Marriott School of Management student Derek Johnson raised the winning trophy after securing the Founder’s Choice award and the overall win at the Miller New Venture Challenge final. Nine other companies also walked away with prize money totaling $205,000 in cash and in-kind prizes, making this the biggest year in the competition’s history.
“I'm excited to take the winnings and launch my business,” says Johnson, a first-year MBA student from Rock Springs, Wyo. “I hope others will also take advantage of all the resources and opportunities BYU has to offer.”
In addition to Cowboy Kolaches, finalist teams included DevMountain, Broad Analytics, Cowboy Kolaches, kiBand, Lunchbox, Vicci, RunForm, Volleymetrics, Genius Security and Pampered.
These teams will have a chance to participate in this summer’s launchpad program worth more than $40,000 in in-kind services. They also each received a $15,000 prize for making it to the finals to fight for the Founders Choice, Global Business and Audience Choice awards. Each additional award gave recipients another $5,000 in prize money.
KiBands, a company that makes GPS tracking bracelets for children, took home the Audience Choice award. Broad Analytics received the Global Business award for their analytics software that tracks museum patron movement.
“The NVC is a nice way to drive the top teams to continue to improve their company,” says Mark Nielson, MBA student director of the Miller NVC. “The final awards serve as a carrot for teams to work toward.”
Last month startups entered the competition by submitting their executive summaries and video pitches for judges to review. The top 20 then moved on to a live-pitch round, cutting the number of competitors down by half. In the past only eight teams moved on to the finals, but competition this year was so fierce that the judges determined ten teams were deserving.
Entries were evaluated based on each company’s solution to a pain in the market, evidence of traction they have gained, strong execution and their investabililty.
“My overall experience in the NVC has been one of lots of learning, both from mistakes and successes,” Johnson says. “I feel extremely blessed to have the chance to be here at BYU, where the school does everything it can to foster the entrepreneurial spirit of its students.”
The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems, and entrepreneurship. The school’s mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,000 students are enrolled in the Marriott School’s graduate and undergraduate programs.
_
Writer: Trevor Carver
