About half a dozen workers sit around a table in the CiNCity Designs shop in Mandan, talking and laughing as they piece together the custom tail lights that the company is gaining global attention for.

According to Nic Cruz, CiNCity owner, there are reasons for the good feelings. Besides working on something he loves, the company recently won $10,000 through the most recent Innovate ND competition.

“It was pretty exciting,” he said.

The Innovate ND competition kicked off three years ago, but the idea for the program started in 2004. Bruce Gjovig, entrepreneurship coach and director of UND’s Center for Innovation, said he noticed several competitions across the nation for business plans, but none for complete ventures that would show how a company would implement a business plan.

He introduced the idea to the governor and others around the state. In 2005, the state Legislature funded the first Innovate ND program with $200,000 total for the first two years.

The competition was for the venture itself. It would be open to all people, from all ages, with any idea in any industry and from any location in the state. The first round of competitions began in the fall of 2006.

In early 2007, five winners were awarded $5,000 each for their venture proposals, which were judged by angel investors who had experience looking at possible deals. For the 2007-2008 competition, prize money doubled to $10,000.

This past year, a $500 People’s Choice Award was added. More than 4,200 online voters chose Forks Area Health and Wellness Center for the prize.

“We did not anticipate over 4,000 voters,” Gjovig said. “We were very pleased with the interest.”

The Legislature recently doubled the funding to $400,000 for the next two years, or $200,000 per year. This year, that money is matched with about $70,000 in cash from sponsors and around $200,000 worth of inkind matches from professionals willing to volunteer their services.

The idea seems to be catching on. Northwest Minnesota recently began a similar program, although it’s regional rather than statewide and isn’t as rigorous.

“We really expect a lot from our people,” Gjovig said. “We push them hard.”

Gjovig said the quality of marketing has gone up every year. He attributes it partially to the education participants receive.

For the $100 registration fee, participants receive software, a workbook and access to 40 podcasts designed to take them from the initial idea to a venture they can convince investors to invest in. Gjovig said some people register for the education alone but want to work at a slower pace than the competition allows.

For many of the participants, the education has been one of the most valuable pieces of the competition. “You’ve got a lot of interaction with professionals who have already been there and done that,” Cruz said.

“It really helps them know their innovation,” Gjovig said. “It’s really encouraging them to dig deep and dig hard.” The high expectations seem to be paying off. There were about 155 total participants for the fi rst two years. This past year, there were 93. “We’ve had a good 20 percent growth every year,” Gjovig said.

The real test of what Innovate ND can do is in the resulting businesses. Shane Goettle, state commerce department commissioner, said more than 25 percent of the 155 applicants from the fi rst two years have made money from their ideas so far. Including this past competition, there have been 16 cash prize winners.

For some of the fi rst winners, the competition made the difference in whether or not their idea would become a viable business. “It really allowed us to move from a couple of guys who had an idea for a product to a business,” said Dale Jensen, president of the software company Ntractive, one of the 2007 Innovate ND winners.

Jenson said without Innovate ND, the company would either not exist or he and his business partner, Justin Bartak, would still be working on the product instead of the business. Because of the competition, the company recently rolled out its fi rst product and is up to six employees.

Desert Don’s greenhouse, another 2007 winner that sells succulent plants like cacti online, has had a similar success story. Without the competition to get them started, “We probably wouldn’t have even pursued the idea,” said Phil Lowe, who owns the business with Don Vitko.

nnovate ND has certainly impacted CiNCity Designs. Cruz said he intends to use the money to hire more help, increase marketing and create an inventory so the company can sell products off the shelves.

From Goettle’s standpoint, it’s a refl ection of how the state’s emphasis on economic development is paying off. “The strength of these has just gotten better each year,” he said.

Photos courtesy of ND Chamber of Commerce. Pictured here is Gov. John Hoeven with Bruce Gjovig and Innovate ND winners.