Students from Around the World Compete in Venture Challenge 2005
SDSU's graduate student team, the Believables,
at the Venture Challenge Exhibit Fair.
On March 17-18, 20 teams of MBA students from around
the world came to San Diego in hopes of bringing home a $15,000
grand prize to seed their business venture during Venture Challenge
2005, SDSU’s 16th annual new venture competition.
More than half of the business ideas presented at
Venture Challenge have resulted in the start of actual businesses
such as Roving Planet, Dimensions Furniture, EADevices, and uShip.
SDSU’s team, Believables, has high hopes of being added to
this growing list of start-ups. The team made it to the finals in
this year’s competition and won the Showstopper Award for its
tabletop exhibit.
Believables Corporation, which plans to open a chain
of quick-serve restaurants offering a completely meat-free menu,
competed against a wide range of innovative business plans. The
team will continue its quest for venture capital when they travel
to the University of Texas at Austin in May to compete in its venture
plan competition.
“We are excited to host this nationally recognized
event that brings top universities, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists
and community leaders together to explore new ideas in venture creation,”
said Sanford Ehrlich, Executive Director of the College of Business’
Entrepreneurial Management Center (EMC).
The top prize this year went to the University of
Oregon for its innovative technology which safely decontaminates
waste water. The University of Texas at Austin team received the
$3,500 runner-up prize for their plan to bring to market a Network
Card designed specifically for online game players. The University
of Michigan was second runner-up and received $1,500 for their advanced
blood viscosity meter used in evaluating the symptoms of hyperviscosity
syndrome.
Prizes were also awarded to BG Energia of Technològio
de Monterrey, INCA of the University of Georgia, Eirgen Pharma Ltd.
of the University of Limerick, and Magic Bottles of Stockholm School
of Entrepreneurship.
The EMC has hosted Venture Challenge since 1989. In
addition to the competition, judges meet with each team in a spirit
of consultation and mentoring so that the students can gain insight
on how to turn their business plans into successful ventures. Venture
Challenge’s major sponsors include QUALCOMM Incorporated, JBM
Properties, KPBS and the San Diego Business Journal.
Sandbox Learning: A Venture Challenge Success Story
Amy Maguire and Desiree McClimon, graduates from Wake
Forest University, presented their award-winning idea to the Venture
Challenge judges in 2004 hoping that the cash prize would allow
them the opportunity to start their company. “The competition
was a great way for us to not only fund our business, but learn
from the various entrepreneurs who participated,” Maguire said.
“This was the only business plan competition we found that
honored socially responsible business ideas.”
Sandbox Learning is a comprehensive educational center
for educators and parents to buy materials that will assist children
with autism. On the website, www.sandbox-learning.com, there are
“success stories” in the form of e-books that teach autistic
children ways to communicate their feelings.
Every year, Craig Dunn, associate professor for the
Department of Management at SDSU, donates the $1000 first place
prize money for the Social Innovation in Entrepreneurship category,
which promotes the social and economic good of entrepreneurship.
“I choose to donate my money to this category
because I feel that social issues that affect businesses force students
to think outside of the financial box,” said Dunn. “Every
year at Venture Challenge, more and more cases can be considered
for the social innovation and entrepreneurship category because
students are becoming more socially aware,” said Dunn.
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