"Rhythm," a trendy alcoholic beverage concept created by the RJS team, took first place honors last weekend at the Tenth Annual New Venture Competition sponsored by Aleris Rolled Products.

As scored by a panel of judges that included an entrepreneur, financial experts and a venture capitalist, the RJS written business plan and oral presentation were selected the best of three presented by teams of U of L IMBA and MBA students.

The annual College of Business competition highlights new concepts developed by student teams as they pursue funding to take their projects to the next level and ultimately to market.

The RJS team earned $8,000 for its first-place finish, with a chance to double its award if it agrees to invest its winnings into non-salary operating expenses for further development.

Rhythm, the team's premium 69-proof, citrus liqueur infused with energy-enhancing ingredients, would be marketed to a "dance until dawn" demographic as a cocktail component as well as a "shooter." (Judging did not include a taste test.)

Earlier in the week, the team was awarded an additional $500 for winning the ‘Elevator Pitch' portion of the competition. The RJS team includes IMBA students Joel Adams , Sara Babbitz , Greg Bernard , Robinson Brown and Stephen Herron . Its faculty coach is Dr. Van Clouse , Cobb Family Professor of Entrepreneurship. The team mentor is Suzanne Bergmeister , executive in residence in entrepreneurship. "They put all the pieces together," said judge Ed Nasief, Jr. , senior vice president, UBS Financial Services and a member of the college's Entrepreneurship Council (EC). "Their plan is sound and their expectations are reasonable."

The Automated Golf Solutions (AGS) team earned second-place honors and $5,000 for its Auto-Tee and Auto-Ad concept, which mates an automatic golf ball-teeing system with a unique advertising opportunity. Its target market is driving ranges and at-home use. AGS team members are Angela Barondeau, Sara Houlette and Patrick Kelty. The team was also awarded $500 for winning the Trade Show portion of the competition.

Dr. Clouse is the IMBA team's faculty coach and Paul van der Pol of Tripoli Consulting and a member of the EC is its mentor.

 

Third place and $3,000 were awarded to the DiaTech team for its Diabetes testing and transfer device, "MEMO." The concept simplifies patients' testing and reporting process using Bluetooth technology to send test results directly to disease management companies. Team members are MBA students Mathew Durst, Girish Shetty, Rangadham Chenannakesavula and Dan Dixon.

Assistant professor of entrepreneurship Bill Norton is their faculty coach and Bergmeister is their mentor.

All three teams will proceed to regional, national or international business plan competitions, with the ultimate goal participation in the "Moot Corp" competition generally regarded as the super bowl of collegiate new venture competitions (www.mootcorp.org). To date the college's teams have represented U of L in 46 regional, national and international competitions, reaching the finals 20 times and winning four.

In addition to Nasief, competition judges included EC members Martin McClelland, president of the Regent Group and Wright Steenrod, a principal in Chrysalis Ventures, and Ted Lehmann, vice president of finance for Aleris Rolled Products.

The Trade Show and Elevator Pitch portion of the competition was judged by Susan Weiss of Net Tango and Matt McGarvey of The Innovation Group, both of whom are EC members.

Members of the college's Entrepreneurship Council also provide financial support for the competition.