Australia Post Regional Pitchfest has announced four talented A.C.T. finalists will present their pitches on stage in Canberra on Friday 16 June, to a live audience and judging panel.

A.C.T. finalists include:

Sebastian Harrison - OzGuild

Roz Wallace - Wildlife Drones Pty Ltd 

Liam Osawa - CareerMaps 

Samantha White - Practically Perfect Portions Cakes in a Jar

Nip Wijewikrema - GG’s Flowers

 

Rebecca Burrows (l) with Regional Pitchfest Founder, Dianna Somerville (r)

 

Australia Post General Manager Small Business, Rebecca Burrows said the quality of entrants was inspiring. 

“This is the first national Australia Post Regional Pitchfest and we are thrilled with the calibre of finalists who are going through to the next stage. The ideas and innovation across technology, products and services reinforces the strength and resourcefulness of regional Australians in finding solutions to everyday problems.” 

Responsible for bringing the best of Australia Post to Australia’s entrepreneurial and small business community, Ms Burrows said she is committed to creating new solutions for Australian small business. 

“The judges are going to have a tough choice when finalists hit the stage to pitch their ideas next month,” Ms Burrows said. 

 

Mitchell Harmer, CEO of SignOnSite

 

Participating in the live judging panel, entrepreneur and CEO, Mitchell Harmer said he was thrilled to be involved in a program that supported and promoted regional and rural innovation. 

“I’m excited to see the creative and innovative ideas that Pitchfest will unearth from our local innovators. The thing about living rurally and regionally is that you have to think outside the square to come up with great solutions to problems,” Mr Harmer said. 

Understanding the journey of the Pitchfest finalists, Mitchell tested the viability of his own start-up in its early days at his own local innovation program, InnovationACT. Winning $35,000 from the festival to help build his idea, Mitchell then developed SignOnSite into an award-winning construction tech company. 

“Sometimes all you need is that helping hand to get your idea off the ground, so I can’t wait to meet our finalists and see what they have on offer,” Mr Harmer said. 

[Regional Pitchfest]