ECC Small Business Development Center oversees business plan competition

The inaugural Poised for Growth Business Plan Competition, organized by the Illinois Small Business Development Center at Elgin Community College, recently celebrated its first winner.

The celebration took place Tuesday, June 23, at 25N Coworking, 25 N. Third St. in Geneva.

"The purpose of the competition was to get existing businesses to plan for their company's growth in a deliberate way, and demonstrate their ability to manage that growth responsibly for three years," said Sybil Ege, ECC Business Analyst and SBDC Center Director who organized the competition.

Michelle Lipinski of Rubino Engineering, Inc. in Elgin took first place in the competition. The company was awarded a $10,000 cash prize and a consulting engagement offered through the Fox Valley Entrepreneurship Center, valued at $5,000. The prize money was provided through donations from local organizations.

The remaining finalists were; Ariel Ries of Smalltown Skate Shop; Matt and Chris Klein of Klein's Quality Produce, LLC; Dan Mancera of Cassandra Strings Inc.; Gary and Diana McNeil of D'Angelo Natural Spring Water Inc.; Anja Griess of Doggie Has It; Tom and Athena Seefurth of Chef Tom Inc.; Derik Bahl of Quality Systems Solutions Inc.; Gladys Moscoso of E-M Metal Fab. Corp.; and Laurie Huspen of Valuable Resources Co.

To participate, a business had to be headquartered in Illinois, be at least three years old, be classified as "for profit" and a "small business." Thirty-two qualified contestants applied between Jan. 12 and March 31, 2015.

The competition consisted of three phases. Phase one confirmed applicant eligibility. All who qualified progressed to phase two, where owners submitted a written plan detailing their tactics for the future growth of their business over the next three years. In the final phase, the top 10 contestants presented a brief presentation to a panel of four judges on June 9. The scores from phases two and three were added together to determine a final score for each of the contestants.

The SBDC hopes to interest three-to-five times more businesses to apply for next year's competition, which will be promoted at a more regional level.

The Illinois Small Business Development Center at Elgin Community College provides counseling services and business workshops to start-ups and existing small businesses. To learn more, visit elgin.edu/sbdc or call the IL SBDC at ECC at (847) 214-7488.