OEN NewsPress Release – Oregon Entrepreneurs Network Announces Semifinalists for the 2018 OEN Tom Holce Entrepreneurship Awards
The Oregon Entrepreneurs Network (OEN) is pleased to announce semifinalists for the 2018 OEN Tom Holce Entrepreneurship Awards.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the OEN Tom Holce Entrepreneurship Awards, OEN’s signature event that honors the skill and courage that it takes for entrepreneurs to create a business out of an idea. The event is intended to not only celebrate entrepreneurs but to highlight their importance to the region’s economy.
Finalists from each award category will be announced on September 18, 2018. Winners will be announced on October 24, 2018, during the Awards Dinner at the Oregon Convention Center. In addition to the finalists below, OEN will be honoring an up-and-coming entrepreneur for our Battle of the Schools Award.
Descriptions of the award categories and lists of semifinalists are as follows:
Company Awards
OEN Company Awards recognize businesses in the bootstrap, early, development, and growth stages that address compelling market problems; deliver consistent growth; have scalable business models; know their niche and clearly differentiate from their competitors; and have founders and/or teams who demonstrate tenacity, passion, and vision.
The semifinalists are:
Bootstrap Stage Company Award
“Oregon’s Hottest Garage Venture.” Honoring a for-profit startup that has achieved significant milestones over the last 12 months without raising equity or debt capital and with a past-year revenue of $0 – .5 million.
- CMDSense
- Fire Brew
- GoCamp
- Krowdsourced
- NOBULL Specialty Foods
- Premium Organics, LLC
- ProsperCity
- Society Nine
- Storybulbs
- Uform
- UpStar Ice Cream
- Xscape Pod
Early Stage Company Award
“Oregon’s Most Promising Startup.” Honoring a company that may have raised angel, venture or grant funding with a past-year revenue of $0 – 1 million.
- Canvas
- Evelyn & Bobbie
- PacLab Analytics
- Riff Cold Brewed Coffee
- Snap2Insight
- Stackery
- Tali
- TRIbella
- The Wild
Development Stage Company Award
“Oregon’s Next Business Home Run.” Honoring a company with past-year revenue of at least $1 million and projected revenue for the current year of $1-$8 million.
Growth Stage Company Award
“Oregon’s Next Household Name.” Honoring a company with past-year revenue of at least $8 million and projected revenue for the current year of over $8 million.
Game Changer Award
The Game Changer Award honors both nonprofit and for-profit enterprises that offer a novel solution to a social problem. This social enterprise has a commitment to impact that is central to the mission of the business, a viable business model, and a compelling answer to the question, “Why is your solution better than existing solutions?”
The semifinalists are:
Entrepreneurial Achievement Award
Our Entrepreneurial Achievement Award recognizes an entrepreneur or founding team with a record of outstanding achievement in the last 18 months. We’re looking for people or teams who: demonstrate tenacity, passion, and grit; recognize, and capitalize on, opportunity; positively impact the communities in which they operate; and actively support our entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The semifinalists are:
- Chi Nguyen, Automedic
- Emma Mcilroy, Wildfang
- Jason Bolt, Revant Optics
- Lynn Le, Society Nine
- Mahmood Sher-Jan, RADAR
- Matt Volm, Matt Anthes-Washburn, Matt Hoiland, Tali
- Robert Eugene Buchanan Jr., Adhere Gear LLC
- Tim Hysell, ZincFive
About Oregon Entrepreneurs Network
A nonprofit, membership-driven organization with a 27+-year track record, OEN connects entrepreneurs to a network of peers and mentors, startup funding opportunities, and hands-on training. OEN believes that a thriving network of entrepreneurs makes Oregon stronger.
