If you’ve ever seen the “Shark Tank” show, you know it can get pretty brutal. The investors are, after all, sharks who are thinking about nothing other than whether they think they can make money on the investment. If they can’t, they’re out.

By all accounts, the 757Pitch competition held in Suffolk on Tuesday evening also featured some tough questions for the five businesspeople who were seeking an award of $757 and access to resources through the TempO program at Old Dominion University.

The winner was James Harrell, who founded Virginia Gold. His product is a “coffee” made from peanuts. Other competitors were ChowReach, Kitchen B2B, Mouth Meets South and Specialty Coffee Club.

The lineup of businesspeople pitched their companies and their products, handed out samples and answered questions. In the end, Virginia Gold was the winner, but all of the businesses got valuable experience pitching their companies to potential investors.

“It gives them good experience for when they get in front of venture capitalists,” said Richard Chaing, owner of Suffolk Executive Offices and a sponsor of 757Pitch.

The costs of going into small business are phenomenal, and a competition like this helps businesspeople get a small reward and a little recognition for what they have done well. It also could help prepare them for future success with bigger investors.

This competition happens across Hampton Roads, but it is the first time the competition has come to Suffolk. We certainly hope it will make a return trip and will attract more Suffolk businesses as competitors next time.

We appreciate this competition and can’t wait for its next trip to Suffolk.