://www.nmdc.org/event/topgun-business-accelerator-informational-session-aroostook-county/
The cost to participate in the program is $600. Full scholarships are available through Northern Maine Development Commission by calling Jacob Pelkey at (207) 498-5065 or emailing jpelkey@nmdc.org
Helpful links for the upcoming sessions:
Website: https://www.nmdc.org/event/topgun-business-accelerator-informational-session-aroostook-county/ Facebook 17th Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1421097095418304?active_tab=about LinkedIn 17th Event: https://www.linkedin.com/events/topgunbusinessaccelerator infor7125560338279747584/comments/
November 17 registration form: https://bit.ly/TopGunAroostookCounty
Who should come:
• People with a desire to be a business mentor. Share your skills.
• Businesses/ideas with a desire to grow. Be serious about it.
• Be creative, dedicated, and out-of-the-box thinkers.
• Those who want to grow are growing the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
• Stakeholders and the media. All are welcome. Lunch is provided.
