Hy-Vee Hosting Summit to Advance Local Minority- and Women-Owned Businesses

OpportUNITY conference to include pitch competition awarding up to $50K in grants

6/28/2023

Hy-Vee will host its OpportUNITY Inclusive Business Summit in September to showcase local minority- and women-owned businesses in the Quad Cities.

Midwest grocer Hy-Vee Inc. will host a unique opportunity in September to help grow local minority- and women-owned companies through a networking and showcase conference in the Quad Cities, a region of cities in Iowa and Illinois.

The Hy-Vee OpportUNITY Inclusive Business Summit will be held Sept. 19 at the University Club in Moline, Ill. The summit will feature an expo offering resources for small businesses, learning opportunities through presentations and panel discussions, the chance to be inspired by other brands, and more. Local community groups and organizations, area businesses, and other professionals interested in supporting or networking with small-business owners are also invited to attend at no cost.

Hy-Vee remains committed to inclusivity by expanding and enhancing product offerings that support various needs, lifestyles and backgrounds. As a result, local minority- and women-owned businesses are invited to apply for the chance to showcase their products or services during a pitch competition at the Hy-Vee OpportUNITY Inclusive Business Summit. Selected applicants will present to a panel of judges for the chance to win up to $30,000 as an investment for future endeavors.

The regional grocer is currently accepting submissions for local products or services for the pitch competition at www.hy-veeopportunitysummit.com in the following categories of economically viable and/or previously tested products or services:

Food and beverage
Product innovation and technology
Health, wellness and beauty

There’s no cost to apply. The deadline to submit is 11:59 p.m. (CDT) on Aug. 22.

A panel of judges will select one grand-prize winner to earn $30,000. Additionally, one first-place winner will be selected from each pitch category (three total), earning $5,000 each. Additional cash investments may be awarded and select finalists may be invited to participate in further discussions regarding their products or services following the summit.

Additionally, Hy-Vee will host its next quarterly Best of Local Brands Summit on Aug. 2 to further expand and enhance the product offerings at its stores. Since these summits began in early 2021, 125-plus new brands have been made available to Hy-Vee customers.

Employee-owned Hy-Vee operates more than 285 retail stores across eight Midwestern states, with sales of more than $13 billion annually. The West Des Moines, Iowa-based company has a team of more than 80,000 employees and is No. 36 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2023 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. PG also named Hy-Vee a 2023 Top Regional.