Countless hours of prep time and a year of hard work \u2013 inside and outside the classroom \u2013 came down to a five-minute chance to win $10,000 on May 6 in the Feliciano Center for Entrepreneurship\u2019s second annual student pitch competition.<\/p>\n
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When Dollars for Scholars was announced as the winner of the 2015 TeleBrands Inventors Day for Aspiring Entrepreneurs, the four victorious students said they were overwhelmed and feeling disbelief.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the moment I\u2019m more nervous than before,\u201d said Sebastian Swoboda, 22, a junior majoring in management. \u201cMy heart is beating like it won\u2019t be in my body anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dollars for Scholars designed an app that connects homeowners who need odd jobs done with college students eager for some extra cash. Swoboda and his teammates \u2013 Jean Camacho, 22, a junior biology major; Tim Kiss, 20, a junior English major; and Matt Szewczyk, 23, a senior marketing major \u2013 complimented the pitches by the other nine teams, saying all were very strong.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe on just this one day, we were the better guys,\u201d said Swoboda, who thanked the Feliciano Center founders Mimi and Eddie Feliciano; his professor, Jason Frasca; and classroom mentor Peter Kestenbaum. Kiss added, \u201cEverybody here is a winner because of the information we gained and the friendships we made.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even the 26 students who didn\u2019t win were feeling like champs after the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as I’m concerned, I won today,\u201d said Katie Sferra, a senior Anthropology major, recalling her past discomfort with public speaking and how her voice would shake. \u201cI never thought that I would be able to get up in front of a room of so many people, let alone (judges) Randy Jackson, Todd Pettengill, Anthony Sullivan and AJ Khubani, and barely be nervous. So for me, that’s a win, and I’ll get to have it for the rest of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jacqueline Busichio, a senior general humanities major, commented on a life-changing experience, while also crediting her professor, Ross Malaga: \u201cThese entrepreneurship courses were the best thing that could have happened to me in my four years of college. You have provided us with information and skills that we will use for the rest of our lives. This certificate has truly changed my life, and I am so excited to see what the future holds for our startup company.\u201d<\/p>\n
About 300 people attended the May 6 TeleBrands contest. The pitch competition<\/a> is the culmination of the Feliciano Center\u2019s nine-credit Certificate of Entrepreneurship<\/a> program. During the program, the students brainstorm an innovative solution to a real-world problem, validate\/test the idea, and learn how to market and pitch their product, service or app to customers. Each team was given at least $1,500 in seed capital \u2013 donated by Guy Falzarano, founder and CEO of Lightbridge Academy \u2013 to fund their validation and marketing efforts.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a really authentic entrepreneurial experience. I think the experience was as close to real life as possible in an academic setting,\u201d said Sferra, whose team, Woda Rain Gear, created a covering to protect shoes from rain, snow and mud that \u2013 unlike clunky boots \u2013 can be rolled up for convenient storage in a purse or briefcase.<\/p>\n View the <\/strong><\/em>official photo gallery<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n View gallery of candid photos<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n The competition is sponsored by TeleBrands, which provides the prize money and covers other costs. TeleBrands\u2019 CEO and president is AJ Khubani, a Montclair State alumnus who served as lead judge on May 6.<\/p>\n \u201cTeleBrands was born at MSU,\u201d said Khubani. \u201cI get excited every time I am on campus, especially when I have the opportunity to speak with students interested in entrepreneurship. I wish there was a program like this when I was in college, but I\u2019m thrilled that there is a program now at the Feliciano Center for Entrepreneurship.\u00a0 Montclair State University is doing a great job to foster entrepreneurship.\u201d<\/p>\n The other judges were Randy Jackson, former TV music competition judge; and Todd Pettengill, co-host of Todd & Jayde Show in the Morning on WPLJ. Anthony \u201cSully\u201d Sullivan, a TV pitchman most famous for OxiClean commercials, served as master of ceremonies.<\/p>\n The two professors who taught the advanced entrepreneurship courses were happy with how all 10 teams performed.<\/p>\n \u201cThe competition this year was very close. All of the teams were excellent and all worked extremely hard validating their business ideas and perfecting their pitches. On pitch day they exceeded our expectations,” said Malaga, an entrepreneurship professor who taught half the student teams.<\/p>\n Jason Frasca, entrepreneurship instructor and startup mentor, said, “These classes are an intense experience that requires commitment and dedication to learning the process of lean startup, customer validation and mastering presentation skills. Each one of these teams won before the contest began as evidenced by their performance on stage today. Unfortunately, only one team can walk away the official winner, though it was clear, any one of them deserved to be.”<\/p>\n Nearly nonstop practice \u2013 and some sleepless nights \u2013 were a hallmark of the final days of preparation for pitch day.<\/p>\n On May 6, Brittni Landers woke at 3:30 a.m. and, unable to sleep, began rehearsing her pitch. The senior marketing major tweeted soon after: \u201c4 AM & the excitement is real. #MSUpitch.\u201d The judges seemed to like NoFloe\u2019s product, with Khubani calling it the \u201cultimate\u201d ice scraper and adding, \u201cThere is a market for the ultimate of anything.\u201d<\/p>\n But in the end, NoFloe was not selected as the winner. Was the experience still worth it?<\/p>\n \u201cOne hundred percent,\u201d said Landers. \u201cI gained so much from this program. I still feel like a winner because I grew in so many ways. My public speaking has improved. I\u2019ve learned the value of networking. Even the process itself \u2013 all the tests and trials, they benefited my team and myself the most. Each one (tests and trials) was a new learning experience \u2026 every single thing we did was a new exploration.\u201d<\/p>\n For example, Landers said she had to learn about 3D printing \u2013 her team made a prototype of its product on the Feliciano Center\u2019s 3D printer \u2013 and also research the chemicals used in de-icing products. \u201cI was practicing out loud without the slides, going over what worked and what didn\u2019t. I just couldn\u2019t sleep. Hopefully, it will pay off,\u201d Weinberg, 22, said before the event started.<\/p>\n Weinberg\u2019s team, All-Star Tailgates, was the runner-up selected by the judges. Their product, The Pregamer, is a portable cooler with an extendable eight-foot table that can be used for beer pong, corn hole and other tailgating games. Weinberg, Afflitto and Busichio felt they received useful feedback from the judges that they can use to move their company forward.<\/p>\n Dennis Bone, founding director of the Feliciano Center, said the students\u2019 experience before, during and after May 6 were equally important.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is more than a class. The students\u2019 passion and drive to create something special has become the motivating factor in this endeavor,\u201d said Bone. \u201cWhile the audience saw the final pitches today, that was just the end of a year-long journey of the students\u2019 hard work, successes, failures and, most importantly, growth and self-discovery. Equally important is how the students who didn\u2019t win today react to that disappointment, and how they move forward from here, which is a very valuable lesson because entrepreneurs need to know how to bounce back from failure. I could not be more proud of these students.\u201d<\/p>\n Overall, the students took defeat in stride.<\/p>\n \u201cThis was really a great opportunity to set goals for myself,\u201d said Ashley Ormsby, 22, a senior management major. \u201cEven though we didn\u2019t win, we executed so well, so my goal was accomplished.\u201d Ormsby was on the Woda Rain Gear team with Sferra and Jonathan Maldonado, a junior general humanities major.<\/p>\n Senior Amara Higgins agreed. \u201cNo matter what happens, we\u2019re all winners,\u201d said Higgins, a dual major in finance and economics, who was on the SEY Finance team, a social entrepreneurship nonprofit that teaches the basics of financial literacy to high school students. Her teammates are Lorraine Muniz, senior, psychology; and Valerie Pugh, junior, biology.<\/p>\n Khubani summed it up: \u201cI was extremely pleased with the presentations at the 2015 TeleBrands Inventors Day for Aspiring Entrepreneurs. I hope the winners of the $10,000 from TeleBrands will use the winning funds to invest in their project. Most importantly, they should pursue their dreams. On behalf of myself, Randy Jackson, Todd Pettengill and Anthony Sullivan, I share that all four of the judges had a wonderful time and enjoyed being part of the MSU Feliciano Center program.\u201d<\/p>\n The other student teams that pitched on May 6 were:<\/p>\n View an <\/strong><\/em>NJTV\u00a0video<\/strong><\/em><\/a> about the event. <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n
\nHer team, NoFloe, had designed an all-in-one automobile accessory \u2013 basically an ice scraper on steroids with LED flashlight, extended reach, de-icing solution and insulated mitt. Landers\u2019 team members are David Di Somma, junior, political science; Joseph Ford, junior, justice studies; and Marcus Norman, junior, English.<\/p>\n
\nSome students, like Jessica Weinberg, barely slept the night before, saying they had been waiting a year for the pitch competition. Weinberg, a senior women and gender studies major, practiced with her teammates Busichio and Ryan Afflitto, a senior marketing major, until 11:30 p.m., and then rehearsed on her own until 5 a.m. She was awake at 7.<\/p>\n\n