Students invited to enter business plan competition

The Kabara Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies announces the fourth annual Student Business Plan Competition.

Participants must be full-time undergraduate students on the Winona campus; may participate as an individual or as a team of two students; and can have any major.

Students are asked to develop a business plan for a business that they would like to start. The business does not need to be an on-campus business. The projected start-up costs and initial capital required may not exceed $10,000.

The plan must include: a one-page executive summary, a concept statement, anticipated startup costs, a preliminary marketing plan, potential suppliers and/or manufacturing processes (as applicable), a discussion of operating considerations (staffing, operating hours, etc.), pro-forma financial statements for the first year of operation, references for the data sources used in the plan, and contact information for each of the individuals submitting the proposal.

Criteria for judging the plans include: feasibility of the proposed project, creativity, and comprehensiveness that was used to create the business plan.

Cash prizes totaling $1,500 will be awarded.

A hard copy and electronic copy of the business plans must be submitted to Teresa Speck by noon Tuesday, March 15. Semifinalists will present their plans to a panel of judges on Friday, March 18, and winners will be announced within a week.

For more information, contact Speck at tspeck@smumn.edu, Ext. 1449, or stop by her office at 429D, Saint Mary’s Hall.