American Airlines partners with MassChallenge to accelerate growth for small businesses

The competition is open to anyone in the world with any new startup, in any industry. American will award a total of 260,000 Business ExtrAA® points, the equivalent of more than 130 Plan AAhead® Economy Class round-trip tickets, to 26 MassChallenge finalist companies at the 2011 Awards Ceremony held in Boston on Oct. 24. In addition, all 125 companies that participate in the MassChallenge competition will receive 1,000 Business ExtrAA points after their first qualifying flight.

According to the U.S. Small Business Association, there were 27.5 million small businesses in the U.S. in 2009, representing 99.7 percent of all employer firms. Recognizing that the current economic crisis represents an opportunity to define the next generation of growth industries, American and MassChallenge are providing resources needed by startups – mentoring, networking events, travel, opportunities to showcase start-up company assets and infrastructure, and cash – to accelerate their growth and success. The MassChallenge judges panel will select the top 10 to 20 companies to split $1 million in cash among them. To view the current list of 2011 finalists, visit http://masschallenge.org/entrants/2011. The 111 MassChallenge 2010 alumni raised over $100 million in outside funding and created nearly 500 new jobs in the past year.

MassChallenge is an independent non-profit and does not take equity from startups or place any restrictions on winners. MassChallenge startups represent all industries and levels of development within the early-stage spectrum and with several hundred promising young startups in the mix, MassChallenge organizers expect a significant acceleration of growth and job creation over the next 24 months. That pace will only accelerate as more alumni are created each year. Last month, Ksplice, a 2010 MassChallenge winner, was acquired by Oracle, marking the first exit of a MassChallenge-supported startup. In addition, the Huffington Post recently purchased 2010 team Localocracy.

American Airlines identified MassChallenge as a program that highlights and attracts the top companies from around the world and aggregates resources for their success. American will serve as a partner to promote, highlight and accelerate opportunities for these companies. Entrepreneurs participating in the 2011 MassChallenge Competition will have the opportunity to win travel to stimulate their growth and have the face-to-face meetings so critical in this phase of development. American Airlines designed its Business Suite of products, which includes the Business ExtrAA® program, to serve the needs of entrepreneurs. Business ExtrAA is a travel and rewards incentive program that allows businesses to maximize the value of their travel. Travel expense reporting, newsletters, and rewards points that can be redeemed for flights and other rewards deliver additional value for entrepreneurs. There is no cost to join Business ExtrAA and enrollment is easy and convenient at www.aa.com/business.

"However you look at it, we will need to create a lot of new high-growth businesses to revitalize the economy," said John Harthorne, Founder and CEO, MassChallenge, Inc. "MassChallenge is the world's largest and, we believe, most effective private-sector platform for accelerating the launch and success of high-growth businesses. We are excited to begin a relationship with American Airlines and helping entrepreneurs win across the globe."

"American Airlines is focused on providing opportunities for entrepreneurs to grow their businesses, especially in this tough economy," said Derek DeCross, American's Vice President - Sales. "We understand the importance of face-to-face meetings in building relationships that lead to new customers and growth. Survey results of our small business customers revealed that a significant majority of them believe face-to-face meetings are essential to their business' success. Our partnership with MassChallenge provides the opportunity for entrepreneurs worldwide to travel and have those critical meetings necessary to accelerate their growth and success."

MassChallenge Finalist Testimonials

MassChallenge-supported startups are among the most satisfied customers of any organization on the planet. Following the 2010 MassChallenge Accelerator, MassChallenge asked the 111 finalists how likely they were to recommend MassChallenge to other startups on a scale of 0-10. Nearly 80 percent answered 9 or 10 out of 10, and less than 1 percent answered 6 or lower. That results in a "Net Promoter Score" for MassChallenge of 87.3 percent, placing MassChallenge among the highest-rated brands in the world, slightly above Apple Computer based on 2010 data from: http://www.netpromoter.com.

Below are selections of testimonials collected during surveys from the 236 startups MassChallenge has accelerated over the past two years. For additional customer testimonials, contact MassChallenge. See the MassChallenge website for more about the 2011 class of 125 finalists.

"MassChallenge helps entrepreneurs that think big to think bigger. I thought Samanta Shoes could be a $10 million dollar business, but MassChallenge showed me how to make it into a $100 million dollar business." - Kelvin Joseph, Founder, Samanta Shoes (MassChallenge 2010 $100K winner).

"MassChallenge is, without a doubt, the best program of its kind. The mentorship, learning, and marketing opportunities available through the MassChallenge program are unparalleled." - Noetzel, Founder & CEO, Pintley (MassChallenge 2011 Finalist).