PitchBlack partners with Built Oregon to present consumer product startup pitches

Rick Turoczy
Silicon Florist
Published in
2 min readSep 21, 2018

PitchBlack is the premier local pitch event for black and brown founders. Built Oregon is striving to be the voice for consumer products in Oregon. So when you put the two together, you get an interesting night of pitches on consumer products from some of the most promising entrepreneurs in the state. And it’s all happening as part of the Built Up Festival.

PitchBlack is back for year 4! This year we are changing it up a bit by having it be a maker focused event as part of the Built Up Festival. Ten entrepreneurs will get five minutes to pitch the audience and then three minutes of questions about their idea. After the last pitcher has answered questions from the audience, attendees will then vote for the three (3) winners who will split the prize money equally.

The event servces a dual purpose: To connect the region’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem with the increasing number of African-American and Latinx founders. And to give Black and/or Latinx startup entrepreneurs a platform to connect with the larger startup ecosystem, while also awarding them with cash prizes.

Doors open at 5:30PM on October 1. The first pitch is at 6:00PM. The event is hosted at Instrument, 3529 N Williams. Tickets cost $22.50 but all proceeds go to the winners of the pitch competition. If you’re interested in sponsoring, there is still an opportunity to do so.

For more information or to RSVP, visit PitchBlack.

[Full disclosure: I am the cofounder of Built Oregon. I also just bought my ticket.]

Originally published at siliconflorist.com on September 21, 2018.

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Rick Turoczy
Silicon Florist

More than mildly obsessed with connecting dots in the Portland, Oregon, startup community. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj98mr_wUA0