Audra Popovich wins 1st Place at Ignite Appalachia

Audra Popovich one first place at Ignite Portsmouth Bootcamp and the Ignite Appalachia Regional Competition bringing home a total of $10,000 for her idea of the Crafted Coffee Corner.

The Ignite Portsmouth Boot Camp and Pitch Competition expanded in 2023 thanks to a partnership with the ECDI Women’s Business Center of Central Appalachia. This year, a total of six counties hosted regional boot camps (Scioto, Cabell, Pike, Ross, Jackson, and Clermont), awarding seed funding to entrepreneurs working to start or expand their businesses.

Each regional winner was invited to the Ignite Appalachia Grand Championship Pitch Competition. There, they competed for even more funding to jump start their businesses.

Audra Popovich, the winner of Ignite Portsmouth, took home first place and $5,000 for her idea of a mobile coffee drive-thru called the Crafted Coffee Corner.

“The experience was great. I signed up because I had an idea for the business and starting it seemed extremely overwhelming. I didn’t know where to begin. The experience was excellent.”

Audra said, besides taking home first place, the best part was networking and meeting fellow entrepreneurs.

“The best part was meeting so many like minded people, making new friends, and taking in all the information together.”

Audra encourages anyone with a business idea to apply to Ignite Portsmouth in 2024.

“I urge anyone with an idea to sign up. Ignite makes things much more manageable. I went through the program, went through the steps, and realized I could really do it…It’s a tremendous opportunity in our area.”

Ignite Appalachia is the catalyst for new business in our region. The programs helps entrepreneurs obtain the skills they need to succeed, as they learn about value proposition, the business model canvas, market analysis, customer validation, financial and revenue modeling, access to capital, marketing, branding, and pitching. Participants are also matched with mentors to help them along their entrepreneurial journey.

Entrepreneurs from six counties competed for thousands of dollars in cash prizes at the Ignite Appalachia Grand Championship Pitch Competition.