Pow Wow Pitch deadline days away

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This article was published 29/05/2025 (221 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

On the May long weekend, Indigenous entrepreneurs vied for four cash prizes at the 10th annual Pow Wow Pitch competition at the Manito Ahbee Festival at the Forks in Winnipeg. The cash prizes were awarded, but it isn’t over yet. Indigenous entrepreneurs who didn’t enter for the in-person pitch still have a “virtual shot” at the real cash – a grand prize of $25,000.

The deadline to pitch is close, however – it’s Tuesday, June 3.

Pow Wow Pitch is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and strengthening Indigenous entrepreneurs. The virtual pitch is still open for entry.

“For the virtual Pow Wow Pitch competition, people just need to be Indigenous, First Nations, Inuit or Metis, and they need to have either a business already started or a business idea,” said Naomi Sarazin, a member of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation.

“They prepare a one-minute pitch that they would submit online on our website.”

If it sounds a bit like Dragons’ Den, that’s because the founder, Sunshine Tenasco from Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg, is a Dragons’ Den winner for her company Quemeez, which makes moccasins for babies. She later founded Pow Wow Pitch which became a not-for-profit in 2023 and hired Naomi Sarazin as its first executive director.

So what makes a good pitch and what are the judges looking for?

“What makes a good pitch is being engaging. Telling people what your product or service is like as if they’ve never heard of it before – because they haven’t – and really painting the picture of what that is and then telling the judges what you would do with $25,000 to support your business,” Sarazin said.

“When the judges are evaluating the pitches, they’re wanting the pitcher to communicate their product or services. They want to ensure that they’re actually going to follow through and do what they say that they’re going to do and reach their business goals.

“Another one is motivation: expressing that they’re going to use the money to take that next step in their business plan. And then the fourth thing is community impact, which is sharing how their business is creating a positive impact for their community.”

Business pitches are varied, as demonstrated by this year’s in-person winners at Manito Ahbee. Tannis and Rayel Smoke, co-founders of Niña Wa te Events, from the Dakota Plains Wahpeton Oyate won $5,000 for their game rental company which re-imagines the world of board games through an Indigenous lens.

The $2,500 winner was Harold Childsforever-Angeconeb from Lac Seul First Nation, founder of Burning Arrow Archery, an archery league dedicated to bringing the traditional knowledge of archery back to Indigenous communities.

The $1,000 winner was Deeanne Sutherland-First Charger from Woodland Cree First Nation, founder of Under The Night Sky Creations, a handmade Indigenous design brand specializing in ribbon skirts, jackets, hoodies, and ribbon apparel workshops.

The Fan Favourite $500 winner was Conroy Provost from Piikani Nation, founder of Blackfoot Made Productions, a cultural and language revitalization production company.

Pow Wow Pitch helps to build connections.

“It’s about creating a community. Everyone already has their own communities that they’re from, but this creates a larger community of support. And it’s not just entrepreneurs working with entrepreneurs. Pow Wow Pitch brings in people from the various industries to support the entrepreneurs as mentors,” Sarazin said.

“Last year for our virtual program, we engaged over 100 vendors to support our semifinalists. So it’s really creating a community of support and an ecosystem that people can thrive in with their businesses.”

In addition to being eligible to compete for the online pitch, Indigenous youth under the age of 21 years who submit a virtual pitch online are also eligible to apply to the Tech 4 Youth program. Together with Best Buy Canada, the program offers essential technology to launch and operate their business.

“If they’re under 21, all they need to do is submit a pitch this year and then apply for the Tech 4 Youth program. Then they would be considered to receive a tech grant,” Sarazin said.

“Last year we gave away, with items provided by Best Buy Canada, tech that would support their businesses like 3D printers, laptops, phones – anything that they needed.”

To be eligible, Indigenous youth under the age of 21 must first submit an online pitch by June 3. They must then submit an online ‘Request 4 Tech’ by June 30 at (www.powwowpitch.org/tech-4-youth/ ).

The June 3 deadline also applies to the fifth annual Indigenous Entrepreneur Awards which celebrates those who have been in businesses for at least three years. Information for application or nomination is also available on the Pow Wow Pitch website. Award recipients will be announced on Nov. 12 and will receive a unique hand-crafted adornment and a plaque encased with a limited edition signed print of the 2025 signature art piece by Tsista Kennedy.

Sarazin says the Pow Wow Pitch website provides a good outline of all the benefits that are available just from participating in the pitch, which is free to enter.

“Last year we had 300 pitches, so I’m hoping that we’ll have that or more,” She said. “Our top 10 automatically get fast-tracked to our semifinals and our first place winner gets fast-tracked to the grand finale which takes place online on Oct. 22.”

Anyone who participated in-person this past weekend can also submit to the pitch virtually.

“Even if people don’t win prizes there’s still a community of support that we build here at Pow Wow Pitch. And it’s so amazing to see,” she said. “You see artists collaborating together. And because they met while they were going through the process of competing, you see them melding their ideas and creating products from that – from bringing both of their gifts together.

“I just think that’s what we’re here for – the community support. And making sure that they have a platform to share that.”

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