What is Pitch Johnny?
Pitch Johnny is an annual university-wide pitch competition sponsored by the Collins College of Professional Studies (CCPS) that allows all students at St. John’s University the opportunity to pitch an idea, whether it be a new product, business and/or service. This competition allows for the free expression of ideas with the hope that the best ideas with the support of the university can become a reality.
The Pitch Johnny 2020 edition was the first time in the history of the program where the entire competition was digital. We presented a different type of competition, where students had to develop video style pitches and compete over the course of the entire semester for a chance to earn seed money to start and grow their innovative ideas.
We built the competition with two divisions (For Profit and Non-for Profit) with a special track for Women Entrepreneurs.
For more information on this years competition, click here
As a university-wide competition, we partner with our colleagues in other schools (SJC, CCPS, TCB, EDU, CPHS) to ensure the competition gets maximum exposure. All students at the university are allowed to compete and for the past 4 years we have had competitors and winners from our various schools.
Why Support Pitch Johnny?
The Pitch Johnny competition supports young innovators, entrepreneurs and their startups by providing them with a foundational platform to pitch their idea, gain valuable feedback from faculty and alumni and a chance to earn cash to start and grow their businesses. In the past 4 years, we have already had some great success with many of our students:
Alexandria Ligon, Collins College of Professional Studies, Health and Human Services Major & Magdelene Barjolo, St. John's College, Psychology, 1st Place 2018, Competition
Company: Sending Her Essentials: https://www.sendingheressentials.org/
Alexandria and Magdelene, won our second competition back in 2018 and went on to use the momentum to place second in the Big East Start Up Challenge a regional competition where they won $3,000. There non-for-profit is is dedicated to uplifting women by advocating for equal access to menstrual health products, education, and de-stigmatizing the period.
Despina Kotsis, St. John's College, Speech Pathology, 3rd Place, 2018 Competition:
Company: Minx New York: https://minxnewyork.com/
Despina is a two-time Pitch Johnny participant, a 3rd place winner in the 2018 competition, who has been widely successful with her fashion clothing line: Minx New York. Inspired the vibe and culture of NYC. Her constant participation in Pitch Johnny has allowed her to gain valuable feedback and insight. Her business has been feature in various new outlets.
Your contribution matters!
Your contribution (no matter the size) goes directly to supporting our university students, especially during this difficult time. All proceeds will go to supporting a brand new innovation fund that will support new innovation & entrepreneurship programming for our students.
