Pace Lubin

 

Announcement

The application for the Eighteenth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition is open.

Compete to win $500 in prize money!

Submission Deadline: Friday, May 14th 2021 by 5:00 p.m. EDT

Winner Announcement: Friday, May 21st 2021

To compete, email your submission to entrepreneurship@pace.edu

For more information, see Guidelines & Important Dates page

 

Past Winners

2020 - The Seventeenth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

Prize support courtesy of Paige Cecchi '15

WINNER: Megan Bishop, Home Base

  • Megan Bishop Megan is an Arts and Entertainment Management major at Pace looking forward to her upcoming senior year. Along with taking classes in the city, Megan teaches dance, yoga, and group fitness classes. She is passionate about the entertainment industry and has held internships throughout her time at Pace with Disney, Buchwald Talent Agency, Better Noise Music, and Tracy Taylor Ward Design. Megan is also the Vice President-Standards of Kappa Delta Eta Iota and hopes to one day defend artists and entertainment companies an entertainment lawyer. Megan Bishop
     
  • Home Base Imagine coming to your health club for strength training and staying after to watch football with the other members. Or maybe the idea of coming for a meditation class and staying for book club sounds more your style. You can do either of these things and so much more at Home Base. Home Base is a holistic fitness and wellness studio aimed at building community among New Yorkers of all backgrounds. By providing a wide variety of studio classes, a large community space, themed events, and food products from both Home Base's in-house smoothie bar and local restaurants, Home Base is a perfect one-stop-shop for community building and self-improvement. We hope to build synergy, strength, and serenity in our patrons and encourage anyone and everyone to come in and stay a while.
     
  • Click here to read the Megan Bishop's Executive Summary.

2019 - The Sixteenth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Meghana Venkatesh, AUX MEG

  • Meghana Venkatesh Meghana Venkatesh is a designer based in the Williamsburg, Brooklyn area in New York City. Meg has always been an artist, and has worked on both large and small projects in NYC and beyond. She is graduating in May of 2019 from Pace University with a degree in Business Administration with an Entrepreneurship concentration. She aspires to start her own interior design studio in the future. Meg had worked in several different aspects of design, with experience in interior design, art direction, visual conceptualization and branding identity, installation and sculpture, photography, film production assistance, film set design, and graphic design. She also has experience in social media management for several large platforms, copyediting and writing blogroll, public relations for brand partnerships, and service production for several NYFW shows.
     
  • AUX MEG AUX MEG is a design studio specializing in interior design, graphic design, visual brand styling, and art direction. It is an office space, a retail space, and an open studio all in one house, connecting creators to clients in a collaborative way. AUX MEG is the solution for all things related to beautiful and compelling design, from the home to the website and everything in between, we exist to tell the stunning stories of our clients through our well-curated art.​
     
  • Click here to read Meghana Venkatesh's Executive Summary

 


2018 - The Fifteenth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Sonia Sotomayor, Urban 7, LLC

  • Sonia Sotomayor At Pace University, Sonia Sotomayor is an Information Technology major with a Concentration in Computer Forensics and a Minor in Russian. She will be graduating with her B.S. in December of 2018. During Fall 2017, Sonia began working with six other teammates for the Porsche Family Trust as Business Management Officer. Her responsibilities in this role include researching business and marketing strategies and crafting original proposals.As an Honor Roll student, Sonia worked as an English language tutor for International students. She currently mentors Freshman in the Seidenberg School of Computer Science, is an active member of Phi Sigma Iota, and holds a data analytics internship with General Assembly. Upon graduating from Pace, she hopes to work for a sustainable start-up company.
     
  • Urban 7 LLC Urban 7 is a dock less scooter-sharing platform that facilitates personal mobility within small urban distances. By downloading the free app, users can pick up nearby scooters and arrange short trips that satisfy First and Last Mile connections. Urban 7 proposes to start a pilot program in Graz, Austria as a nine-month research project has been conducted here. The pilot could become a more efficient model for the use of electric scooters and their application in maximizing the public transit network.​
     
  • Click here to read Sonia Sotomayor's Executive Summary

 


2017 - The Fourteenth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Justin Marks, Arfona, LLC

  • Justin Marks CDT is the CEO of Arfona LLC, a digital manufacturing specialty company. An accomplished dental technician, educator and lab owner, Justin has lectured and taught courses in more than 40 countries around the world. He is a pioneer in the field of digital dentures and since 2008 has dedicated most of his career to applying computer aided design and 3D printing technologies to removable prosthodontics. He is the inventor of the r.Pod™ desktop printer, the first 3D printer capable of printing thermoplastic dental materials.Justin graduated Summa Cum Laude from Pace University in 2017 and holds a BBA in marketing and management.
     
  • Arfona LLC is the first company to offer dentures that are fabricated from fused filament fabrication - a type of additive manufacturing that consists of extruding thermoplastic wire through a nozzle into a 3-dimensional object. Through an exclusive arrangement with industry leading Valplast International Corporation, Arfona is also the sole provider of FDA registered thermoplastic filament for 3D printing dental appliances. The technology allows for the fabrication of 3D printed dentures in one third of the time that it takes to fabricate one traditionally - in some cases as quickly as two hours in a single day of production, compared to upwards of six hours spread out over several days in a commercial lab setting.
     
  • Click here to read Justin Marks's Executive Summary

 


 

2016 - The Thirteenth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Christopher Dunn-Meynell, Ondori Anime

  • Christopher Dunn-Meynell is a current senior at Pace University, in the Lubin School of Business. He currently is majoring in entrepreneurship.
     
  • Ondori Anime is an anime retailer aims at opening pop-up stores in and around anime conventions, which specialize in selling shows and merchandise not offered by the American licensors. Ondori has also established a relationship with the two largest Japanese merchandisers, to bring more shows to our stores. Pop up stores allow the flexibility to adapt to the company’s clientele and use information, to increase the customer experience and profits year after year. Lastly the pop-up store model allows convenience for our guests, since we could build near any convention center which would normally be too expensive for a conventional anime store.
     
  • Click here to read Christopher Dunn-Meynell's Executive Summary

 


2015 - The Twelfth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Anthony Fauci, Front Line Apparel

  • Anthony Fauci is a senior at Pace University studying Entrepreneurship.  Before coming to Pace University in 2010, he served on active duty in the United States Army as a Combat Infantryman until 2011.  Currently, Anthony is an Allstate Exclusive Agent in Staten Island, NY where he owns and operates his agency of 6 employees since 2011.  He holds the New York State Property & Casualty Insurance License, Life & Health License, and the FINRA Series 6 & 63 Licenses.
     
  • Front Line Apparel is an online apparel retailer operating in a niche market that offers customizable clothing choices for United States Military Veterans and Active Duty Service members. On the site, customers will be able to choose from a database of military logos, badges, awards, and unit designations to be added to the clothing item of their choice. Front Line Apparel will also launch a social venture supporting Feherty’s Troops First Foundation to help Veterans who are wounded, disabled, or suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
     
  • Click here to read Mr. Fauci's Executive Summary

2014 - The Eleventh Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Christa Gray Page, 50ROOTS.com

 

  • Christa Gray Page is a recent MBA graduate in Strategic Management from Pace University.  She also holds a BPS in Fashion Merchandising and Business Administration from Marist College and is currently the Co-Founder and President of 50Roots.com. After nearly 10 years of merchandising, product development and sourcing management, primarily in the fashion industry, Christa became concerned with the repercussions of extensive outsourcing. 50ROOTS.com was born from her desire for high-quality, American-made products developed through responsible business practices.

  • 50ROOTS.com is an e-commerce site dedicated to selling Made in the USA products. Its mission is to support the American Made Movement by connecting socially and environmentally responsible consumers with high quality, homegrown, innovative, made in America products. 50ROOTS’ product offering includes unique Made in America gift items and accessories for men, women, children, pets, and the home.50ROOTS.com is designed to leverage American innovation while supporting local economies, designers and manufacturers. 50ROOTS’s high-quality products are all manufactured by environmentally and socially responsible businesses in the United States, with a significant proportion of items created using repurposed or upcycled materials.

  • Click here to read Ms. Page's Executive Summary


2013 - The Tenth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Peter Courtney, Wapsi 67 Brewing Company

 

  • Peter Courtney is a graduate student at Pace University.  He is working towards a Master’s in Business Administration, with a focus on Entrepreneurial Studies in Management.  Peter has a Bachelor’s of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame.  He has worked for the past five years as a mechanical engineer in the mechanical construction field as a project and construction manager.  He is a Project Management Professional, Certified Energy Manager, and plans to take the Professional Engineering Exam in April 2013.

    Peter began brewing his own beer in early 2012.  He has visited several breweries over the last year, had discussions with brewers and owners of breweries, and performed a case study on the growth of craft beer in the United States and success of the Samuel Adams brand.

  • Wapsi 67 Brewing Company will be a 10 barrel distribution brewery with a tasting room located on the Eastern border of Iowa in the Quad Cities.  The tasting room will consist of several different beers on tap available in sampler glasses, pints, or growlers.  The brewery will serve one type of food, a “sloppy-joe” type sandwich originating from a family-owned store in the area.

  • Click here to read Mr. Courtney's Executive Summary


2012 - The Ninth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Jonathan Prato, "Stoked"

 

  • Jonathan Prato is a senior at Pace University where he is pursuing his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in both Entrepreneurship and Finance. Jonathan’s passion for Entrepreneurship started in his Freshman year of college when he started a residential and commercial painting company under the Collegiate Entrepreneurship program. Currently, Jonathan is the President and Co-Founder of the Pace University Student’s in Free Enterprise (S.I.F.E.) Team where he leads a dedicated group of 20 students in accomplishing goals in line with S.I.F.E.’s mission “to create a better, more sustainable world through the positive power of business”. In 2012 Jonathan lead this new team to the S.I.F.E. Regional Competition for the first time since 2004. As a part of S.I.F.E.’s work Jonathan partnered with Stoked, a non-profit organization that is dedicated to helping underserved youth through action-sports, to create and write the plan for a social venture in Rockaway Beach, New York. Jonathan worked with Stoked’s founder Steve Larosiliere to create the idea for a surf shop that would act as a job training program for the underserved youth in the Rockaway Beach community.  Jonathan put together a 55-page business plan for the organization, which has allowed Stoked to actively pursue funding and execute the detailed plan.
     
  • Stoked or The STKD 67 Concept Shop is a retail and community space located at Beach 67 at the vacant retail spaces in Arverne By The Sea. The space will be used to empower youth during the summer months and address the summer learning and physical education gap for New York City youth.

 

2011 – The Eighth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Chirstopher Finn, "Boomer's Mobile Bistro"

 

  • [Christopher Finn]Christopher Finn brings over 8 years of restaurant, catering, and food service management experience to Boomer's Mobile Bistro. He has progressed through a series of roles in operations, sales, marketing and management; holding positions varying from kitchen prep to general manager. His deep passion for the food industry, customer service and new business ventures, will be the driving force behind the success of Boomer's Mobile Bistro. Mr. Finn will graduate Pace University in December of 2011 with an MBA in Management and a concentration in Entrepreneurial Studies. Mr. Finn is a member of Sigma Iota Epsilon, a National Honorary Management Fraternity, as well as, Omicron Delta Epsilon, an International Honor Society in Economics. Mr. Finn also holds a Bachelor of Communication degree from the University of Miami, where he majored in public relations. Other prior work experience includes positions with Deloitte and Touche, Edventures Partners and the Department of State in Miami, Florida.
     
  • Boomer's Mobile Bistro is a fleet of high-end food trucks that will provide on-site catering service throughout Westchester County, New York. We will target the business community, special interest groups, and events. Boomer's Mobile Bistro will serve upscale fare that, along with the atmosphere of the event, may be customized to the patron's liking and be theme-related. Boomer's will focus on outdoor events such as corporate gatherings, employee recognition celebrations, team building activities, as well as catering smaller parties during the spring, summer, and fall.
     
  • Click to read Mr. Finn's Executive Summary.

 


 

2010 – The Seventh Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Matthew Brown, "Life Cycle Solutions"

  • Matthew Brown is a New York based energy engineer currently pursuing an MBA in Entrepreneurship at Pace University. Matthew received both his BS in Aeronautical Engineering and MS in Mechanical Engineering from Clarkson University in Potsdam, NY.
    [Matthew Brown]  
  • Life Cycle Solutions (LCS) LCS is a turnkey building energy services company operating in the broad market of medium sized buildings in NYC. LCS will change the way business owners look at their buildings, their utility bills and most importantly, their role in the built-up urban environment of New York City.
     
  • Click to read Mr. Brown's biography and Executive Summary.

 

 


 

2009 – The Sixth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Michael Bonavita, "CONE CIBO"
 

  • [Michael Bonavita]Michael Bonavita is a recent MBA graduate in Marketing/Management from Pace University. Michael holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Manhattanville College in Purchase, NY. Having studied language and culture in Italy at Universita' d'Urbino he is fluent in Italian. Michael's background is in sales, marketing, management, and customer service. As a marketing manager for US Marketing & Promotions he executed promotional campaigns aimed at increasing product trials and brand awareness for accounts such as Godiva, Washington Mutual, Wicked (Broadway show), and Firefly Cellular. >> more
     
  • CONE CIBO (pronounced Chee-Bo) will change the way people view and consume take-out and quick eat-in food options. CONE CIBO will offer a quick natural and healthy meal of excellent quality, eclectic flavors, and delicious taste that fast food, pizza, sandwiches, sushi, wraps, Asian, and other foods in this category do not offer. CONE CIBO will differentiate by providing a quick and affordable gourmet food experience in an artisanal bread cone. Our innovative product will combine gourmet rustic Italian bread in the shape of an artisanal bread cone with creative, fresh gourmet cone fillings including meat, fish, chicken, and vegetarian offerings.
     
  • Click to read Mr. Bonavita's biography and Executive Summary.

 


 

2008 – The Fifth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Aaron Mandelbaum, "Umoja U"
 

  • [Aaron Mandelbaum]Aaron Mandelbaum is a licensed real estate agent and an IT project coordinator for Cooper Square Realty, one of the city's top property management companies. He founded Bendistraw Consulting (www.bendistraw.com) which provides in-home, personalized training, and strategic consulting. Some of his clients include NexTune.com and the United Nations Global Compact. Aaron is graduating this spring with a strategic management MBA and is currently weighing his various career options.
     
  • Umoja U provides industry specific and general life skills training to citizens of all ages. We capitalize on our relationships to maintain a high job placement ratio in a vertically and geographically scalable way. By introducing the apprenticeship framework to new industries and demographics we can utilize previously untapped human capital. As a private group we can operate with a higher budget and in more arenas than government funded vocational education programs. Umoja U. creates skilled workers as it connects every facet of the job market to boost the productivity and quality of Tanzania society.
     
  • Click to read Mr. Mandelbaum's biography and Executive Summary.

 

2007 – The Fourth Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Sheri Muth, "Independence Painting"
 

  • [Sheri Muth]Sheri Muth, M.Ed., C.A.G.S, CRC, Director of Employment & Community Day Services at Jawonio, a regional Not-for-Profit rehabilitation organization, is currently completing a graduate certificate in Not-for-Profit Management - "Social Entrepreneurship Specialization" through the Pace University Graduate School of Public Administration. Ms. Muth holds a Bachelors degree in Psychology from the University at Albany, a Masters of Education and Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study from Springfield College in Rehabilitation Counseling and is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor.
     
  • Independence Painting is social enterprise business plan that outlines a new way to combine the painting industry with rehabilitation supports to do business differently—with quality and competitiveness—that is "self supporting and supportive". Once developed and tested, this model and its training materials, is expandable into any county in the country. In addition to the parent company Jawonio, this business is a collaborative model that draws upon state funding as needed for training; low cost long term supports if necessary; summer youth work funding; and its community to reach the goal of training and independent employment of people with disabilities in addition to running a productive business with satisfied customers.
     
  • Click to read Ms. Muth's biography and Executive Summary.

 

2006 – The Third Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Bunty Sood, "Integrated Dealer Systems, Inc."

 

  • [Bunty Sood]Bunty Soodan MBA Student from the Westchester campus. Bunty holds a BS in Computer Science from the University of Arkansas. For the last eight years, he has worked for Mercedes-Benz USA's Information Technology department managing several dealer technology projects including: development and delivery of sales lead integration with nine dealer system providers; deployment of Dealer Communication System to all franchised dealers; and dealer network enablement for implementation of a new Parts Supply Chain System. Prior to this, Bunty spent eight years at Acxiom Corporation, a global provider of Customer and Information Management solutions as a programmer, analyst and consultant working with clients on CRM, customer-identification, database-prospecting, customer-segmentation, and marketing campaign execution & ROI analysis.
     
  • IDSI is well positioned to leverage a promising business opportunity by bringing Information-Technology (IT) solutions - already used in various industries - to US based car-dealers.
     
  • Click to read Mr. Sood's Executive Summary.

 

2005 – The Second Annual Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Michael J. Simsik, "The Institute for Environmental Entrepreneurship"
 

  • [Michael J. Simsik]Michael J. Simsikan MBA student from the New York campus. Mike holds a BS from the University of California, Berkeley; an MF from the University of Michigan; and an Ed.D from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. His dissertation research examined conflicts between human livelihood needs and biodiversity conservation on the central highlands of Madagascar. Before pursuing his doctoral studies, Mike worked in southeastern Madagascar with the World Wildlife Fund where he was a rural development technical advisor to a rainforest conservation project. Just after completing his business plan, Mike was appointed the Associate Country Director for Peace Corps in Madagascar.
     
  • Institute for Environmental Entrepreneurship will provide low-interest loans to innovative Malagasy entrepreneurs who have creative ideas about how to simultaneously address social issues in their communities while also improving the quality of the natural environment.
     
  • Click to read Mr. Simsik's Executive Summary.

 

2004 – The Inaugural Pace Business Plan Competition

WINNER: Olivia H. Farr, "Girl Garage"

 

  • [Olivia Farr]Olivia H. Farr - an MBA student from the Westchester campus. Olivia holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and an MPA from New York University. She is a Director of Abtech Industries, Inc., a water technology company in Arizona, and an entrepreneur with over twenty years experience as a "Do It Yourself" auto mechanic.
     
  • Girl Garage is a new franchise company dedicated to providing high quality preventative auto maintenance, better customer service and a more pleasant and fun experience for the industry's chief customer, women.
     
  • Click to read Ms. Farr's Executive Summary.

 

"Opportunity through Entrepreneurship"SM