New York StartUP! 2025 Business Plan Competition
Coming soon the New York StartUP! 2025 Business Plan Competition!
Are you an entrepreneur looking for the chance to launch your business? Join the New York StartUP! 2025 Business Plan Competition! Turn your ideas into reality with access to Library resources, mentorship, and cash prizes between $7,500 and $15,000. Learn more below about the requirements of the competition and how you can get involved.
Check back for updates.
Participation Requirements
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Step 1: Attend an Online Orientation
Attend an online orientation for an overview of the competition including how it works, the requirements, and the timeline.
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Step 2: Submit Your Entry Form
The entry form for the 2025 Competition opens soon.
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Step 3: Attend Virtual Q&A Sessions
You must attend all ten StartUP! competition workshops.
Business Center librarians can provide resources for marketing and industry research, sample business plans, and business service providers. You must schedule at least one consultation.
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Step 5: Meet with a Business Advisor
You must meet at least once with an expert business advisor to review your plan. See a list of potential business advisors and the form to document your meetings.
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Step 6: Upload a PDF of Your Business Plan
Upload your completed plan to the competition site by September 9, 2025 at 11:59 PM.
For any questions about the StartUP! Competition, please contact startup@nypl.org.
Click Here to Access the StartUP! Competition Site
Eligibility
To be eligible for the StartUP! Competition cash prize:
- You must live in Manhattan, The Bronx, or Staten Island.*
- Your business must be in Manhattan, The Bronx, or Staten Island.
- All businesses must have ideas or business models in the start-up phase and have earned less than $10,000.
Click here to review the full rules and eligibility requirements of the competition.
Prizes
- First Prize: $15,000
- Second Prize: $10,000
- Third Prize : $7,500
* Do you live in Brooklyn or Queens?
We welcome all to participate in the competition and learn how to put a business plan together. However, only residents of Manhattan, The Bronx, or Staten Island who start a business in one of these three boroughs are eligible to win a prize.
Similar competitions are available for residents of Brooklyn and Queens. The Brooklyn Public Library runs the Brooklyn PowerUP! Competition for Brooklyn residents. The Queens Economic Development Corporation (QEDC) offers the StartUP! Competition for Queens residents.
Past Winners
Looking for inspiration for your business plan? Meet the past winners of the NY StartUP! Business Plan Competition!
Congratulations to the finalists and winners of the New York StartUP! 2024 Business Plan Competition!
The New York Public Library, with the support of Wells Fargo, is proud to recognize the achievements of the winner Rachel Aulet-McGann - Moments Always Remembered, second and third place finalists Jennifer Zhang - Presently Powerful and Julie Belladonna and Jenny Reis - Better Than the Gift, honorable mentions Ziyi Zhao - Arty Fresh LLC and Dat Le - QuickFish LLC, and all the many Library patrons who participated in the program this year.
The StartUp! Business Plan Competition is made possible by the generous support of the Wells Fargo Foundation.
