SELECTION CRITERIA

Eligibility Criteria

• The competition is open to independent ventures to be incorporated in Ireland or Northern Ireland in the seed, start-up or early stages of their development.
• Entrants should have started, manage and own such a venture.
• The promoters are to have played a major role in conceiving the venture, to have key management roles and to own significant equity.
• All business plans submitted must demonstrate a minimum new equity funding requirement of €75,000/£55,000. Business plans which fail to demonstrate this may be deemed ineligible.
• Ventures which have already raised private equity of more than €1m/£740,000 are not eligible.
• Only incorporated companies will be eligible to enter and competitors will be asked to provide their company registration number when applying for the competition.
• Generally excluded are the following: buy outs, expansions of established businesses, consortia, tax shelters, franchises and licensing agreements for distribution in a different geographical area.
• Applicants should be aged 18 years or over and only entries from such persons will be accepted. Employees or agents of, or family members of personnel of, InterTradeIreland or any member of the Judging Panel or other persons connected with this competition are not permitted to enter. The determination of eligibility shall be at the sole discretion of InterTradeIreland.
• Entries from social enterprises are welcome.
• The determination of eligibility shall be at the sole discretion of InterTradeIreland, which may, in exceptional circumstances, allow entry to competitors which do not strictly comply with all of the above criteria.