FSB: FORTUNE Small Business Announces Winners of Annual Business Plan Contest; Vertebration, from Ohio State University, Wins $50,000 First Prize

Business Wire, Oct 21, 2004

NEW YORK -- FSB: FORTUNE Small Business announced today the winners of its second annual business plan contest. Vertebration, from Ohio State University, won the $50,000 first prize for its plan to market a newly developed implant for spinal surgery. Second prize of $10,000 went to Harvard Business School's Extended Fertility, to help young women freeze their eggs. Seahorse Power, from Babson College's MBA program, claimed the $5,000 third prize for a plan to sell solar-powered trash compactors. Entries in the "Student Showdown" came from business schools across the country. The winners were chosen from 58 entries from 45 schools. The entries consisted of business plans for everything from biomedical companies to taco vendors. The complete story, including a list of runners-up, appears in the November 2004 issue of FSB: FORTUNE Small Business and www.fsb.com.

"Many schools are launching business plan contests to give students experience in raising capital," says FSB senior editor Elaine Pofeldt. "The plans are more than academic exercises. The winners of our second annual business plan contest, the FSB Student Showdown, already had funding or clients, or both."

Vertebration has $89,000 in startup capital, its prize money for top plan at Ohio State's Fisher College of Business. Extended Fertility has $500,000 in startup capital from one of its founders, and Seahorse Power has $250,000 from private investors. "How these teams ultimately fare will depend on their execution," concludes Pofeldt. "But, armed with practical training, they are now well prepared for the challenges that await entrepreneurs beyond the campus."

To find the teams, FSB invited the winners of business plan contests from American universities to compete against each other. Both undergraduate and graduate teams were eligible. Editors selected the top 50% of the plans submitted, based on strength of the management team and the viability, thoroughness, and newsworthiness of the business plan. The remaining contestants went through several rounds, including oral presentations and answering questions submitted in advance by opposing teams. The judging panel consisted of six experts from business and academia.

About FORTUNE Small Business

FORTUNE Small Business is a general interest business magazine published ten times a year as a joint venture by The FORTUNE Group at Time Inc. and American Express Small Business Services. Each issue provides hard-hitting, informative coverage of the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. economy--small business. FORTUNE Small Business is delivered to 1 million small business owners and is also available on newsstands at major airports and bookstores nationwide. Time Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner.