Planning is underway for Accelerate Okanagan’s 6th annual Okanagan Angel Summit, and the team is hoping to reach new heights.
Each year the Okanagan Angel Summit creates a new fund with active angel investors who will work together to vet companies, complete due diligence, and place an investment into one promising startup at a public pitch event. This year, an investment fund of $200,000 will mean that over the last six years, local investors have successfully placed $1,000,000 of angel capital directly into six deserving startups through the Okanagan Angel Summit.
Individuals who meet BC’s investor accreditation requirements are invited to participate in the 2024 fund and help reach the $1M goal. The Okanagan Angel Summit is a unique model with new and experienced investors participating in an 8-week program to learn about navigating investing in early-stage ventures in real-time, with weekly sessions and multiple in-person pitch events. The investor group is typically made up of 25-35 local community members who will work together and leverage each other’s strengths to narrow down the finalists and ultimately pick a winner. The Okanagan Angel Summit program is happening this spring from April 2 to May 23, 2024.
“The Okanagan Angel Summit is an approachable and fun way to learn about investing in early-stage ventures because you can start with writing a $5K or $10K cheque and leverage the power of the investor group,” said Carollynn Schafer, Interim CEO of Accelerate Okanagan and Investor Facilitator for the Summit. “We are looking for individuals who want to make a difference in our region to be part of an incredible opportunity to learn about angel investment and deploy more capital in the valley.”
The past five Summit winners have all seen success in their industry by growing their businesses and creating jobs. Notable local winners include student engagement platform, Minga, and agriculture robotics company, 4AG (formerly TechBrew). The Summit intentionally creates multiple touchpoints for local angels and investors to interact and build relationships with each other and the participating entrepreneurs. That level of connectivity creates real, impactful relationships that continue long after the Summit ends.
“Beyond the investment, the Summit creates real value by allowing individuals with an interest in supporting and building the innovation ecosystem to interact and get to know each other. This is a great year to get involved as we plan to host more networking opportunities around the finale.” said Thuy Tran, Accelerate Okanagan Programs Director.
The public finale will be held at the Innovation Centre on May 23, 2024. Applications for the 2024 Okanagan Angel Summit are open until the end of March. You can apply and learn more about getting involved on our website, okgnangelsummit.com.
