Stella Foundation Announces This Year's Women's Fast Pitch Finalists

Six Trailblazing Entrepreneurs to Compete for Seed Money and Services at Women's Venture Summit 2024

SAN DIEGO, Aug. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Stella Foundation proudly marks a decade of empowering female entrepreneurs through its 10th Annual Women's Fast Pitch, a premier national competition spotlighting innovative women-led ventures. This year, six exceptional finalists have emerged from a competitive pool of 25 remarkable founders, earning their place at the prestigious Women's Venture Summit 2024 (WVS). The finalists, selected from five regions and one wildcard, will compete at WVS in San Diego from September 25 – 27, 2024, for over $50K in grants, investments and in-kind services.

The Women's Fast Pitch 2024 winner will receive:

• $25K in-kind legal services from Holland & Knight
• A minimum $5K grant
• A minimum $10K investment from She Invests
• And additional valuable resources!

"At Stella Foundation, we are committed to championing the innovative and transformative ventures led by women," says Flossie Hall, CEO of Stella. "The Women's Fast Pitch competition showcases the incredible talent and entrepreneurial spirit of female founders from across the nation. We are thrilled to celebrate these six remarkable finalists and look forward to witnessing their impact at the Women's Venture Summit 2024. Their success is a testament to the power of diversity and the importance of investing in women-led businesses."

The 2024 Women's Fast Pitch finalists include:

• Northeast: Heather Lawver – Ceemo.Ai – Washington, DC
  Ceemo.Ai automates the creation of marketing and pitch assets a company needs to launch, sell and fundraise. It enhances the storytelling journey for startups and fosters a more equitable venture capital landscape.
• Southeast: Kimberly Evans – Just Her Rideshare – Charlotte, NC
  Just Her Rideshare, Inc. is a rideshare and community mobility company prioritizing women's safety, comfort, and empowerment, offering women a choice in their rideshare experience.
• Midwest: Haley Marie Keith – MITO Material Solutions – Indianapolis, IN
  MITO® Material Solutions develops advanced additives for resin systems, enhancing composite components used in manufacturing across various industries such as planes, cars, trains, wind turbines – even sporting goods.
• Northwest: Janice Williams Oliver – MisTee PRO – San Jose, CA
  MisTee PRO has revolutionized hair care for curly/coily hair, using advanced steam technology to serve the needs of billions worldwide.
• Southwest: Lauren Fang – MedAssent DDS – Los Angeles, CA
  MedAssent DDS is the exclusive, dental-specific resource dedicated to streamlining medication management, enhancing patient safety, and improving practice efficiency. Through the integration of AI tools, MedAssent DDS provides a seamless, patient-centric experience by empowering dentists with instant, reliable medication insights.
• Wildcard: Joanna Shu – FreezeNit – Marblehead, MA
  FreezeNit offers an innovative solution to treatment-resistant head lice using cold carbon dioxide gas, ensuring effective and quick elimination of lice and their eggs in a single, short treatment.

The Women's Venture Summit, now in its 11th year, is a landmark event that bridges the gap between female founders and investors. This three-day conference includes transformative workshops, panels and the pitch competition, all designed to increase female founders' access to capital and grow the number of investors in female-led startups. Since its inception, the summit has been instrumental in facilitating over $200 million in fundraising for women-led companies. It serves to inspire, empower and equip attendees to drive significant change for women in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

About Stella Foundation:
Founded in 2012, Stella connects women founders and investors to the right resources – at the right time – in their journeys. From ideation to funding to exit, women founders and investors look to Stella for its powerful constellation of support made up of an inclusive community, curriculum, access to capital events including the annual Women's Venture Summit, advisory services and funding opportunities. For more information, please visit https://stella.co/.

Media Contact:
Laura Henson
917-539-7812
[email protected] 

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SOURCE Stella Foundation