Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grants

What are Innovation Grants?

The Amazon Launchpad program, supports Aussie startups and entrepreneurs to bring innovative products online and reach Amazon customers. To acknowledge businesses that have demonstrated an especially forward-thinking approach during a time of extraordinary challenge and change, our Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grants have returned for 2023.

This year, our finalists will have an opportunity to pitch at Amazon Australia’s HQ and have the chance to win one of four grants, each worth more than $90,000. Each grant includes a $20,000 cash grant, marketing support and advertising packages, mentorship from Amazon experts, and industry networking opportunities.

Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grants 2023

Terms and Conditions

1. Information on how to enter and prizes form part of these conditions. By participating, entrants agree to be bound by these conditions. Entries must comply with these conditions to be valid.

Eligibility

2. Entrants are limited to the Sellers that have successfully registered on Amazon Australia’s Launchpad program via amazon.com.au/Launchpad ("Participating Brand") and must meet the following criteria:
a. The Participating Brand must fully complete all sections of the entry form at https://sell.amazon.com.au/launchpad during the Promotional Period (in addition to the application to register for the Launchpad Program);

b. The Participating Brand must have an existing physical consumer product that is available for sale to the public as at the time of application and is suitable for sale on Amazon.com.au in accordance with Amazon’s policies including, without limitation, the Restricted Products Policy and the Amazon Anti-Counterfeiting Policy;

c. The Participating Brand must be self-owned by an Australian resident and the business representative entrant must be 18 years or older at the time of entry;

d. The Participating Brand’s headquarters must solely be based in Australia;

e. The Participating Brand must be a small business (namely, employ fewer than 100 people and have earn less than $10 million in aggregate annual revenue);

f. The Participating Brand must possess a valid trade mark registered with IP Australia;

g. A business representative from the Participating Brand must be available to attend the Pitch Round on 1 May 2023 in Sydney and the Amazon bootcamp experience on 16-17 May 2023;

h. The Participating Brand must not be a prior winner of an Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grant; and

i. The Participating Brand has been or will be accepted into the Launchpad program prior to the close of the Promotional Period.
3. Employees and their immediate families of the Promoter or its affiliates, and its agencies are ineligible to enter.

4. The initiative commences at 12:01am AEDT on Tuesday 14 March 2023 and closes at 11:59pm AEST on Fri April 21 2023 (“Promotional Period”).

5. This initiative is a game of skill. Chance plays no part in determining the winners.

How To Enter

6. To enter the initiative, during the Promotional Period:

a. Visit amazon.com.au/launchpad and apply to register for the Amazon Australia’s Launchpad program. You will be notified in writing if your application is successful. Note: if you are already on the Launchpad program, you are not required to complete this step; and

b. Access the online entry form at https://sell.amazon.com.au/launchpad and fully complete all sections of the form including the questions: “Share what makes your consumer product innovative and how are you planning to scale your business in 2023? How will the Innovation Grant be beneficial to your business? How do you manage your stock to ensure you can meet customer demand, particularly if you become a winner of an Innovation Grant?”

7. Limit applies of one (1) entry per Participating Brand.

Judging

8. All entries will be judged individually on their merits and the top ten (10) valid entries received during the Promotional Period, as determined by the Promoter, will proceed to the next stage of judging (“Pitch Night”). During the Pitch Night, a representative from each of ten Participating Brand finalists will be required to present a pitch to a judging panel and provide a physical sample of the product for assessment. The judging panel is made up of industry experts both within and outside of Amazon (“Judging Panel”). The Pitch Night will take place on 1 May 2023 at Amazon Australia, Allianz Centre, 2 Market Street Sydney, NSW 2000. Return economy class flights from the nearest capital city, and one-night accommodation will be provided by Amazon for any business representative finalists travelling from non-Sydney metro areas (one business representative per Participating Brand).

9. All Pitch Night submissions will be judged individually on their merits, as determined by the Judging Panel, based on the provision of a physical sample of the product and an assessment of the following criteria: (a) an understanding of how the Participating Brand plans to scale its business in 2023; (b) how innovative the Participating Brand, product and pitch is; (c) an explanation of how the Innovation Grant will benefit the Participating Brand’s business; and (d) an explanation of how the Participating Brand is able to manage stock to meet customer demand. This criteria is not hierarchical and the Judging Panel may attribute different weight to the different criteria.

10. The best four (4) Participating Brands from the Pitch Night, as determined by the Judging Panel, will each receive a Prize (“Winners”). Winners will be notified in person on Pitch Night.

Prizes

11. Each prize package overall value is worth over $70,000 (“Prize”). Each Prize consists of:
a. $20,000 cash;

b. The opportunity to apply for up to $25,000 in AWS Activate credits, subject to the AWS Activate Portfolio Program eligibility requirements. AWS Activate Credits are not guaranteed. To receive credits, Winners must separately qualify for the AWS Activate Portfolio Program under the eligibility requirements set out at https://aws.amazon.com/activate/credits/. This prize component is governed by the AWS Activate Terms and Conditions, and the AWS Promotional Credit Terms and Conditions. Credits must be redeemed between 1 June 2023 and 31 May 2024.

c. Support provided by external third-party experts (Export Accelerator, Podean and Airwallex) as outlined below. Such inclusions are subject to the standard terms and conditions of these third party providers:
Export Accelerator
o 3 months listing support for up to 100 ASINs and FBA enablement (RRP up to $10,125 per Winner)
o Listing optimisation (including including optimised title, bullet points, and back-end search terms per ASIN) where applicable
o FBA enablement covering preparation, labelling and shipment creation support as well as ongoing inventory management guidance
o Masterclass session for Winners during Amazon Bootcamp held on 16-17 May.

Podean
o 3 months advertising support (RRP up to $4,500 per Winner)
o Support on getting setup on Amazon from a retail perspective
o Support on advertising and promotions on Amazon
o Masterclass session for Winners during bootcamp held on 16-17 May.

Airwallex
o Fee support for up to 12 months (RRP up to $10,000 per Winner)
o Discounted FX rates for a 12 month period - 0.3% for G10 and 0.6% for non G10
o No subscription fee for 12 months including 5 free employee cards
o Fee Free Account Management with a dedicated account manager
o No Set-up Costs
o Waiving fees for up to $100k worth of transactions
o Masterclass session for Winners during bootcamp held on 16-17 May.
d. Amazon Bootcamp experience – A two day “masterclass” with Amazon and AWS Leadership to understand the full spectrum on how we can support a business to scale. This bootcamp will include masterclasses with external expert partners: Podean, Export Accelerator and Airwallex. The bootcamp also includes a dedicated PR training session with Toothless Parrot Communications on effective communication for leadership, media training, public speaking presentation and corporate writing (RRP $1,125 per Winner). The bootcamp will be held at Amazon Australia, Allianz Centre, 2 Market Street Sydney, NSW 2000 and BWU2, an Amazon fulfilment centre. Meals will be provided. Return economy class flights from the nearest capital city, and two-night accommodation will be provided by Amazon for any Winners travelling from non-Sydney metro areas (one business representative per Winner);

e. A featured Seller placement on the Amazon Launchpad Homepage during key events such as Prime Day and Black Friday; and

f. National out-of-home media placement in Amazon campaigns provided by JCDecaux (RRP up to $30,709

g. Marketing, PR and merchandising opportunities throughout 2023, including key and high traffic events such Prime Day and Black Friday.
12. All taxes (excluding GST) which may be payable as a consequence of receiving a prize are the sole responsibility of the Winners. All other ancillary costs including but not limited to insurance, taxes (excluding GST), meals that are not specified above, airport transfers, in-room charges and any and all other expenses (such as travel costs that are not outlined above) are the responsibility of the Winners. The Promoter accepts no responsibility for any tax implications and recommends that entrants seek their own independent financial advice relating to the prize or acceptance of the Prize.

13. The value of the Prize is accurate and based upon the recommended retail value of the prize components (inclusive of GST) at the date of printing. The Promoter accepts no responsibility for any variation in the value of the Prize after that date.

14. It is a condition of accepting the Prize that Winners agree to make their full range of products available for sale on Amazon.com.au via Amazon Launchpad for a period of no less than 12 months from being announced as a Winner.

15. The cash component of the Prize will be disbursed via bank transfer to each Winner as follows: (a) $10,000 on 8 May 2023; and (b) $10,000 on 19 June 2023. Winners will be notified of any unforeseen delay.

16. Winners must accept the Prize in person during the Pitch Night. If any Prize remains unclaimed in accordance with these Terms and Conditions or is otherwise forfeited despite the Promoter making all reasonable efforts to notify each Winner, the Promoter may deem any Winner as ineligible to receive the Prize. In that event, the next entry that best meets the judging criteria, as determined by the Judging Panel, will be deemed the replacement Winner. Any replacement Winner will be notified by telephone, email, or video conference on or by midday Tuesday 2 May 2023. Any Replacement Winner must accept the Prize by email no later than 5:00pm AEST on Wednesday 3 May 2023 in order to accept the Prize. If the Prize still remains unclaimed in accordance with these Terms and Conditions, this replacement procedure will be repeated and the Prize will be offered to the next entry that best meets the judging criteria in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.

17. Prizes are not transferable and are not redeemable for cash. The Promoter’s decision is final and binding — no correspondence will be entered into.

18. Any prize component that is provided by a third party provider (such as the benefits provided by AWS, Export Accelerator, Podean, Airwallex and Catriona Dixon) are subject to the terms and conditions of the third party provider and the provision of the prize component is the sole responsibility of the third party provider and not the Promoter. The Promoter accepts no responsibility or liability for any delay or failure by the third party provider to deliver the prize component, any delay or failure relating to the applicable prize component itself or failure by the third party provider to meet any of its obligations in these Terms and Conditions.

19. To the extent permitted by law, the Promoter assumes no responsibility for any failure to receive an entry or for inaccurate information or for any loss, damage or injury in connection with the conduct of the initiative whether as a result of:
a. technical or telecommunications problems, including security breaches, technical website malfunctions or glitches; or

b. acts or omissions (including negligent acts of omissions) of the Promoter's servants or agents involved in the conduct of this initiative.
In the event of such problems or conduct, the Promoter may modify, cancel, terminate or suspend the initiative.

20. If any Prize (or any element of a Prize) becomes unavailable or is otherwise unable to be provided, the Promoter may substitute a Prize (or element of a Prize) of equal or greater value at the Promoter’s reasonable discretion, subject to any written directions from the relevant authorities. Winners will not be entitled to any additional compensation in the event that the Prize or element of a Prize has been substituted at equal or greater value.

21. It is a condition of accepting the Prize that Winners agree to participate and cooperate in all reasonable media relating to this initiative including interviews, photography, and filming. Each Winner agrees that the Promoter has a royalty free, perpetual license to use, reproduce, edit, communicate to the public, and adapt all material provided to the Promoter as part of the initiative, on or in connection with any media. Each Winner agrees to sign any further documentation required by the Promoter, such as a talent release, to give effect to this arrangement as a precondition to being awarded their Prize. To the extent permitted by law, entrants unconditionally and irrevocably consent to any act or omission that would otherwise infringe any moral rights in their entry.

Verification

22. The Promoter reserves the right to request verification of any information that has been provided by or on behalf of the Participating Brands relevant to entry into or participation in this initiative. The Promote reserves the right to disqualify entries that do not comply with these Terms and Conditions. The Promoter also reserves the right to disqualify any Participating Brand who provides false information, fails to provide information, conspires with others to gain an unfair advantage or is otherwise involved in any conduct that involves manipulating, interfering or tampering with this initiative or otherwise preventing the conduct of the initiative as intended by the Promoter. In the event of such problems or conduct, then the Promoter may modify, cancel, terminate or suspend the initiative.

Promoter's Liability

23. The Promoter shall not be liable for any loss, damage or injury suffered by any Winner as a result of the Winner accepting and/or using a Prize, except for any loss, damage or injury which is due to the negligence or wilful misconduct of the Promoter or which otherwise cannot be excluded by law. The Promoter will not be liable for any consequential or incidental damages.

Representations and Warranties

24. Each Participating Brand represents and warrants that:
a. its products, including packaging: (i) comply with all applicable laws and Amazon policies; (ii) do not and will not infringe any intellectual property, privacy, publicity or other rights of any third party; and (iii) do not contain any sexually explicit (except to the extent permitted by Amazon’s Program Policies), offensive defamatory or obscene materials;

b. the Participating Brand and its representatives must at all times act with due regard to public morals and conventions and must not behave in a manner that brings themselves into public disrepute, scandal, contempt or ridicule or that shocks, insults, or offends a substantial portion or group of the community or reflects unfavourably on the Promoter or its products and services;

c. it has full authority to grant the Promoter the rights referred to in these Terms & Conditions; and

d. it will indemnify the Promoter against all loss, damage and liabilities arising from a breach of any of the warranties in these Terms & Conditions (except for any loss, damage or liability which are due to the negligence or wilful misconduct of the Promoter)

General

25. Any dispute relating to whether entries have been received or not will be determined by the Promoter, whose decision is final. Any entry that contains content that the Promoter reasonably considers to be incomplete, inaccurate, underage, erroneous, ineligible, offensive, misleading, inappropriate or incomprehensible will be deemed invalid, as well as any entry that the Promoter reasonably considers to infringe any intellectual property rights or other rights of any person, corporation or entity.

26. Entrants agree that they are authorised to enter into this initiative on their own behalf and on behalf of the Participating Brand.

27. Entrants consent to the Promoter collecting, using, and recording their name, image, entry, personal information, the pitch, and/or other information in any reasonable media for an unlimited period of time without remuneration for the purpose of promoting this initiative (including any outcome), Amazon Launchpad, Amazon products and services, and/or promoting any products manufactured, distributed and/or supplied by the Entrants.

28. Any personal property rights in entries are owned by the Promoter. Details from entries, the Pitch Round, or other aspects of this initiative will be collected and used for the purpose of conducting this initiative (which may include disclosure to third parties, including but not limited to agents, contractors, service providers and, as required, to Australian regulatory authorities, for the purpose of processing and conducting the initiative) and for promotional purposes surrounding this initiative, Amazon Launchpad, Amazon products and services, and/or promoting any products manufactured, distributed and/or supplied by the Entrants. By entering this initiative entrants consent to the use of their information as described and agree that the Promoter may use this information, or disclose it to other organisations that may use it, in any media for future promotional, marketing and publicity purposes without any further reference or payment to the entrant. If the Promoter does not collect your information you may not be able to participate in this initiative. This notice should be read in conjunction with our Privacy Policy, which contains information about how we handle your personal information (including personal information collected via our website) and how to contact us if you have any questions about our management of personal information. Entrants may access and obtain a copy of the Promoter’s privacy policy by visiting www.amazon.com.au/privacy. The Privacy Policy contains information about how entrants may opt out, access, update or correct their personal information, how entrants may complain about a breach of the Australian Privacy Principles or any other applicable law and how those complaints will be dealt with. You can contact us by writing to us at Level 18, 2 Market Street, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia, if you have any questions. The Promoter may disclose entrant’s personal information to entities which operate outside of Australia.

29. Except as otherwise provided for, all amounts contemplated in these Terms and Conditions, including Prize values, are expressed in Australian Dollars.

30. The Promoter’s failure to ensure strict performance of any provision of these Terms & Conditions will not constitute a waiver of the Promoter’s right to enforce such provision or any other provision of these Terms & Conditions subsequently.

31. Nothing in these Terms and Conditions limits, excludes or modifies or purports to limit, exclude or modify the statutory consumer guarantees as provided under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth).

32. The Promoter is Amazon Commercial Services Pty Limited (ABN 30 616 935 623) of Level 37, 2 Park Street, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia.
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