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Springboard Winner Develops Hunting Gear for Women

The Springboard competition concluded this week with one student earning more than $100,000 in cash and prizes.

Senior entrepreneurship major Cassie Meyer’s business, Knotty Outdoors, won this year’s Springboard Business Plan competition.

“I learned so much from this experience like presentation skills. It paid off, being rewarded with recognition and money for my business is great,” she said.

Knotty Outdoors develops hunting apparel for women.  Meyer expressed in her presentation that women who hunt are forced to wear men’s hunting attire, which doesn’t fit and accommodate the shape of a woman. She said she felt the need to change that.

Meyer was awarded a prize package which includes office space, marketing assistance and other business advice which is valued at over $100 thousand, and includes a $10 thousand cash prize.

The second place was awarded to senior marketing major Sunggin Kang, senior entrepreneurship major Luke Lancaster and senior finance major Tom Menendez. The team won a $5,000 cash prize for their business Kollecto, an online based property management web site that facilitates rent payments. The group said they felt proud for winning second prize.

“It has been the best experience I have had in my four years being here,” Lancaster said. “I have learned from the other teams and advisors, you can’t put a price on the knowledge gained. After we graduate we’re [all three] going to move to Dallas and seize whatever opportunities come our way.”

Third place, with a $2,000 prize, was awarded to Brave Start. The business plan promotes a healthy lifestyle through cafeterias; managing caloric intake within college students to prevent the freshmen 15.

The project creators, junior family and consumer science major Brenda Herrera and sophomore business major Bailey Miller said they enjoyed the experience.

“I feel accomplished,” Miller said. “It is very useful in learning about the business world, entrepreneurship and how to be a well rounded person in a business.”

Herrera said she agreed with Miller.

“All my hard work and effort paid off,” cofounder Brenda Herrera said. “I am glad that before I graduated I got to participate in something outside of my major.”

Project Springboard is open to all Bradley students. Its mission is to provide real-life experience and advance the entrepreneurship discipline. In its fifth year the Springboard’s Business Plan Competition had 25 participating teams in September of 2010 and narrowed down to 5 in April.

At the competition University President Joanne Glasser said she was thankful for all the sponsors, teams and everyone that participated in the making of the eventful project.

“It is just the beginning of many dreams,” she said.

The concept was inspired by Alexis Khazzam. He said he is very proud of the outcome and the opportunities the project has provided for the participants.

“It [the project] provides energy on campus and it gives students the opportunity to take risks,” he said. “The Springboard competition and Bradley is a match made in entrepreneurship heaven.”

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