Here is what you will need to do to win a  $25,000 cash prize, a scholarship to the Stonyfield Farm Entrepreneurial Institute, and a bundle of free in-kind services:

General Rules and Timelines:

• Email us a summary of your business plan (our email is: startup@mypn.org) and some information about you during January 2010. The summary should be no more than a thousand words in whatever format you would like.  Please describe your ideas succinctly. Even though you will be submitting a short-form version of your plan, we will give consideration to the extent to which you demonstrate that you have thought through relevant challenges to your plan.
• In the email, also let us know your name (and your business partners' names), your ages, a brief description about your background, and your contact email and phone number. The competition is open to people of all ages.
• Then, cross your fingers and be prepared for further questioning! Once we receive your entry, we may (or we may not) ask you a few questions about your business.
• On March 1, 2010, we will select up to six competition participants (the total number of participants depends on how many applications we receive).
• If you are chosen as a participant, one member of your team will receive a scholarship to the Stonyfield Farm Entrepreneurial Institute and you will receive help with some key aspects of your business plan.
• Participant's final business plans will be due on May 15, 2010.
• Once the business plans are submitted, two finalists will be selected to go before the Challenge judges sometime in June to make their pitch in person as to why they should win the 2010 New Hampshire Start-up Challenge.

Judging:

• Please note that judges will consider the business concept presented, the viability of the plan's financial model, the identified target market for the good or service offered, the mechanics of bringing that product or service to market, and the overall value proposition of the plan (whether the problem being solved or the need being identified demonstrates value or worth to the rest of us), and the judges' personal assessment of the plan’s potential for success.
• We encourage both for-profit and non-profit ventures to apply; it's not your tax status that we care about, it's your ideas.

Other Details:

• Teams are limited to four people per team
• We reserve the right to require participants to enter a non-disclosure agreement
• All applicants must demostrate a significant New Hampshire nexus (which will determined by us!), and be new (formed in the last two years).
• If you applied in past years, feel free to give it another try! (If you've already won, well, that's another story, give someone else a shot).
• These rules are subject to change by us, at any time.