Chama Capital partners for first annual SBDC Day Pitch Competition
Chama Capital Founder, Christine Saffold, was a featured judge at the SBDC Day Pitch Competition hosted by the Illinois SBDC at the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce on March 20 at the Illinois Science and Technology.
Chama Capital was involved in planning the event alongside the Illinois SBDC at the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce team, the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition, and World Business Chicago.
This year’s SBDC Day theme was “Nurturing Dreams, Growing Futures.” This was the first year that the Illinois SBDC at Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce’s celebration of SBDC Day included a pitch competition.
Five Chicago businesses from various industries pitched to a room full of fellow entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts.
Framewrks, an emerging eyewear brand for underrepresented facial features, took home the winning prize (two round-trip Southwest plane tickets).
“The event reminded me of why I love my hometown and am committed to building Chama Capital here. There’s just something special about Chicago businesses - the scrappiness, determination, and confident humility,” Christine said.
“We still have a lot of work to do to better resource and fund underrepresented founders, and I’m grateful to be in this work alongside organizations like the Illinois SBDC at the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, World Business Chicago, and the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition.”
Now in its eighth year, SBDC Day is an annual, national proclamation of the impact of Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) on the success of small business owners around the nation.
Alongside Chama Capital, the judging panel included representatives from the Gray Matter Experience, Minority Business Circle, Verizon, and Wintrust Bank.
