How it works

The Indy Startup Challenge is a 10-week startup bootcamp designed to guide potential founders and their teams through the process of building and validating a sustainable business model based on their idea.  

Dates

2020 cohort dates
TBA

Before you apply

Create a Business Model Canvas
Take your idea and map it out on a business model canvas.  You can use Alexander Osterwalder’s Business Model Canvas

Submit your Application

The Indy Startup Challenge is a competitive program, and we will only accept a select group of applicants. The application fee goes towards materials for the boot camp and prizes. 

Blog Your Progress

After your registration has been accepted, we will give you free access to  Launch Pad Central, so you can start documenting your lean startup.

Once a week create a post that:

  • Shows what experiments you have run to validate your business model.
  • Tell us what you learned
  • Let us know who you talked to
  • Show us you know what you measured and what the metrics were
  • Let us know what changed on your canvas
  • Invite your advisors to comment on your blog (you are going to get advisors, aren’t you?)

For ideas look at  From Boardroom to Bits,  the winner of the Boston Lean Startup Challenge blog,  and Lean Launchpad’s examples

Attend Weekly Sessions

Participating teams receive weekly education and networking sessions with current and former challenge participants. Education includes a one day Lean Startup bootcamp, weekly learning materials, checklists and access to classes.

Participants will also receive hands on advice from mentors and essential startup tools.

Pitch to local investors

After Week 8, participants post a video describing their business model hypotheses, experiments, and what they’ve learned.

Mentors will select four finalists to present in the pitch competition. The judging criteria to reach the finals includes…

  • Validation (40%)  – How much of the model has been validated and for those things that are validated, are they really justified.
  • Metrics (30%) – Is the company using data to make decisions and is that data shared and updated regularly.  Are there   vanity metrics (note: that is bad).
  • Customer Acquisition and Retention (30%) – Is there a clear path to the customer? Are CAC and LTV being measured and managed?

Mentors will provide feedback to each finalist on what they need to do to take it to the next level. The finalists will receive extra mentoring, design and development help and receive pitch coaching to accelerate their progress over a 1 week period.

Finalists will present to a panel of local Investors like: High Alpha, Meridian Street Capital, Elevate Ventures, Developertown as well as an audience.  The presentation will consist of a 10 minute presentation, followed by 10 minutes of feedback.  The judges will decide the winners and present prizes.