Ten Semi-Finalists Chosen for Cornell Business Plan Competition

The third annual Cornell Hospitality Business Plan Competition is well under way and ten student teams have been selected as semi-finalists.

Congratulations to the following teams for making it to the semi-finals!
1. Agora Hellenic Grill – Martin Andonov, ’13
2. Cairn Tented Resorts – Robert Frisch, (JGSM ’13) and Tara Lobo, ’15
3. InPlace – Pearl Somboonsong, ’14
4. SakuraTerra Hospitality – Shane Foster, (MMH ’13); Blake Golom, (MMH ’13); Zhuodan Huang, (MMH ’13); Satoko Nagahara, (MMH ’13); and Christopher O’Donnell, ’13
5. Solace – Spencer Stein, ’14
6. Terminal Tee – Jessica Coulson, ’13 and Juan Ramirez, ’13
7. The Forum – Navine Chhuon, (MMH ’13); Nora Hansanugrum, (JGSM ’13); Qiaoling Loh, ’13; and Enlin Zhou, (MMH ’13)
8. Top Gun – Allen English, (MMH ’13)
9. Touch&Go – Cathy Aronin, ’14 and Andrew Paget, (JGSM ’13)
10. Voila Mobile Creperie – Tareq Ali, ’13; Ethan Joseph, ’13; and Michael Perlman, ’13

Over twenty teams submitted executive summaries in November and the remaining ten teams will now have to submit full business plans by the end of February. Three finalists will then be selected to make final presentations in April 2013 to a panel of hospitality executives and venture capitalists. The winning team will receive a cash prize of $15,000 with the possibility of also receiving an additional $5,000 if their business plan addresses issues related to disabilities or environmental sustainability. The Business Plan Competition is made possible through the generous support of the Sun Family, Stanley ’00 and his parents Dennis and Betty. Additional support has also been given by the Stein Family for the Disability and Environmental Sustainability Solutions prize. To learn more about the competition, visit https://sha.cornell.edu/faculty-research/centers-institutes/pihe/engagement/competition/
competition/.