Five reasons why you should enter The Pitch 2009

The Pitch 2009 is the UK's most exciting competition for small business owners and it's organised by BusinessZone.co.uk. Entrepreneurs in five cities - Bristol, Birmingham, London, Manchester and Glasgow - will compete for the chance to win big business prizes. Here are five reasons why you can't afford not to be involved.

1. Give your business a £50,000 boost: We’ve put together a massive package of prizes worth £50,000 which cover all elements of growing a successful business. From website consultancy and market research services to a three month national and regional public relations campaign and thousands of pounds worth of office and meeting room facilities, The Pitch 2009 champion will be given a massive helping hand in hitting the big time.  And if that wasn’t enough, we’re even throwing in a one-on-one personal mentoring session with former Dragons’ Den panellist Doug Richard!

2. Meet local success stories: In each region we are keen to ensure that the panel of judges include entrepreneurs which are local to the particular area. From green business legend and Ecotricity founder Dale Vince OBE in Bristol to Lisa Tse, founder of award winning restaurant and cookery school Sweet Mandarin, in Manchester, regional finalists will get the chance to meet and interact with business owners who know exactly how to achieve success in their region.

3. Star spotting: We have secured some big name entrepreneurs who will be sharing the tricks of the trade with our contestants. Among them are serial entrepreneur and original Dragons’ Den panellist Doug Richard; Tim Campbell, winner of the first series of The Apprentice and Deirdre Bounds, who founded ethical travel business i-to-i.com before selling it to First Choice for £20m. She also starred in Channel 4’s Millionaires Mission. If you’re not lucky enough to meet them at a regional heat or final, you’ll have the opportunity to mix with the big names at our special conference in November where Jamie Murray Wells, founder of Glasses Direct, will also be sharing the story behind his success.

4. It’s not all about the winner: We are keen to ensure that all entrepreneurs who get involved in The Pitch pick up at expert business advice and pointers in the right direction. Everyone who enters will receive a £50 voucher from our venue partner eOffice to spend on office services in one of its UK branches, while every regional finalist plus the winner will get to upload their business plan to the Angels Den online network and get it seen by up to 2,000 real investors! Videos of all the regional pitches will also be uploaded to BusinessZone.co.uk so everyone will get to pick up some pitching tips!

5. Morale boosting: There’s no doubt about it, times are tough. However, what better way to boost your own and your employees morale with an award win? Even if you aren’t crowned overall champion, reaching a regional heat will give your morale a shot in the arm. To help our regional winners celebrate, we’re even throwing in a free party!