More than 50 Ole Miss student teams competed for the championship.
Angelica Owens
A digital marketplace for vintage clothing that allows sellers to elevate their brands through a shared customer base 20th Annual Gillespie Business Plan Competition in University of Mississippi.
Hosted by the University of Mississippi Center for Innovation and EntrepreneurshipThe annual competition allows student entrepreneurs to pitch their businesses to a panel of expert judges for a chance to win $20,000 in prize money and office space. Insight Park.
Fifty-four student teams participated in the event, with seven teams advancing to the finals. All seven finalist teams received $1,250 in funding.
Owen RidgwayA senior entrepreneurship major from Jackson. Preston RollinsA senior business administration major from Atlanta, David MarkhamThe fourth-year accounting major from Houston, Texas, Sell VNTG (pronounced “sel vintage”) Edward G. Francis Sr. Entrepreneur Award He also won the contest’s first prize.
Ridgway, the startup’s CEO, said the team developed the concept for an online vintage marketplace and pitched it to CIE 18 months ago, entering the 2022 business model competition but not making much progress in that challenge.
They honed their business plan and advanced to the finals of both the 2023 Gillespie Competition and the Business Model Competition.
“A year and a half of mentorship, hard work and consistency has put us in a perfect position to compete and win the 2024 Gillespie Business (Plan) Competition,” Ridgway said.
This year’s contest was the biggest yet, with about $80,000 in prize money and prizes. Clay DibrellCo-Director of CIE.
“One of the great things about the Gillespie Business Plan Competition is that we get to watch it grow year after year, with SellVNTG emerging from the 2023 finalists to win the 2024 Melanie and Doug Wilson Prize of $20,000 and incubator space at the UM Innovation Hub in Insight Park,” he said.
Ole Miss Student Madison HannahLeawood, Kansas; Marine SifritFrom Overland Park, Kansas College Mate AppWon Charles R. Doty Entrepreneurial Award And he won second place in the contest.The Collegemate app is an online platform that connects freshmen with their future roommates.
“Preparing for the Gillespie Business Plan Competition was beneficial in mapping out the future of our business,” says Hannah, “The guidance from our mentors and pitch coaches, as well as the feedback from the judges, was extremely helpful.”
“Collegemate has grown significantly over the past year, and we couldn’t have done it without all the support we’ve had from CIE,” Sifrit said.
The runners up of the competition are:
- Huang YaxinA senior entrepreneurship major from Forest University, Sing Source
- Julien BourgeoisCo-founder and CEO, a freshman Computer Science major from New Orleans. Automatic AILLC
- Claire WatkissA senior entrepreneurship major from Chicago, needle
- Stephanie HandfordA fourth-year mechanical engineering student from Milwaukee, Evan LampsaA Milwaukee native, she is a senior majoring in entrepreneurship at Miami University. Can I have some ketchup please?
- Will McEwan A senior accounting major from Memphis, Tennessee. Alex BaileyA fourth-year accounting and finance major from New York. Eric RathA senior accounting and economics major from Nashville, Tennessee. Carson MayA senior majoring in finance from Austin, Texas, Sticky boobs.
“We are excited to see what each team accomplishes in the future,” Dibrell said. “The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Mississippi.”
