story from Talk Business, a TCW content partner
The Arkansas Capital Corporation Group is hosting its first-ever “Battle of the Brands” tournament, which is designed to spotlight entrepreneurship in Arkansas.
Nominations for brands to be included in the top 64 bracket are being accepted through February 25, and brands can be nominated at the Arkansas SourceLink website.
All registered businesses in Arkansas that meet the following criteria are eligible for inclusion in the tournament:
• The business or entrepreneurial roots must be here in Arkansas;
• Must show evidence of growth and innovation; and,
• Business must have been in business for at least one year.
Sixty-four companies representing some of the Arkansas’ most iconic brands and entrepreneurial upstarts will be randomly selected to fill the first tournament-style bracket.
For each round, voters are encouraged to visit arksourcelink.com/brands during specific time windows to vote for their favorite companies and move them into the next round. The bracket of 64 will be whittled down to 1 entrepreneurial champion who can claim sole bragging rights as the “Emperor of Entrepreneurship” for Arkansas. The winner will be announced April 15.
Arkansas Capital Corporation released the following voting schedule:
Round 1/Top 64: March 2-8
Round 2/Top 32: March 9-17
Round 3/Top 16: March 18-24
Round 4/Top 8: March 25-31
Round 5/Top 4: April 1-7
Final Round/Top 2: April 8-14
“Entrepreneurialism is at the heart of what Arkansas Capital works to support every day in everything from its lending and new markets tax credit products to the annual Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup and Arkansas SourceLink,” said C. Sam Walls, CEO of Arkansas Capital Corporation. “We are celebrating entrepreneurism in Arkansas with the Battle of the Brands tournament. The tournament is an exciting platform for Arkansas businesses to showcase their entrepreneurial spirit in a friendly competition and generate some excitement among fans of the brands that call Arkansas home.”