The Jay Hurt Hub for Innovation & Entrepreneurship’s 2025 CATS Pitch Competition invites founders of for-profit businesses to submit an application and a 3-minute recorded pitch for a chance to win one of three CATS (Capital, Advisors, Talent, Space) prize packages to accelerate their entrepreneurial journey. These awards are designed to provide not just funding, but the comprehensive support founders need to grow and scale their ventures.

As a learning institution, The Hurt Hub champions founders who actively engage with the diverse entrepreneurial educational resources available in our community. Part of our judging criteria will award points for educational engagement, so we encourage applicants to highlight any programs, classes, or cohorts they’ve participated in, and how those experiences have influenced their business growth.

We are able to offer this competition thanks to generous support from a Truist Charitable Fund grant. Competition organizers are representatives from the Jay Hurt Hub for Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Davidson College.

Pitch Info

Application and Registration

Applications will open October 3rd. The application and pitch video are due October 22, 2025 at 10am. The top three finalists will be notified by email by October 31, 2025. Prize rankings (first, second, and third place) will be announced live at the Davidson Entrepreneur Network showcase event as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week on November 19, 2025. These finalists will be asked to give a short elevator pitch at the event as a way to showcase their business, rather than as part of the official judging process.

Eligibility

The CATS Pitch 2025 Competition is open to North Carolina for-profit businesses registered in the following counties: Mecklenburg, Iredell, Cabarrus, Catawba, Rowan, Gaston, Lincoln, and Union County.

The following entities are ineligible to receive funding and are unable to compete:

Davidson College Students (please apply to the Avinger Impact Fund instead)
Endowments, capital campaigns or other fundraising events
Lobbying organizations, political parties or labor organizations
Fraternal groups
Religious groups
Individuals
Entities that may be connected to prohibited drug-related activities

Pitch Competition Guidelines

Basic Requirements

Length: 3 minutes max
Format: Recorded video file
Due Date: October 22, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Slidedeck encouraged

What to Include in Your Pitch

1. Opportunity

What problem are you solving?
How big is the market opportunity?

2. Solution and Differentiation

What is your product or service?
What makes you different from competitors?

3. Business Model

How do you make money?
Who are your customers?

4. Traction and Validation

What progress have you made?

5. Impact of Award

How will the CATS prize package help grow your business?
Be specific about how you’ll use the funding and resources

Competition Prizes

Three (3) prize packages will be awarded to include:

$10,000, $6,500, and $3,500 grants
$1,000 pro bono work to hire a Davidson student through our Student Consulting program
Introduction to mentors through LaunchCLT
Coworking package, including space and resources for business acceleration

Judging Criteria

A judging committee will be formed from community members not directly associated with the Hurt Hub who will review and rank the submissions based on the following criteria:

Opportunity (20%)
Solution and Differentiation (20%)
Business Model (20%)
Traction and Validation (20%)
Impact of Award (15%)
Educational Engagement (5%. This will be considered from the written part of your application and does not need to be in your video pitch)

The Finer Print

CONFIDENTIALITY

Confidentiality is not guaranteed in any way. Do not include confidential material in your submissions. CATS Pitch 2025 Competition accepts no responsibility for preventing other competitors, judges, sponsors or others who see or hear a pitch competitor’s idea or materials from sharing the idea and/or materials. Nondisclosure Agreements (NDAs) and Covenants Not to Compete between a competitor and CATS Pitch 2025 Organizing Committee and/or judges are not permitted. Sharing your idea or concept may be deemed a public disclosure. It is the responsibility of applicants to consult with an attorney before entering the competition.

PHOTO/VIDEO RELEASE

CATS Pitch 2025 Competition Organizers may take photographs and/or video of any materials used or made available by pitching individuals/teams during the competition for public relations purposes. Any content presented by a competitor should be considered public information disclosure. Competitors should carefully consider excluding any proprietary information or materials that the competitor feels is at risk of disclosure.

DISCLAIMERS

Funds are intended to be invested in the growth of the business. If chosen as a winner, your business is responsible for all applicable taxes.

PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT – Review the 2025 Agreement here.

Educational Programming

Your Next Big Idea Workshop (In-person)

Wednesday, February 2, 4:30-6:00pm Come stretch your idea-muscles with the Hurt Hub! In this workshop, a facilitator will guide you through a series of exercises to explore where you might discover potential opportunities for an entrepreneurial idea or innovation. We will uncover different ways to start thinking with an entrepreneurial mindset and by the end of the workshop, you’ll have an inspiration list for your next big idea!

Intro to Entrepreneurship (Virtual)

Thursday, February 17, 4:30-6:00pmAre you new to entrepreneurship and don’t know where to begin? In this workshop, we’ll talk about the entrepreneur mindset and introduce a popular tool called the Business Model Canvas. Instructed by Dezbee McDaniel, co-founder of Clinispan Health and Innovator in Residence at UNC-Chapel, you'll learn from his experience as an entrepreneur and leave with an initial strategy for getting started with your own business idea.

Best Practices In Pitching (Virtual)

Thursday, February 24, 4:30-5:30pm

What goes into creating a solid pitch? What can you do to attract others to your idea and put confidence in potential investors? In this workshop, we’ll cover what should go into your pitch deck and go over the best practices and common mistakes entrepreneurs make when presenting their venture. This workshop will be taught by Juan Garzón, Executive Director of Innovate Charlotte and Pitch Breakfast.

Go-To-Market Strategy Workshop

Thursday, March 24, 6:30p-8:00pm

Ready to put your product or service out into the world? Join the Hurt Hub@Davidson and Laura McGuire of Fifty Fifty Consulting for a workshop on developing a Go-To-Market strategy. In this workshop you will learn how to bring your venture to market by understanding the customer journey, choosing effective marketing tactics, and developing methods for measuring your success. This workshop is part of the Nisbet Venture Fund educational series. Open to all and conducted in-person.

Structuring Contracts and Agreements Workshop

Monday, April 4, 4:30pm-6:00pm

Establishing strong agreements helps enforce the policies and procedures your venture needs to keep healthy working relationships. In this workshop, we will discuss the important considerations in creating strong contracts and agreements for your small business as well as what kind of agreements that might come up as an entrepreneur. This workshop is in partnership with Michael Best and will be instructed by Michael Fulks and David Sigmon.

FAQ

Does my venture qualify?

Individuals or teams must include an enrolled Davidson College student or recent Davidson alumni from a graduating class between 2016-2021. We accept applications from any profit business model.

Does my entire team have to be Davidson students or alum?

No, but they must own at least 25% of the company.

Do I have to take part in the mentoring?

Acceleration Track Finalists: Yes. Finalists selected for the Acceleration track are assigned and required to participate in weekly mentoring sessions. Teams are also encouraged to attend any relevant events or clinics hosted at the Hub. Non-local alumni and students studying abroad must participate in remote mentoring sessions.

Incubation Track Finalists: Are encouraged to attend office hours at the Hurt Hub leading up to the pitch competition, though it is not a requirement. Incubation Track Finalists are not assigned a specific mentor. Teams are also encouraged to attend the educational workshops and clinics hosted by the Hurt Hub.

Does Davidson give out more than one award?

Usually, one finalist team on the Acceleration Track takes home the entire $25,000 prize. When the judges believe there should be more than one winner, they have the discretion to divide up the prize. In addition, there is no requirement that the judges make an investment in any team. The investment will be granted in the judges’ discretion.

The Incubation Track finalists will compete for the $2,500 prize and all finalists are placed in the same pool for the $5,000 audience choice award.

Does Davidson help pay for travel?

We generally reimburse up to $250.

How does the investment process work?

Investment from the Nisbet Venture Fund is an investment by Davidson College (or a subsidiary of the college) in a Davidson student or young alumni business venture.

While teams may compete and win the investment without being incorporated (or, in the case of a limited liability company, organized), the investment will only be disbursed to a corporation or limited liability company. The winning team(s) will have the option to structure the investment as either a convertible note or a warrant. If the convertible note structure is selected, then the team will enter into a Convertible Promissory Note and a Loan Agreement with Davidson College or a subsidiary of the college (referred to as the “Investor”). If the warrant structure is selected, then the team will enter into a Warrant and Investment Agreement with the Investor.