​Is this event for me?

If you are interested in entrepreneurship the answer is most likely yes. Whether you are a serial entrepreneur or new to the startup scene, you’ll fit right in as long as you are motivated to build a product or startup and are open to new ideas. We believe that great ideas can come from anywhere.

 

The event is intended to be a collaborative and inclusive forum for sharing, learning, building, and having fun. We expect each member of the startup community to be inclusive of all people and their ideas at Techstars Startup Weekend and we welcome all, regardless of experience, industry or background.

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Who can join Techstars Startup Weekend Marlborough?

Creatives - You are a creative thinker or designer who likes to solve complex problems

Inspirators - You are someone who takes charge, is interested in others and has the wildest ideas

Connectors - You are a natural networker who is business & sales-minded and knows how to promote a genius product or service

Builders - You are a developer or a maker who creates awesome websites, apps or products from the ground up

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Why do I have to choose a role?

A startup needs different types of people and skills to make the company successful. You need thinkers and doers.

Everyone attending the event is expected to come without a team and then join and participate with a team. Each team can consist of a maximum of 8 people.

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Do we continue the business we've started after the weekend?

This is up to you and your team and a conversation you will need to have either before the weekend finishes or after, some great businesses have come out of Techstars Startup Weekends internationally in the past. However, there is no expectation that your business will continue after the weekend. More commonly past participants have started other businesses using the knowledge and skills they learned at Startup Weekend.

 

I have a business idea I've been working on, can I pitch that?

No, we do ask that the ideas you pitch are new ideas as this puts all team members on a level playing field. But this is a great opportunity to take the skills and knowledge you gain at Startup Weekend and take it back to your developing business idea to assist the success of your startup.

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Why does a ticket cost 79NZD?

As you might imagine, organising an event costs money. Luckily, we have a lot of sponsors and support from Marlborough District Council which helps us keep the ticket costs down. For the ticket price of 79 NZD you get:

• Dinner on Friday, Saturday and Sunday

• Breakfast and lunch on Saturday and Sunday

• Free drinks the whole weekend (Soft drinks, coffee, tea)

• The best mentors in Marlborough

• A weekend filled with fun, surprises and new friends

 

Do I have to participate in all three days?

Everyone who participates in the event is expected to be present all weekend. Your team is depending on you and your skills. Feel free to talk to us if you have any concerns about the event. You are of course free to leave the event if you don’t want to continue. But please discuss it with your team first and inform the organisers. We will have a  “Sunday Presentation Only” registration option available for those wishing to only view the teams’ final pitch presentations. We welcome any friends, family or colleagues you would like to invite to watch your final presentation to see all you have accomplished in just one weekend. Please check the registration page of your city’s event website for availability.

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Do I need a team?

Everyone who attends the event as a participant is expected to come to the event without a team and then join and participate with a team at the event. This is important to preserve the Techstars Startup Weekend educational experience. The ideal team consists of members from diverse backgrounds and experiences who collaborate to build a great minimum viable product (MVP) using the Lean Canvas framework. The more people you have on your team to help you do market research and business model development, the quicker you’ll develop an MVP to pitch on Sunday. 

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Can I pay at the door?

No, it is not possible to pay at the door. If you are not able to buy a ticket on Eventbrite, please contact us so that we can help you.

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Do I have to pitch an idea to join Startup Weekend Marlborough?

No, but we highly encourage you to. You can pitch an idea you've been thinking about for years, or something you think of at the last minute during the event. Please don’t pitch an idea that you’ve already been developing or have been working on outside of Startup Weekend. The point of the event is to learn how to go from ideation to product. 

 

Pitching provides invaluable practice for public speaking. You won’t regret pitching, but might regret not pitching. 

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What are the judging criteria?

Business Model: How does the team plan on making this a successful business?

• Is it a unique idea?

• What is their key value proposition?

• Have they thought about competition, how to scale, acquiring customers, and their revenue model?

• Have they identified a specific target market?

• How will they acquire their first 100 customers?

Customer Validation: Are teams building something that people actually want?

• Did the team talk to customers?

• Who will be their users, who will be their customers, and are they different?

• How many users have they interviewed?

• Did they target the correct people to interview?

• What did they learn from their customer interviews?

• What are the core needs of their users?

Execution & Design: Have they established an MVP — the minimum set of product features to be able to start collecting data?

• What feedback did they get to inspire their Minimum Viable Product (MVP)?

• Did they build a prototype? Any medium is fine, including paper or Google Slides.

• How effective is their MVP for the purpose of the weekend? 

• How functional is their technical demo, if applicable?

• How easy is it for the user to navigate and use their product?

• Were they able to incorporate customer feedback into the solution?

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​What should I bring for an in-person event?

• Laptop/Portable Computer

• Power cord for Laptop

• Notepad and pen

• Business cards (or a business card app)

• Your phone - feel free to take pictures or video of the event

• Lots of energy!

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I have dietary requirements, what should I do?

We will be providing a vegetarian option with all of our meals, if you have additional dietary requirements let us know. We are unable to cater for all requirements but please check with us and we will advise.

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You can always send us an email if you have any questions: info@marlboroughstartup.co.nz