The winning team of Eau Claire Startup Weekend is 15 Second Imaging: Eric Charles, Brandon Cedarblade, Nick Marzofka, Nicholas Scherrer, and John Kane (shown above, listed from left to right)! 15 Second Imaging was awarded the Prize Package – valued over $17,000 – consisting of:

• Website and Hosting from JB Systems
• 3 Months of fully furnished office space – including utilities and cleaning service – from Anchor Bank
• Printing Services, from Image 360
• 5 Hours of legal consulting, from RuderWare
• 1 hour Marketing Advice, from Strategic Communications
• 1 hour consulting, from Clifton Larson Allen
• Logo development, from Satellite Six

Eau Claire Startup Weekend’s inaugural event was this past weekend, at the newly renovated Lismore Hotel. Out of the 11 participants – 8 individuals pitched their ideas. These pitches ranged from travel apps to a GPS credit card tracker. All the participants voted for their favorite pitches, and teams formed around the three winning ideas:

• Rebel Traveler – an app for individuals, such as the handicapped, who are mobility challenged
• 15 Second Imaging – a 3D modeling integration systems that enables consumers to see more detail in retail products
• TenFor Team Matching – a trucking app that allows truckers to select their co-rider to increase productivity

Teams worked Friday night through Sunday on their ideas – culminating into presentations of their ideas in completed form to a team of judges. After teams demo their prototypes and receiving valuable feedback from the judges, 15 Second Imaging was announced as the grand prize winner.

“I came into the event not knowing what to expect and I left with a great team, winning first place, and had the basics of a business that we are continuing to work on.” – Brandon Cedarblade

Prior to announcing the winning team of Startup Weekend, the judges made a point to mention that all three teams had viable ideas and shouldn’t be discouraged from pursuing their projects after the weekend.

Reactions from the participants in Eau Claire’s first Startup Weekend were overwhelmingly positive.

“the most fun anyone can legally have in a 48 hour period.” – Justin Vajko

Startup Weekends are 54-hour events where developers, designers, marketers, product managers and startup enthusiasts come together to share ideas, form teams, build products, and launch startups! Beginning with open mic pitches on Friday evening, attendees bring their best ideas and inspire others to join their team. Over Saturday and Sunday, teams focus on customer development, validating their ideas, practicing LEAN Startup Methodologies, and building a minimal viable product. On Sunday evening, teams demo their prototypes and receive valuable feedback from a panel of experts.

Eau Claire’s Startup Weekend would not have been possible without the generous sponsorships and support of the community, including: the Lismore Hotel, BMO Harris Bank, JAMF Nation Global Foundation, Powertex Group, Anchor Bank, RuderWare, Strategic Communications, Image360, Clifton Larson Allen, Satellite Six, JB Systems, Noodles & Company, Pizza Plus, High Bridge Coffee, Burrachos, Smiling Moose Deli, Mega Co-Op, and Panera Bread.