PR Newswire - Press Release
Local DC Area Undergrads Compete for Mentorship and Prestigious Award
05.08.07, 1:40 PM ET
WASHINGTON, May 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Global Student
Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) -- the "Heisman Trophy" for the top undergraduate
student business owners -- held its Washington DC regional competition for
2007 at the DC offices of Dickstein Shapiro LLP. The event was hosted by
Andrew Sherman, partner at Dickstein Shapiro and recognized by Fortune as one
of "America's Top Entrepreneurial Minds."
The GSEA program, which has attracted over 500 nominees from the US,
Canada, China, Australia, Spain, Mexico, Sweden and Puerto Rico, provides
recognition to the undergrad who is balancing the pressures of a full college
workload alongside the unique challenges of running a growing business.
The winner of the DC competition was Tim Mertes, founder of Altenergy
Corporation and student of University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill. Mertes
told his compelling entrepreneurial story of starting his first business in
his mid-teens, selling used cars across the United States. From here he grew
his next business to over $1 million in yearly revenue, qualifying him for
membership in the Entrepreneurs' Organization -- the world's most influential
community of entrepreneurs. Mertes shared that "without my EO friends and
mentors I wouldn't have been anywhere near as prepared as I am for this
competition."
Second place was awarded to Kailen Cage of Kailen's Candy Catering. No
stranger to awards competitions -- she's been competing since high school --
Kailen won the judges over with her drive, spirit and focus. Kailen has found
her niche in providing quality customer service -- something not generally
seen in the vending machine market. "I even have suggestion boxes on my
machines, so customers can tell me what they want to see in the machines,"
shared Kailen, "and my next goal is to design a new machine completely from
scratch."
The competition had a unique twist with live presentations to a panel of
judges, all entrepreneurs themselves with businesses ranging from legal
services to hobby retail stores. Each participant had 20 minutes to present on
their business, sales growth, their mission and obstacles overcome and then
the judges asked questions to dig deeper. Following the presentation, each
student was scored and the judges took the time to provide a sheet of feedback
and mentorship on how the student could improve their business.
Tim and Kailen will go on to compete at the GSEA Global Finals that take
place 1-3 November 2007 in Chicago. For more information on the Global Student
Entrepreneur Awards or to nominate an undergraduate student entrepreneur --
visit http://www.gsea.org.
ABOUT ENTREPRENEURS' ORGANIZATION
The Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO) -- for entrepreneurs only -- is a
global community that enriches members' lives through direct peer-to-peer
learning, connections to experts and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. EO is the
catalyst that enables entrepreneurs to learn from each other, leading to
greater business success and an enriched personal life. EO is comprised of
more than 6,400 members in 41 countries, with an average member age of 38 and
average annual revenue of US$13.1 million. The organization is committed to
building the world's most influential community of entrepreneurs. For more
information on EO or to apply for membership, visit http://www.eonetwork.org
or call +1.703.519.6700.
ABOUT MERCEDES-BENZ FINANCIAL
Mercedes-Benz Financial is a full-service automotive finance company that
exclusively provides Mercedes-Benz dealers and their customers with attractive
finance products that mirror the quality and broad scope of the Mercedes-Benz
product range.
With 10,800 people in 100 offices across 39 countries, and a portfolio of
more than $123 billion, Mercedes-Benz Financial is an integral part of the
third largest financial services provider in the world -- DaimlerChrysler
Financial Services Americas LLC.
"Mercedes-Benz Financial believes that EO's initiatives will help
communities around the world prosper through economic development," said
Jurgen Rochert, Vice-President, Mercedes-Benz Financial. "Both Mercedes-Benz
Financial and EO pride themselves on innovation, passion and a commitment to
excellence. I am confident that, in working together, we will help future
leaders succeed."
ABOUT SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY
Saint Louis University's John Cook School of Business is EO's senior
strategic partner for the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards. The School
originally founded the awards in 1988 as the Midwest Collegiate Entrepreneur
Awards program. Throughout the 1990s, SLU's Center for Entrepreneurial
Studies extended the program within the United States, expanding to Asia,
Europe and Latin America in the last five years. The Entrepreneurs'
Organization assumed the administration of the awards in January 2006. EO
looks forward to building upon SLU's strong foundation as it creates the
premiere global learning community for emerging entrepreneurs.
ABOUT DICKSTEIN SHAPIRO LLP
Dickstein Shapiro LLP, founded in 1953, is a multiservice law firm with
more than 400 attorneys in Washington, DC, New York, and Los Angeles. The
firm's clients include more than 100 of the Fortune 500 companies, start-up
ventures and entrepreneurs, multinational corporations, leading financial
institutions, charitable organizations, and government officials. The firm's
core practice groups -- Antitrust & Dispute Resolution, Business & Securities
Law, Corporate & Finance, Energy, Government Law & Strategy, Insurance
Coverage, and Intellectual Property -- involve the Firm in virtually every
major form of counseling, litigation, and advocacy. For additional
information, please visit dicksteinshapiro.com.
To interview winners please contact: Erik MacKinnon - Entrepreneurs'
Organization - emackinnon@eonetwork.org - +1.250.391.6035
SOURCE Entrepreneurs' Organization
-0- 05/08/2007
/CONTACT: Jennifer Pflasterer, +1-202-785-8940,
jpflasterer@plexusconsulting.com, for Entrepreneurs' Organization/
/Web site: http://www.gsea.org
http://www.eonetwork.org /
CO: Entrepreneurs' Organization; Dickstein Shapiro LLP; Mercedes-Benz
Financial; Altenergy Corporation; Kailen's Candy Catering; EO;
DaimlerChrysler Financial Services Americas LLC; Saint Louis University
ST: District of Columbia
IN: HED EDU
SU: POL AWD
LM-AR
-- DCTU068 --
3465 05/08/2007 13:38 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com
Copyright © 2004 PR Newswire All rights reserved.
