Call for Entries Open for National Pitch Competition Supporting Women Entrepreneurs with $42,500 in seed funding
"We're so excited to expand the competition this year to women across the United States," said eosera® co-founder and CEO, Elyse Stoltz Dickerson. "The first three years, we really focused on entrepreneurs here in Texas, but our goal was always to eventually have a larger reach and invite more women to apply for this exciting opportunity."
This year, the pitch competition is open to women from around the United States who have been in business for three years or less. Applications will close Sept. 9, or once the maximum number of entries has been received.
The overall earnings available this year are $42,500, with $30,000 offered for the first-place award, $5,000 for the second-place award, $2,500 for the third-place award, and $5,000 for the people's choice award.
Stoltz Dickerson co-founded ear care company, eosera®, in 2015 and was able to use seed money from a pitch competition she won to help get the company off the ground. Ten years later, the company has grown into an ear care empire, with ear drops and sprays sold in more than 28,000 stores nationwide.
Dickerson credits her success to having financial support and mentorship during the early stages of eosera®.
"The fact of the matter is that we would not have been able to be so successful in the beginning had it not been for us winning a pitch competition," Dickerson said.
The eosera® Foundation Pitch Competition will culminate in a live competition on Nov. 13, 2025, at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. Three finalists will present their pitches to a panel of judges and a live audience at a chance to win funding that could transform their businesses and launch their futures. This year's competition is made possible thanks to the generous support of iHeart Impact and Simmons Bank, as well as a host of other generous contributors.
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