I Hope You Get Rich (An Asian American Pitch Event)

Following in the footsteps of Pitch Black and Pitch Latino, I Hope You Get Rich is a two-part series providing mentorship, coaching, and a platform for emerging entrepreneurs. However, the first year of this competition is not centered on massive cash prizes—it’s about something deeper: visibility, feedback, and community support.

Presented by Tom Sollitt, a Korean American Adoptee and founder of that produces the , Oregon’s largest Asian-centered festival, I Hope You Get Rich aims to strengthen the entrepreneurial spirit through collaboration, shared knowledge, and providing a network of support. They are working in partnership with Tong Zhang and Zhou Fang.

How It Works

May 2 – Initial Pitch & Coaching at TOMO Bouldering Club Up to five participants will present their ideas and receive feedback from mentors and coaches at , a brand-new space built from the ground up by a group of friends who envisioned a better climbing experience. TOMO embodies the spirit of ambition and perseverance, making it the ideal setting to launch a competition centered on bold ideas, resilience, and turning dreams into reality.

May 30 – Final Pitch & Live Audience Vote at Latino Founders After working with mentors and refining their pitches throughout the month, participants will return for a final pitch event hosted at , in a powerful show of mutual support within Portland’s startup ecosystem, the event will bring together entrepreneurs and community members for an evening of innovation, collaboration, and celebration. A live audience will vote for the top three entrepreneurs based on their final pitches.

*Throughout the. month of May the participants will have access to a pool of coaches, mentors, and opportunities that will help them develop their pitch.

We are putting up a modest sum and will be working on increasing that amount. $500 for the top prize, $300 second, and the third $100. The final pitch event will be ticketed and those proceeds will go towards covering rentals, catering, and the remainder evenly distributed amongst the participants.

Host or Publisher Asian American Town and Melissa Yi