Champions compete in Regional Business Plan Competition

College champions will compete against one another at the 2013 Regional Business Plan Competition being held at Grand Valley State University April 10.

The 4th Annual Regional Business Plan Competition is a tournament featuring the winners of local collegiate business plan competitions. Six students will present their business plans, competing for prize money over $5,000. Contestants have 10 minutes to pitch their business model. Audience members will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite business idea to win the People’s Choice Award, a $250 prize. Contestants are from Aquinas, Calvin, and Hope colleges and Cornerstone, Davenport, and Grand Valley State universities.

Regional Business Plan Competition
April 10
6 p.m.
Loosemore Auditorium, GVSU Pew Grand Rapids Campus
The event is free and open to the public

Participants include:
•    Marissa DeBoer - Drawn Back to Life
•    Jon DeAngelis - Waste Coatings LLC
•    Tyler Essenberg - GREENgrass
•    Ulandra Reynolds - All Things Weaved
•    Russell Fyfe - Book Bunny
•    Jonathan Bobnar - Hart-Line Innovations

The event is sponsored by Ernst & Young, GR Current, and Varnum, LLP. Jeff Royce, interim executive director of the Grand Rapids Current, and Steve Frazee, co-founder of HUB Grand Rapids, will serve as emcees.  

The judging panel includes:  
•    Prem Bodagala, The Charter Group
•    Seth W. Ashby, Varnum
•    Joe Ponstein, Ernst & Young LLP
•    Jon Balbach, Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Center
•    Veronica Ramirez, West Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

For more information, visit www.gvsu.edu/cei or contact Shorouq Almallah, Grand Valley Seidman College of Business, at (616) 331-7256.