Chris Culp with his invention, the Dump-a-matic. (Photo courtesy D.A.M. Truck Tools Inc.)
CEDAR CITY – A Cedar City entrepreneur whose product idea last year won a statewide business idea contest has apparently been stiffed for $100,000 in prize money by the competition’s organizers.
Chris Culp's Dump-a-matic, a rolling platform that converts a pickup truck into dump truck, beat out 110 business ideas for top prize at last year’s Governor’s Economic Summit in Salt Lake City. A group of angel investors who organized the competition had offered a $100,000 first prize to help the winning entrepreneur get his or her business off the ground.
When his victory was announced, Gov. Jon Huntsman shook Culp’s hand and TV stations and newspapers across the state gave him and the Dump-a-matic splashy news coverage.
But more than a year later, Culp told a Salt Lake City television station he hasn’t seen a dime of his promised prize money.
Instead, Culp said, he was notified by email that angel investors are unwilling to fund his company. He now considers the so-called contest “a promotional scam,” nothing but a publicity stunt.
"I get an e-mail telling me that I am un-fundable because I live in Cedar City... because it's un-patentable... because I don't have a team," he said.
Angel investors are typically private individuals who invest in new business startups. The investments can range from several thousand dollars to more than $1 million, and are usually smaller deals than those made by venture capitalists.
Grow Utah Ventures, a group that supports entrepreneurs by supplying them funding, tools and resources, said it organized the competition at the request of Huntsman's office.
But the group never intended to fund the prize money through its programs, Grow Utah Ventures chief executive Craig Bott told a TV station. He pointed out that Culp signed an acknowledgement that might not get any money for his winning idea.
"I don't think it was a stunt," Bott said. "The event was to promote entrepreneurs and recognize that there are independent investors who are here supporting them."
The governor's office also denied that Huntsman promised $100,000 to Culp or anyone.
In fact, nobody ever received the $100,000 in prize money that was dangled as an incentive to get entrepreneurs to enter the contest. That’s why Culp believes the entire event was a publicity opportunity to promote Utah's economy and friendliness to small business owners.
Still, Culp plans to keep moving ahead with the Dump-a-matic and his company D.A.M. Truck Tools, despite receiving nothing – no money, no help, not even any business advice, for his victory last year.
An interesting note: At the recent 2008 Governors Economic Summit, the entrepreneur contest was noticeably absent. According to news reports, the Summit will continue to be held annually, but there are no plans for another business idea contest. |
