Venture Pfest 2026: Where Entrepreneurs…
Building a business takes more than a good idea. It takes knowledge, connections, and the…
A strong business starts with more than a good idea. Day One helps entrepreneurs determine whether they are solving a real problem, understand who their customers are, validate demand, and build the financial foundation needed to move forward with confidence. Throughout the day, you'll apply what you're learning directly to your own business idea and leave with clear, practical next steps you can act on right away.
Check in, grab breakfast, meet other entrepreneurs, and start the day by making connections and getting ready for a hands-on morning of business development.
Before building a business, start with the problem. Learn how to clearly define the challenge your idea addresses, identify who experiences it, and determine whether your solution responds to a real customer need.
Learn how to identify your target customer, understand what matters to them, test whether demand exists, and gather meaningful feedback before investing significant time or money.
Put the morning into action by mapping your problem, customer, proposed solution, and the steps you can take to validate your idea.
Connect with other attendees, continue conversations, and get ready for the financial side of building your business.
Build a stronger understanding of the numbers behind your business, including revenue, expenses, pricing, profit, startup costs, and break-even basics. Learn how these numbers work together and how they can support better business decisions.
Understand the difference between profit and cash flow, identify common financial warning signs, and learn what to monitor so you can catch potential issues early and make more informed decisions.
Apply what you've learned by identifying your major costs, revenue assumptions, pricing considerations, and the financial risks or questions you need to monitor as your business develops.
Finish the day by choosing one action to validate your business idea and one financial action to strengthen your foundation, giving you clear next steps to move forward with confidence.
Day Two shifts from building your foundation to reaching customers and working more efficiently. Explore practical strategies for marketing, social media, websites, AI, and digital tools that can help your business increase visibility, save time, and create growth. Throughout the day, you'll evaluate your current digital presence, identify opportunities for improvement, and leave with clear actions you can begin implementing right away.
Start the morning with breakfast, networking, and a look at the marketing strategies and digital tools you'll explore throughout the day.
Move beyond likes, impressions, and vanity metrics. Learn how to focus your marketing efforts on reaching the right audience, generating leads, attracting customers, and supporting real business growth.
Learn how to use social media and professional platforms to strengthen your credibility, build relationships, reach your target audience, and create new opportunities for your business.
Take a closer look at your website, Google Business Profile, and social media presence. Identify gaps, inconsistencies, or missed opportunities that may be making it harder for customers to find, understand, or trust your business.
Connect with other attendees, exchange ideas, and get ready to explore how AI and website strategy can support your business.
Explore practical ways to use AI to save time, improve productivity, create and refine content, organize information, and support everyday business tasks. Learn where AI can add value while keeping your goals, customers, and business needs at the center.
Learn how to build or improve a website that clearly communicates what your business offers, builds credibility, makes it easy for customers to take action, and supports your overall marketing strategy.
Put the day's ideas into action by identifying your target customer, core message, strongest marketing channel, and one specific marketing activity you can begin implementing.
Finish the day by choosing one digital improvement and one customer-generation strategy to put into action, giving you clear next steps to strengthen your visibility and grow your business.
A day centered on women who build, lead, take risks, and create opportunities. Hear honest conversations from entrepreneurs and business leaders about turning ideas into businesses, building influential brands, navigating challenges, and creating meaningful success while staying grounded in what matters most.
Check in, grab coffee, meet fellow attendees, and connect with entrepreneurs, business leaders, and community partners before the summit begins.
Kick off the Women's Summit with an introduction to PCDC, Venture Pfest, and this year's theme, The Courage to Build. The opening conversation will highlight the progress of women-owned businesses, the challenges that remain, and the opportunities ahead for women entrepreneurs.
What happens between having an idea and building a real business? Hear directly from entrepreneurs who have made that journey. The conversation will explore getting started, finding customers, navigating early challenges, making difficult decisions, and building a foundation for long-term growth.
Continue the conversation over brunch while connecting with speakers, entrepreneurs, community partners, and fellow attendees. Share ideas, build relationships, and make new connections across the local business community.
A strong business needs more than a great product or service. Explore how entrepreneurs build memorable brands, communicate their value, attract the right customers, strengthen trust, and use authentic marketing, relationships, and community presence to stand out.
Take a break to enjoy a special tea tasting, connect with other attendees, and continue the conversation before the keynote begins.
Building something meaningful requires ambition, resilience, and perspective. Kathy Terry of P. Terry’s shares insights from her entrepreneurial journey, exploring how to navigate setbacks, lead with purpose, grow through change, and pursue business success while staying connected to your values, priorities, and the people who matter most.
Reflect on the day's key takeaways, celebrate the conversations and connections made throughout the summit, and hear what's coming next during Venture Pfest. Continue networking with speakers and fellow attendees, and stop by the photobooth to capture a fun memory from the Women's Summit.
A day focused on practical strategies, real conversations, and the decisions that move a business forward. Explore marketing, leadership, strategy, AI, relationships, and business growth through panels, roundtables, and direct conversations with experienced business leaders. Leave with new connections, practical ideas, and a clearer sense of your next move.
Check in, grab coffee, meet fellow attendees, and start building connections before the day's programming begins.
Kick off Business in Action with a welcome from PCDC and a look at the conversations, speakers, and opportunities ahead.
Explore practical marketing strategies that help businesses reach the right customers, generate qualified leads, strengthen engagement, and turn visibility into measurable business results.
Hear an honest conversation about hiring, leadership, workplace culture, delegation, and the people decisions that shape a growing business. Learn how to build a team that supports your goals and evolves with your business.
Learn how experienced business leaders identify priorities, evaluate opportunities, make difficult decisions, and turn strategy into meaningful action. Walk away with a stronger framework for deciding what deserves your attention next.
Grab lunch, continue conversations from the morning, and connect with speakers, business owners, community partners, and fellow entrepreneurs.
Choose a focused small-group conversation based on the needs and challenges of your business. Ask questions, exchange ideas, learn from experienced facilitators, and leave with practical next steps you can apply. Roundtable topics include AI for Marketing, AI for Websites, Social Media, Pitch Me an Idea, Google Business Profile, and My Next Move.
Strong businesses are rarely built alone. Janice Omadeke explores how intentional relationships with mentors, advisors, peers, partners, and professional networks can create new opportunities, strengthen decision-making, and support long-term business growth.
Bring the day together by reflecting on the ideas, conversations, and connections that stood out most. Leave with a challenge to turn what you've learned into one clear next move for your business.
The final day of Venture Pfest brings together innovation, entrepreneurship, emerging opportunities, and founder stories. Explore how businesses can respond to change, validate ideas, overcome challenges, and turn opportunities into action. The day concludes with the Venture Pfest Founders Showcase, where entrepreneurs take the stage to pitch what they are building.
Check in, grab coffee, connect with other attendees, and get ready for the final day of Venture Pfest 2026.
Start the final day with a welcome from PCDC and a look at a program focused on innovation, emerging opportunities, entrepreneurship, and turning ideas into impact.
Explore how economic, cultural, and technological shifts are influencing customer behavior, industries, and the way businesses operate. Learn how to recognize emerging risks, identify new opportunities, and respond to change with greater confidence.
Entrepreneurship rarely follows a straight path. Calvin Mills Jr. shares an honest perspective on what it takes to keep building through setbacks, uncertainty, and change. Drawing from his journey as a serial entrepreneur, the conversation explores persistence, reinvention, lessons learned, and the mindset needed to turn challenges into opportunities and keep moving forward.
Learn how to test ideas before committing significant time, money, or resources. Explore practical ways to understand your customers, gather meaningful feedback, challenge assumptions, adapt your approach, and make more informed decisions before moving forward.
Grab lunch, build new connections, and meet one-on-one with experienced professionals for personalized guidance on your business questions and challenges. Office hours include leadership and resilience, pitch and business strategy, AI and automation, marketing, business law, and financial assistance.
Get an inside look at the Venture Pfest Pitch Competition, including how the competition works, what the judges will be looking for, and what makes a strong business pitch. Joseph Fisher will take the stage to deliver a pitch and help set the tone before this year's competitors begin.
Watch up to 10 entrepreneurs take the stage to pitch their businesses before a panel of judges. Each founder will have five minutes to present their business, followed by questions from the judging panel. See new ideas, hear founder stories, and experience firsthand the businesses being built and grown across our community.
Cast your vote for the People's Choice Award, meet the participating founders, and learn more about their businesses while the judges deliberate.
Celebrate the entrepreneurs who took the stage as Venture Pfest recognizes the pitch competition winners and announces the People's Choice Award.
Close out five days of ideas, learning, entrepreneurship, and connection as we recognize the speakers, founders, partners, and attendees who helped make Venture Pfest 2026 possible—and look ahead to what comes next.
Movie Theater: Pflugerville Cinemark Stone Hill Town Center The Venture Pfest Women’s Summit returns with The Courage to Build, a
Move from ideas to action during Day 4 of Venture Pfest 2026. Business in Action: Strategies That Move You Forward
Courtyard by Marriott Austin Pflugerville and Pflugerville Conference Center Venture Pfest 2026 concludes with a day focused on innovation, experimentation,
Serial Entrepreneur, Author, Advisor
P. Terry's Burger Stand
T-Squared Agency
Opportunity Austin
Venture Pfest was an excellent opportunity to connect with local founders and hear practical insights from people actually building businesses. I left with new ideas and valuable connections.
What I enjoyed most was the quality of the conversations. The sessions were practical, engaging, and genuinely useful for entrepreneurs at different stages.
Venture Pfest brought together a great mix of entrepreneurs, investors, and community leaders. It was a great place to learn, network, and discover new opportunities.
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