Ten men and women will competed in United Bank’s Homegrown Startup Pitchfest contest March 28 at the Grand Hotel in Point Clear, according to officials.

The finalists, who are comprised of startups and entrepreneurs from Alabama and Florida, were picked from a more than 50 other applicants for showcasing the most grit and ingenuity in their business plans and applications, according to United Bank.

They will face off in a competition in hopes of winning a share of the $40,000 in prizes sponsored by Discover Financial Services.

The 10 Homegrown Startup Pitchfest finalists include five women and five men:

• Russell Bennett – Duckling, LLC – Gulf Breeze, Fla.
• Scott Blair – 2U Tire of Alabama, LLC – Daphne
• Adam Chronister – Pelident – Daphne
• Bailey Duos – Port City Pups – Mobile
• Rosie Harris – Med-ART in Motion, LLC – Montgomery
• Kimberly Jordan – Delta Rehab Service, LLC – Montgomery
• Lucy Matier – Reveille Express – Silverhill
• Jenny Resmondo – South Alabama Physiotherapy, LLC – Summerdale
• Jared Sluss – Link & Lease – Birmingham
• Max Westendorf – Westendorf Oyster Hatchery – Gulf Shores

Each finalist, as part of the program, will receive personal coaching to help refine and hone their ideas before presenting their business plan live to a panel of judges.

“United Bank recently developed an incubator community development program for local businesses,” said Bob Jones, president and CEO at United Bank. “This Homegrown Startup Pitchfest initiative is one way we can show local businesses that we are the hometown advantage and are committed to helping their local small businesses succeed.”

During the Homegrown Startup Pitchfest event, each finalist will have 2 minutes to present their pitch to a panel of judges, followed by three minutes of questions and answers. The judges will then select a $25,000 grand prize winner, as well as a first-place winner who will receive $10,000 and a $5,000 second-place winner. The panel of judges includes:

• Quint Studer – Owner, Pensacola Blue Wahoos
• Mike Urquizu – Discover Vice President, Debit Sales and Account Management
• Bob Jones – President & CEO, United Bank
• Abe Harper – Entrepreneur and President of Harper Technologies

The Homegrown Startup Pitchfest will be held at 7 p.m. on March 28, 2019, at the Grand Hotel in Point Clear. The event will be free to the public, but a limited number of tickets is expected to go fast.

To register, please visit https://homegrownstartup.eventbrite.com. For more information about United Bank and its small business lending services, www.UnitedBank.com.