Community ‘Shark Tank’ Spotlights Female Innovators

Before a crowd of hundreds of prospective investors and a panel of business leaders, one could be understandably nervous pitching an innovation. That didn’t stop 11 female entrepreneurs in the Atlanta Jewish community from showing off their startup ideas on Dec. 12 at The Temple.

In a fast-paced format based on the TV show “Shark Tank,” innovators did their best to present their ideas and themselves to the crowd. Unlike the show, the panelists weren’t the ones to decide which concept wins a contract, and the audience voted for its favorite.

Pitch day was the final step of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta’s first-of-its-kind Women’s Accelerator Israeli-Style program. For two months, the class gathered for three-hour sessions as the women developed their business plans and learned from mentors and business leaders.

The products on display ranged from apps and activities to inventions and jewelry. The winner of the audience vote was Rachel Gurvitch, who proposed bringing Catchball – an Israeli sport similar to volleyball – to a wider audience following its success at the Marcus JCC. Part of her goal is to find more coaches and locations for Catchball in Atlanta.

She and the other entrepreneurs will continue to meet with their mentors and hone their business concepts.

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