Gorham Savings Bank has announced the five finalists who will compete for a $50,000 grand prize at its 10th annual LaunchPad small business pitch competition.

Five founders from the selected companies will compete for the non-dilutive grant on Tues., Oct. 24, at the final LaunchPad pitch event, being held at the University of New England’s Innovation Hall, which is part of the school’s Portland campus (RSVP here). Each will be given a few minutes to pitch their business and field questions from a panel of judges before the winner is selected.

The finalists are:

  • Bijou Build, Camden, Amanda Lacy – Founded by a mom of three and toy industry pro, Bijou Build offers a modular, customizable, and portable play structure for children.
  • Bonsie Skin to Skin Babywear, Brunswick, Anna Turcotte, Joseph Turcotte, Sam Stewart, and Dana Stewart – Bonsie has created a line of baby clothing designed to make skin-to-skin time convenient and accessible.
  • Bookclubs (returning 2022 finalist), Camden, Anna Ford and Ian Campbell – Bookclubs offers a platform that makes organizing book clubs simple with tools to build community, choose books, schedule meetings, and discover what to read next.
  • NKENNE (2022’s Emerging Business Award winner), Portland, Michael Odokara-Okigbo – NKENNE offers a mobile app to help people learn African languages. (NKENNE is the first Emerging Business Award winner to later be named a $50,000 LaunchPad finalist.)
  • Ocean Data Network, Portland, Cooper Van Vranken, Carles Castro Muniain, and Jack Carroll – Provides a cost-effective solution for collecting crucial ocean data in under-monitored shelf regions. By equipping commercial fishing gear with sensors, ODN measures temperature, salinity, and other vital variables in real-time, delivering comprehensive ocean data streams, including sea-surface and meteorological information.

Following the live pitches, the judges—John Burns, former head of the Maine Venture Fund; Kristine Delano, a strategic business advisor and host of the WE Talk Careers podcast; and Kate McAleer of Bixby Chocolate—will deliberate and select one of the five entrepreneurs to receive the $50,000 grant from Gorham Savings Bank.

Last year’s winner was Tanbark Molded Fiber Products, a Portland-based company that designs and manufactures non-plastic packaging solutions using sustainably produced biomass.

In addition to the major pitch competition, five additional startups were chosen to submit 60-second pitch videos to compete for the bank’s Emerging Business Award, the winner of which will receive a $10,000 grant from the bank plus $10,000 worth of in-kind business and marketing services from its LaunchPad sponsors. Attendees of the event will get to watch these video pitches while the judges are deliberating; a winner will be announced at the event.

The five Emerging Business Award finalists for 2023 are:

  • Amply Energy, Cumberland, Edward Smith, and Eric Fitz – Enables contractors to swiftly generate improved heat pump proposals for homeowners, expediting the adoption of clean, efficient, and budget-friendly HVAC solutions.
  • Black Travel Maine, Waterville, Lisa Jones – Aims to introduce BIPOC travelers to the beauty, culture, delectable cuisine, and warm hospitality of Maine.
  • KNCamp, Richmond, Axel Christensen – Small, durable and lightweight campers that are easier to tow with innovative layouts and popup roofs that make the most of a tiny space.
  • ReachMyTeach, Portland, Helen Cohen, Jeff Borland, Aidan Blum Levine, and Theo King – Software platform that helps schools connect with parents and caregivers in a more accessible and equitable way, providing automatic translation for more than 100 languages and supporting on-deman video interpreters for live interactions.
  • Shred Electric, New Gloucester, Nick Planson – Electrifies marine operations, replacing noisy gasoline generators and pumps with cleaner and quieter alternatives.

This is the 10th year Gorham Savings Bank has held LaunchPad. To date, the bank has provided more than $300,000 in non-dilutive grant money to winners of the pitch contest.