MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – Nearly a dozen Grand Strand entrepreneurs shared their unique product pitches at “Pitch Night” on Wednesday.
The event was held in the Market Common by The Grand Strand Technology Council and over 100 people filled the seats.
“The point of the ‘Pitch Night’ is to really showcase what our entrepreneurs are doing here locally,” said Grand Strand Technology Council President Jason Greene. “We have some great entrepreneurs with some really innovative ideas and we really want to show what they’re doing here to let the public know that we have entrepreneurs that are doing wonderful things worldwide.”
The night began with some anti-virus software application development, automated testing and I.T. consulting companies like PC Pitstop, Quilmont and ArchetypeSC.
“We’re going to take a little rest from all this geeky, tech talk and we’re going to talk about beer,” said entrepreneur, Randy Hollister. He created what he calls the first-ever refrigerated “countertap” for standard growlers.
“Any of you that use growlers know what the problem is,” said Hollister. “That it goes bad once you open it.”
Hollister’s invention started on Kickstarter and has already brought in tens of thousands of dollars in profits.
Another popular presentation was from Coastal Carolina University alumni, Tayfun Karadeniz.
“We have this IntexMoji technology that nobody else has,” said Karadeniz. He’s created a way to put brands like Starbucks and Nike into emojis on your smart phone’s keyboard.
“Of course, now that’s going to open up a whole new field in IntextEmojis,” he added. One of the main reasons Karadeniz came to the Pitch Night was to possibly find some seed money.
“I thought it would be a good opportunity to show the community what we’re doing and possibly get some investment,” Karadeniz explains.
Another product presented, called DvertD, is a mobile device management and emergency notification app for the classroom. It was introduced by educator, McKean Nowlin, who said cell phones are a major distraction in the classroom. The app is able to impair students’ phones in a certain location for a set amount of time so they don’t become a distraction. Students are also able to earn rewards for time spent using the app.
Bonk Fit was pitched by Donn Brin. It’s a designer fitness punching bag for kids developed to keep them active while having fun.
While there were no “sharks” in the audience to critique the pitches, there were plenty of cheers for the entrepreneurs’ ideas.
“It’s a great place for us to showcase our area entrepreneurs and what they’re working on,” said Greene. “And the successes they’ve had working here on the Grand Strand.”
