OXFORD, Miss. – Two University of Mississippi students are a step closer to entrepreneurship as winners of the 2008 Gillespie Business Plan Competition.
Fifty-eight undergraduate and graduate students of all majors entered the competition, with the two winners receiving $5,000 to start their businesses.
After picking five individuals and one team for the final round of competition, the judges chose Elena Farinas, a 23-year-old senior risk management and insurance major from West Palm Beach, Fla., as winner of the Best New Business Concept, and Joshua Stelzer, a 25-year-old senior marketing major from St. Louis, as their choice for the Best Business Plan.
“It is exciting to see our student contestants operationalize their business plan ideas into actual business enterprises,” said John Holleman, director of corporate relations and MBA services for UM’s School of Business Administration. “Because our undergraduate and graduate programs emphasize entrepreneurial thinking about the key role of the entrepreneur in our economy, the Gillespie Business Plan Competition is an important element of our overall curriculum.”
Farinas entered her plan for Sili Slutions, a makeup distribution company specializing in a line of cosmetic applicators made of silicone.
“I came up with the idea one day when I was putting my makeup on and started thinking that there has got to be a better way to apply concealer other than using my fingers,” said Farinas, who plans to use the $5,000 to start her business after graduation from UM.
Stelzer entered a business plan for expanding his online retail business, AussieDealz.com, which he started in 2007. The expansion will allow him to advertise more products each day, he said.
“I plan to expand my current online retail business into five more stores,” Stelzer said. “The company will operate very similar to Amazon.com and eBay but on a slightly different format.”
Judges for the competition were Bud Hamilton, clinical assistant professor of management, and local bank employees Rita Floyd of Trustmark, Lance Hickman of BancorpSouth, Johnny Barrett of First National Bank of Oxford, Gerald McLemore of Southbank and David Harbison of Renasant Bank.
Holleman said the judges chose Farinas and Stelzer as the winners because their products and services were clearly described, their markets were clearly defined and both business plans had clear paths to revenue and profitability. Also, the judges felt the projected investor returns and exit strategies were realistic and the business plans demonstrated strong strategic relationships with partners, alliances and customers.
“The Gillespie Business Plan Competition provides our students with an opportunity to have substantial real-world experience in developing a viable business venture,” Holleman said.
The competition is made possible through an endowment honoring Edwin C. Gillespie, a 1943 UM business administration graduate. His widow, Jean Gillespie, and brother, Joe Gillespie, a 1950 UM liberal arts graduate, helped set up the fund to enable students to promote a concept in entrepreneurship. The competition is coordinated by the School of Business Administration.
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