Five Wilmington startups will participate in this year’s CED Tech Venture Conference, scheduled for Sept. 15-16 in Raleigh.
The annual event, sponsored by the Raleigh-based Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED), has chosen as its 2015 theme #ScalingUp, “a topic that has sparked a national conversation about how to unlock the power of entrepreneurship by supporting growth-stage companies more aggressively,” a news release stated.
Wilmington’s National Speed, a vehicle performance shop, will be among the 17 Lightning Round companies, the CED announced last week.
“This year, because of the overwhelming number of worthy applications, the selection committee decided to create a new category. In addition to the showcase companies presenting on the main stage, the committee selected 17 early-stage companies to present on the main stage during a ‘lightning round,’” the release stated.
No Wilmington companies were among the conference’s 14 showcase companies, all but one of whom are located in the Triangle.
In 2014, nCino and Next Glass participated in the conference as showcase companies, while EasyVote, Indigru and WaterPlay USA attended as demonstration companies.
This year, Wilmington startups Flippze, Likeli, Trimlio Health and Xili Mobile are among the 80 companies selected to demonstrate their products and services at the conference.
Flippze is an online marketplace through which college students can buy and sell books, clothing, furniture and supplies.
Likeli draws from a wide array of online personal profile data to give users suggestions for potential business partners, roommates or friends.
Trimlio Health is a fitness and health data app that allows users to set wellness goals and track their progress.
Xili Mobile is an automated real estate text marketing system that allows prospective homebuyers to get instant information about available homes as they cruise neighborhoods.
The selection committee that chose this year’s companies was made up of active angel investors as well as representatives of local and regional venture capital firms, corporate partners, staff from CED and a presenting partner for the conference.
Wilmington resident and former executive director of the University of North Carolina Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship served on the committee.
Organizers say they expect more than 800 people to attend this year’s event, ranging from experienced business people to aspiring entrepreneurs.
“North Carolina companies are not just starting up, but scaling up – making big hires, acquiring new customers and connecting to investors all over the country,” Jay Bigelow, director of entrepreneurship for CED, said in the release. “The Tech Venture Conference stage will be packed with people who have cracked the scaling code. We will feature the most innovative companies and thought leaders in the country – people who know what it takes not just to start up, but to scale up and succeed.”
