More than 30 cadets and students are preparing to compete in the final round of this year’s Baker Business Bowl, after having cleared the semi-final.
That second round featured nine teams of would-be entrepreneurs, but now there are only five teams left standing.
In early November, each of the 9 teams were given five minutes to present their business ideas to a panel of business experts. After the teams pitched their ideas, the judges were given ten minutes to ask questions. Though the judges, competitors and a select few others were physically present — most of the audience watched the competition via Zoom.
The final business ideas include: designing and building an off-road BAJA vehicle, a 3D printing filament recycler that can also convert used bottles into filament, a one-handed Xbox controller, a solar-powered dehumidifier, and an app that allows you to schedule hair stylists to visit you at home much like Uber Eats.
The Baker Business Bowl is a program aimed at helping budding entrepreneurs who have an idea for a new product or service, and the desire to turn that idea into a business. The competition is open to cadets, evening undergraduate students and graduate students.
The final round of the Baker Business Bowl VI will be in April 2021.
Local cadets and students participating in the final round of the Baker Business Bowl include: Zachary Adkins and Jason Flowers of Irmo.
The winning team will be awarded $10,000 to help them start their business, while the second-place team will receive $5,000. The prize money is made possible by The Citadel Class of 1989.
The Citadel offers a military college education. Graduates are not required to serve in the military but about one-third of each class commission as officers in every branch of U.S. military service. The Citadel Graduate College offers 26 graduate degree programs, 25 graduate certificate programs and 10 evening undergraduate programs, through an all-evening schedule with many courses now available online.
