Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge
Looking for a chance to fund the business you’ve been dreaming about? Want to create scalability for your existing business?
It can be challenging for small business owners to establish themselves in a robust economy like Midland’s, even if our city’s residents do have a great track record of supporting local companies. Entrepreneurs or those like yourself who have dreams of being your own boss tend to excel at big-picture thinking and taking risks. You might even be a champion of details and organization, but there are probably aspects of business management that aren’t your expertise.
After winning the Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge ourselves in the 2021-2022 session, we can speak from experience in sharing that the MEC is an amazing opportunity to grow your dreams into reality. In addition to being in the running for a large monetary award, you’ll work alongside experts in marketing, business development, and tax laws to improve your business idea or existing business along the way.
It’s win-win!
What is the midland entrepreneurial Challenge?
Created in 2017, the Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge, or MEC, has helped local businesses in the Tall City to not only meet their business development goals, but exceed them. The winners from 2017 and 2018 alone have earned a combined 6 million plus in revenue. In conjunction with the UTPB Small Business Development Center, the Midland Development Corporation came to the conclusion several years ago that the city’s economy needed to diversify, with an emphasis on local businesses.
The MEC is a 6-month challenge for local entrepreneurs. Your company can be an idea or an already formulated business looking to expand. It begins in September of each year, with final prize money awarded the following February. All prospective participants must attend an orientation in order to qualify for the MEC. There are several orientation dates to select from, allowing for varying schedules. The Midland Development Corporation funds $500,000 every year to the finalists. Whether a finalist or not, if part of the Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge, your business or business idea will benefit from the process of MEC itself. You’ll receive guidance from industry leaders that edifies your business plan, assists you in market research, and educates you in financial practices.
Step 1: Register and attend an orientation session (September 13/14/15)
Step 2: Pay the registration fee ($350)
Step 3: Attend Courses
Step 4: Submit an investor fact sheet
Step 5: Submit Business Plan
Step 6: Pitch a Presentation on your business to a panel of judges
Step 7: Be awarded up to $150K for your business
Requirements to Participate
The first requirement to enter the Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge is to attend the initial orientation session. There will be a few different dates in mid-September that you can choose from. Attending one of these sessions is mandatory for participation. After the orientation, if you feel like the MEC is the right path to take for your business, you will complete the registration and begin your MEC journey.
UTPB Assistant Professor of Management, Dr. Ryan Peckham, outlines the MEC as “a six-month commitment where business owners are coming to classes and talking about different business principles like accounting, legal, marketing, and other aspects.” If you don’t feel comfortable committing to the six months of comprehensive schedules of workshops, consultations with local experts, and networking events, this might not be for you. Fortunately, over the past five years of the Challenge, the businesses that have committed have experienced growth and increased revenue.
Your business must be located in the city of Midland in order to be eligible. Franchises are not eligible for entry.
Why You Should Enter the Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge
The stats collected from the 2017 and 2018 MEC winners are proof enough that this Challenge is worth your time and effort. Every winner from those two years, ten local companies in total, met or exceeded the expectations outlined in their business plans. 58 full-time jobs were created as well as over $6 million in combined revenue. These numbers show the power that is built into the MEC. Because contestants will be counseled by industry experts, financial professionals, and local business owners, business plans flourish and gain traction in the marketplace.
Listed below are the six main areas of business development focused upon in the Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge:
Consulting: Consult with our resident experts on a legitimate business plan for your venture.
Structure: Learn how your business should be structured to maximize potential and protect assets.
Taxation and Lending: Learn about business taxation and loans from lenders and professional tax experts
Marketing: Learn the ropes of today’s most effective marketing strategies from a team of local experts.
Development: Develop your business plan and pitch to set your business up for success (and wow our judges).
Potential Funding: Create a business plan that makes your business fundable - either through private investment, bank, etc.
Past Winners
Past winners of the MEC include everything from local breweries to a birth center, marketing and consulting groups. The variety of contestants at various stages in their business (either as an established business, start-up, or just an idea) is a testament to the innovative individuals that reside in Midland County. As the MDC and UTPB SBDC envisioned at the onset of the Challenge, diversity in the local economy is a sign of health and economic prosperity. The list of past MEC finalists reflects this.
2021-2022 Winners
TyPickle Pickles
Magrym Consulting
Lo. St. Books
Midland AF
The Birth Center of Midland, Texas
TyPickle Pickles, $100,000
Magrym Consulting, $100,000
Lo. St. Books, $100,000
Midland AF, $100,000
The Birth Center of Midland, $100,000
2019 Winners
Topline Care Pharmaceuticals, $125,000
Thermal Cam USA, $125,000
Nothing Bundt Cakes, $100,000
Caprock Products dba Kid Proof, $80,000
Four Hands Dental Academy, $70,000
2018 Winners
Big State Compression, $75,000
Most Wanted Waste Removal, $75,000
Tall City Brewing Co. $75,000
Texland Collision, $75,000
The Oilfield Photographer, $25,000
Piano Works Gallery, $25,000
2017-2018 Winners
Eccentric Brewing Co, $72,000
Liv432, $75,000
CYA Flowers,
Evidently, the opportunity of winning the Midland Entrepreneurial Challenge is open to any kind of business owner as well to those with an established business or just a business that is looking to get off the ground.
Will your business be the next?
Space is limited- be sure to RSVP for an orientation session on the 13th, 14th, or 15th before they are gone!