New Orleans, LA (February 23, 2015) – Today, the full calendar of over 100 events for the 7th annual New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW), presented by IBERIABANK, was released via www.NOEW.org. Produced by The Idea Village, NOEW will be headquartered on Fulton Street in downtown New Orleans from March 20-27, 2015.
New Orleans has one of the most unique and dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystems in the country and NOEW is its premier showcase event, linking over 40 organizations to engage entrepreneurs, techies, innovators, dealmakers, thought leaders, investors, and community members for eight straight days of discussion, debate, education, competition, and celebration designed to support new ideas, share best practices, and elevate entrepreneurial thinking. Over 10,000 attendees are expected to participate in NOEW 2015 over the eight days.
Registration is now open at www.NOEW.org and the entire community is invited to attend. Everyone who pre-registers will have access to special deals throughout the week as well as the ability to build a personal NOEW calendar.
“NOEW is the platform to experience the entrepreneurial movement in New Orleans,” said Tim Williamson, Co-founder and CEO of The Idea Village. “In addition to providing direct resources to support the efforts of leading entrepreneurs in our region, this year, we focused on developing useful programming for everyone in the community who is interested in innovation, entrepreneurship, and new thinking.”
Key NOEW 2015 events include:
- 30 pitch competitions and demos showcasing over 100 entrepreneurs that will award prizes collectively valued at over $275,000 in cash and resources. Events include focused efforts on innovation in water, education, and arts.
- Over 70 workshops, panel discussions, and networking events focused on marketing/branding, technology, and raising capital/scaling. Specific sessions include “Haters Gonna Hate: Branding, Marketing, and Addressing Good and Bad Reviews on Social Media,” “Create a Million Dollar Digital Presence with 1 Hour and $25,” and “Take Your Pitch from Sucky to Successful: The Top 6 Pitch Mistakes and How to Fix Them.”
- Strategic initiatives that will launch efforts to encourage innovation in the healthcare, energy, new media, and food industries.
The 2015 headliners include Beth Comstock, President and CEO of GE Business Innovations and Chief Marketing Officer of GE; Jim Coulter, Founding Partner of TPG Capital; Ross Kimbel, Global Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship for The Coca-Cola Company; Walter Isaacson, President and CEO of The Aspen Institute; John Briggs, East Coast Editor at TechCrunch.com; Gabie Boko, Executive Vice President of Marketing at Sage North America; Chef Donald Link, Executive Chef and CEO of Link Restaurant Group; Rhonda Abrams, Bestselling Author and Columnist at USA Today; Kris Frieswick, Senior Editor at Inc.com; Derek Thompson, Senior Editor at The Atlantic; Jordan Weissman, Senior Business Editor and Economics Correspondent at Slate; Rob Reily, Chief Marketing Officer of GE Healthcare; Steve Rowley, SVP of Cox Business; and Charif Souki, CEO of Cheniere.
Additionally, the following national investors have confirmed participation in NOEW 2015: Accel Partners, Battery Ventures, Bernhard Capital Partners, Calvert Funds, Denham Capital Partners, Draper Associates ,First Round Capital, Fulcrum Equity Partners, General Atlantic, Granite Ventures, Indicator Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Maven Ventures, Plum Capital, Revolution Ventures, Silicon Valley Growth Syndicate, Simon School Venture Capital Fund, SSM Partners, TD Ventures, TPG Capital, and UPS Strategic Enterprise Fund.
NOEW officially kicks off at 8pm on Friday, March 20th with an Opening Celebration anchored at Fulton Alley on Fulton Street. This block-party will feature live music, free bowling, and free Bacardi cocktails. NOEW closes on Friday March 27th at 8pm with the entire entrepreneurial community convening for The Big Idea. The Big Idea is a unique New Orleans-style pitch extravaganza, featuring 12 of New Orleans’ most promising startup ventures and a local, celebrity judging panel, complete with over 10 bars and entertainment.
ABOUT NEW ORLEANS ENTREPRENEUR WEEK:
New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW), presented by IBERIABANK, is the annual festival celebrating business, innovation, and advanced thinking in New Orleans. Produced by The Idea Village, NOEW engages a dynamic global to support growing companies and elevate entrepreneurial successes through eight days of discussion, debate, education, competition, and celebration. This year, NOEW 2015 will take place March 20-27, 2015. For more information: www.NOEW.org
ABOUT THE IDEA VILLAGE:
The Idea Village was formed in 2000 by a group of New Orleans citizens who believed entrepreneurship is a catalyst for positive change. The Idea Village is an independent 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to identify, support, and retain entrepreneurial talent in New Orleans by providing direct service to high impact entrepreneurs, educating the broader community, and supporting initiatives that strengthen our entrepreneurial infrastructure. From 2009-2014, The Idea Village has provided direct support to over 3,411 New Orleans entrepreneurs by engaging over 2,600 professionals to allocate 68,543 consulting hours and $2.5 million in seed capital. The Idea Village Gold Excellence award from the International Economic Development Council for our Entrepreneur Season model in 2012 and were recognized as a top-three entrepreneurship ecosystem developer in 2014 by the Global Innovation Summit. For more information: www.ideavillage.org
