The Entrepreneurship wing at Inspiria Knowledge campus organized the 2nd edition of Startup Weekend Siliguri virtually on 30-31st Oct & 1st Nov.
The event testified a profusion of ideas with participants from diverse backgrounds belonging from various regions across the country. Whilst some joined in to get a zest of entrepreneurship, some seized the opportunity to assess their startup ideas they’ve been working for a long.
The entire event was hosted on Airmeet, an all-in-one platform to host immersive events and build real connections, online. Airmeet was also the official technology partner for the event.
Friday 30th October
The event kicked off on Friday, with registrations and a welcome address by Aditya Dave, Global Facilitator from Startup Weekend, followed by inspiring speeches, pitching ideas, voting, and forming teams.
From a pool of 100+ budding entrepreneurs, 40 attendees pitched at the event. Top 10 teams were finally selected after the voting round:
- The Atmarnirbhar Youth
- Soldd: Fantasy Auction
- Bichole
- Converse Us
- You@Work
- Green Meat
- Shoecart
- Workify
- The Downtown Logistic Service
- Food on Wheels
Saturday 31st October:
On Saturday, there were workshops planned for all the teams by coaches & mentors from diverse backgrounds such as Marketing, Technical, Design, Co-founders, Product managers, etc. to guide them on building and understanding the business model effectively.
The event also witnessed two power-packed sessions by the following guest speakers.
- Ravi Ranjan from ICC Next on how to define and validate MVP
- Lalitha Wemel from Techstars on how to craft the perfect winning pitch
Teams worked late on Saturday night with organizers helping them throughout their journey to the final presentation.
Sunday 1st November:
On the final day, Sunday, teams assembled at the virtual conference room on Airmeet at 10 AM to validate their ideas, build their presentations, and rehearse their pitches.
At 12 PM we kicked off the final presentations and judging! Pitches were 5 minutes each, with a 3 minute Q&A from the judges. The Startup Weekend judging criteria is broken up into three sections. Teams were judged according to the following 3 criteria, each weighted equally:
- Business Model
- Customer Validation
- Execution & Design
After the presentations were over, the judges deliberated before awarding the prizes! The Atmarnirbhar Youth was announced the Winner and Green Meat stood 1st Runners Up. Converse Us was declared 2nd Runners Up.
The startup viewpoints were pitched not only was analyzed but each further obtained valuable guidance from the professionals and entrepreneurs. As a result, the raw ideas received credible refinement. Consequently, some of which emerged as victorious and the promising, just within 54 hours.
It was amazing to see how far these young minds came up with incredible ideas in just 54 hours.
Everyone from the Startup Weekend Siliguri organizing team would like to extend a huge thanks to everyone who participated, coached, or supported this inaugural event. Special mentions to our technology partner Airmeet, ecosystem partners Nasscom, ICC Next, and Young Indians Siliguri, and global partner Google for Startups. We shall soon announce new events throughout the year. Please let us know if you’d like to be involved in any way, as we are always open to fresh perspectives and enthusiasm.
Thanks again and see you next time!
Watch the Final Pitching Session in action!
