NEW ORLEANS – New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW), presented by IBERIABANK, is the annual business festival celebrating entrepreneurship, innovation, and advanced thinking in New Orleans, produced by The Idea Village.
This year, the 7th annual NOEW will take place from Friday, March 23, through Friday, March 27, 2015, on Fulton Street in downtown New Orleans, and more than 10,000 attendees are expected to engage in more than 100 events.
New Orleans has one of the most unique and dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystems in the country and NOEW is its premier showcase event, linking over 40 organizations to engage entrepreneurs, techies, innovators, dealmakers, thought leaders, investors, and community members for eight straight days of discussion, debate, education, competition, and celebration designed to support new ideas, share best practices, and elevate entrepreneurial thinking.
The Idea Village, a New Orleans-based a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to identify, support and retain entrepreneurial talent in New Orleans, produces NOEW each year. The Idea Village is an independent organization whose attitude is best exemplified by our mantra: "Trust Your Crazy Ideas."
An engaged Board of Directors and Advisory Committee, who represent some of the nation's most respected business and civic leaders, support The Idea Village Team's efforts and elevate entrepreneurial activity in New Orleans
"NOEW is the platform to experience the entrepreneurial movement in New Orleans," said Tim Williamson, Co-founder and CEO of The Idea Village. "In addition to providing direct resources to support the efforts of leading entrepreneurs in our region, this year, we focused on developing useful programming for everyone in the community who is interested in innovation, entrepreneurship, and new thinking."
Key NOEW 2015 events include:
• 30 pitch competitions and demos showcasing over 100 entrepreneurs that will award prizes collectively valued at over $275,000 in cash and resources. Events include focused efforts on innovation in water, education, and arts.
• Over 70 workshops, panel discussions, and networking events focused on marketing/ branding, technology, and raising capital/scaling. Specific sessions include "Haters Gonna Hate: Branding, Marketing, and Addressing Good and Bad Reviews on Social Media," "Create a Million Dollar Digital Presence with 1 Hour and $25," and "Take Your Pitch from Sucky to Successful: The Top 6 Pitch Mistakes and How to Fix Them."
• Strategic initiatives that will launch efforts to encourage innovation in the healthcare, energy, new media, and food industries.
The 2015 headliners include Beth Comstock, President and CEO of GE Business Innovations and Chief Marketing Officer of GE; Jim Coulter, Founding Partner of TPG Capital; Ross Kimbel, Global Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship for The Coca-Cola Company; Walter Isaacson, President and CEO of The Aspen Institute; John Briggs, East Coast Editor at TechCrunch.com; Gabie Boko, Executive Vice President of Marketing at Sage North America; Chef Donald Link, Executive Chef and CEO of Link Restaurant Group; Rhonda Abrams, Bestselling Author and Columnist at USA Today; Kris Frieswick, Senior Editor at Inc.com; Derek Thompson, Senior Editor at The Atlantic; Jordan Weissman, Senior Business Editor and Economics Correspondent at Slate; Rob Reily, Chief Marketing Officer of GE Healthcare; Steve Rowley, SVP of Cox Business; and Charif Souki, CEO of Cheniere.
Additionally, the following national investors have confirmed participation in NOEW 2015: Accel Partners, Battery Ventures, Bernhard Capital Partners, Calvert Funds, Denham Capital Partners, Draper Associates, First Round Capital, Fulcrum Equity Partners, General Atlantic, Granite Ventures, Indicator Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Maven Ventures, Plum Capital, Revolution Ventures, Silicon Valley Growth Syndicate, Simon School Venture Capital Fund, SSM Partners, TD Ventures, TPG Capital and UPS Strategic Enterprise Fund.
