Bridgeport, CT – Following the success of the Bridgeport Business Challenge in 2021, the Entrepreneurship Foundation is again launching a small business challenge leveraging $50,000 in funding from the American Rescue Plan allocated by Mayor Ganim and the Bridgeport City Council. This small business competition is a partnership among the Entrepreneurship Foundation, the Community Economic Development Fund (CEDF), SCORE, the CT Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC) and fifteen other public and private organizations that come together to provide training, mentoring and presentation coaching for grant applicants. The business competition will allow small business startups from Bridgeport to compete for financial awards to grow and expand their business. 

Some of the business proposals from the past included food delivery, composting, coffee system repairs, music promotion, custom jewelry, and consumer services. Of the original eleven finalists from the 2021 competition, ten are still in business two years later and at least six have increased their sales five-fold.

The final presentations for the competition will take place on December 8, 2023, and will be hosted by the Werth Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Housatonic Community College. Judges for the competition are business lenders and equity investors, which will allow all finalists to have exposure to additional sources of capital.

“The purpose of the Bridgeport Business Challenge is to enable a public partnership to create jobs by investing in the drive, talent, and visions of our residents. We’re thrilled that small business-owners will once again take part in this competition; with the hopes that the success of this year’s event matches up to the success of the event in 2021,” stated Mayor Ganim. 

Before the competition, a training and orientation session will take place on October 26, 2023, from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM in the Events Center at Housatonic Community College. Individuals who are interested are encouraged to register for free at https://2023Bplan.eventbrite.com. The grant application may be found at https://bit.ly/2023Bplan and is due by November 30, 2023. Finalists will be notified on December 5, 2023. 

Existing companies applying for the grants must be certified as Bridgeport-based by the city’s Small and Minority Business Enterprise Department. Candidates may download a certification request from https://bit.ly/BridgeportSMB and email the completed form to Jason.Chandersingh@Bridgeportct.gov and Roer@EntrepreneurshipFoundation.org. Businesses who register with the Department will receive notices of free workshops, services available to small businesses, and future grant competitions.