46th CoCoon Pitch Night: Pitch Whenever Opportunity Arises

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• ​中文

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​It was a quarter pass seven in the evening, when everyone in the city is on their way home from work, a bunch of eager beavers were walking against the crowd and assembling at this co-working space – anticipating something engaging, something original. It was the 46th Pitch Night of CoCoon, a stage where startups are about to take off. 

WELCOME TO THE COCOON COMMUNITY!
 
Sustainability is a buzzword, a catchphrase fashionable in business circles; it is also a product of the CoCoon community, a neighbourhood of rising talents. Here you will meet Data Analysts to-be, returning after their internship; novice entrepreneurs looking for a tip of advice to carry their newborn forward; and of course, “graduates” – sophisticates (who were once newbie in CoCoon) sitting as panel judges of Pitch Night. This is how the community works – members do learn what they need for their business, and at the same time, they contribute by sharing experience with newcomers for the long term well-being of the community. 

​AN INVISIBLE FIST FIGHT: THE BUSINESS PITCH

In the blink of an eye, the Pitch Night was about to begin. Imagine it an invisible boxing ring and the six entrepreneurs were fist fighting with their business plans. They were all excellent and innovative, ranging from educational AI technologies, mobile marketing and advertising solution, to revolutionary fabrics with technological functions. The adrenaline rush did not end with the 5-minute pitch, the 3 panel judges were pushing it to the climax when they took turn to question or even criticize their feasibility in sustaining the ventures. 

​The interaction extends from the stage to the floor. Each audience was given an anonymous Facebook or LinkedIn code with HK$10,000 pitch coin to vote for their favorite team. After a 20-minute deliberation, the judges and audience jointly elected Find Solution AI Ltd and LXN Collection to be the finalists running for the ultimate HK$20,000 Pitch Award at the Pitch Night Finals on 24 August 2017.
 
ON STAGE OR OFF STAGE: PITCH WHENEVER OPPORTUNITY ARISES
 
At CoCoon Pitch Night, it is not only how good your presentation looks on stage but also off stage.  As Floris, one of the competing entrepreneurs and founder of Key 2 Cell, put “Making an app is expensive, but making people to know your app is even more expensive”, networking is always the most costly yet valuable asset to a company. This is especially true to the newbies, who are grasping every single opportunity to make their business plans heard, be it on stage presentation or off stage interaction with potential investors and the panel judges. So, we’d say, not only the two finalists but every entrepreneur coming tonight has won their ticket to advance their venture to the next level. 

​​浩觀寄語―破繭而出，振翅高飛

共享空間在香港漸趨盛行，成為不少初創企業萌芽的溫床，位於北角的「浩觀」(CoCoon)是其中之一。非要給這名稱一個前文後理的關係，應該是英文先中文後。CoCoon，中文翻譯為「繭」，一般指昆蟲化蛹前編織的保護網。待幼蟲破繭而出後，映入眼簾便是「浩瀚的景觀」。這可能是創辦人寄予創業者的祝福和盼望：幼時在浩觀學習、成長，他日到世界各地就能振翅高飛。

筆者有幸獲創辦人的邀請，出席本週四舉行的競標晚會(Pitch Night; 後稱「競會」)。六位創業者分別帶著自己的心血結晶，在限時五分鐘內向評審和台下的觀眾介紹企業理念，陳述完畢緊接著評審團連珠炮發的提問，參賽者都面無懼色，對答如流。不管是競會緊湊的氣氛還是參賽者自信的表現，都為觀眾留下深刻印象。這也是競會的魔力所在―每一位踏上站台的朋友都瞬間化身舞台明星，時而自信時而即興的演出贏得一片歡呼。

​竸會並沒有隨著獎項的頒發而結束，這才是晚會的開始。雖然只有六位創業者上台演說，但其實台下不少觀眾都是以創業者或投資者的身份來觀摩和交流。我們眼看就是一個活動的開始到結束，但延續下來的是無數個新意念和企業的誕生。這就是浩觀與別不同之處―這裡共享的不只是實體空間，還是合作與成長的機會。正如創辦人Erica分享：「我們這裡沒有辦公室政治，沒有hierarchy(等級制度)，有的只是一班在做自己喜歡的事的人。」