BENTONVILLE, Ark. – May 7, 2014 – Walmart, in collaboration with Net Impact, recently announced the winners of its annual Better Living Business Plan Challenge, a sustainable business plan competition for college and university students across the U.S. The Challenge provides students the unique opportunity to pitch their ideas to business and sustainability experts, get invaluable feedback, and win seed funding to pursue their sustainable business plans.
Earlier this year, 54 teams competed in eight regional competitions across the country. The regionalwinners faced off for the Grand, First Place, and Second Place Prizes on Thursday, April 10 in Bentonville. These semifinalists presented business plans on topics such as state of the art fuel efficiency technology, closed loop cotton recycling, and integrating compost tea into golf course maintenance, among others, and received individualized feedback from a judging panel that included both Walmart executives and a diverse group of business experts.
“This year's competition was especially strong with a wide range of backgrounds and proposals,” said Greg Trimble, Sr. Director, Global Energy Development & Reporting at Walmart. “All the teams delivered great plans with passion and enthusiasm - but Prepify stood out. It's very rewarding to play a part in helping these students deliver on their potential.” The three teams that came out on top of such a competitive and diverse pool were students from the University of Texas at Austin, the Kellogg School of Management, and Colorado State University. The finalists were announced Thursday, April 10 at a dinner after the competition day.
Donned in “Prepify” T-shirts and thick-framed glasses, the UT-Austin team stood out among the competition with Prepify, their online SAT prep platform that enables students of all income backgrounds to earn admission and merit scholarships from elite colleges and universities. Prepify walked away with the $20K Grand Prize.
The next team to win judges over was Better Together, the duo from Kellogg School of Management. Better Together works to improve the quality of life for seniors by allowing them to stay in their homes longer and proudly accepted the First Place Prize of $10K. Colorado State came in Second, gaining $5K toward their work using waste straw from rice farming in Vietnam to grow and sell mushrooms.
Congratulations to UT-Austin, Kellogg, Colorado State and all the regional winners!
2014 Walmart Better Living Business Plan Challenge Semifinalists:
Bainbridge Graduate Institute
Colorado State University
Kellogg School of Management
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Penn State
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
University of Arkansas, Little Rock
University of Texas at Austin
About Net Impact
Net Impact is the leading nonprofit that inspires a new generation to use their careers to tackle the world’s toughest social and environmental problems. We empower student and professional leaders to act locally through our vibrant chapter network and connect globally online and through our flagship conference. Together, we make a net impact that transforms our lives, our organizations, and the world.