October 18-20 | Tucson, AZ

The Research Institution GAP Fund and Accelerator Program Summit

University of Dayton Alumni Fund Offers $175K To Viable Business Ideas

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October 18-20, 2023 / Tucson, AZ
The annual summit for research institution gap fund and accelerator programs, including proof of concept programs, startup accelerators, and university venture funds

The Story

Now in its seventh year, the competition offers nearly $175,000 in total support with a $25,000 top prize along with expert advice on transforming a great idea into a viable, marketable, innovative business plan. The competition was recognized last year as one of the 15 largest college business plan competitions by Under30CEO, a news and trend media site for young entrepreneurs. 

An online platform for music videos won the $25,000 first prize in the University of Dayton’s 2012-13 Business Plan Competition.

OurVinyl.TV is an online platform offering an intuitive way to discover, collect and share high quality music videos. Similar to Pandora, users can enter the name of an artist and stream content directly to their Apple device, television or Xbox. Team members included University of Dayton alumni Michael Reuther and Jordan Scheider, Allen Ralph and William Limratana.

Now in its seventh year, the competition offers nearly $175,000 in total support with a $25,000 top prize along with expert advice on transforming a great idea into a viable, marketable, innovative business plan. The competition was recognized last year as one of the 15 largest college business plan competitions by Under30CEO, a news and trend media site for young entrepreneurs.

The winner also is eligible for up to 25 hours of free legal advice from the University of Dayton Law School’s new Entrepreneurship and Intellectual Property Clinic.

“Our finalists this year were a technology-driven mix, including ventures offering online entertainment, retail and travel platforms plus mobile apps and a device that helps diabetics know when they can drive safely,” said Diane Sullivan, competition coordinator and associate professor of management.

Business plans were judged on whether they were feasible, profitable and outlined an innovative product worthy of going to market. Other winners announced at the School of Business Administration’s annual entrepreneurship banquet on April 9 were:

Second place ($15,000) — ChurchLink, with team members Robyn Bradford, University of Dayton student, William Bradford, Neil Peterson, Elizabeth Robertson.

Third place ($10,000) — MyEndoShop, with team members Dani DeTrude, University of Dayton student, Russell Gottesman and Sam Nissim.

Fourth place ($5,000) — TravelBlender, with team members Genevieve Catalano and George L’Heureax, University of Dayton alumnus.

Fifth place ($5,000) — SafeStart by AoneC, with team members Cathy Saettel, Anthony Saettel, and John Saettel, University of Dayton alumnus.

The business plan competition is designed to help entrepreneurs get to the next level of growth and development for their companies by offering expert advice on transforming a great idea into a viable plan for launching and growing innovative businesses, Sullivan said.

The top three finalists will have an opportunity to pitch their ideas to The Connor Foundation Seed Fund for up to an additional $50,000 in loans, Sullivan said. The Connor Foundation Seed Fund wants to support University alumni and students who are ready to take the next step in growing new businesses.

The University of Dayton is recognized nationally for its innovative programs for student entrepreneurs. For the seventh-straight year, the University of Dayton is ranked as having one of the top-20 undergraduate entrepreneurship programs in the in the nation by The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazine.

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